Jump to content

Run to You (Bryan Adams song)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

"Run to You"
Single by Bryan Adams
from the album Reckless
B-side"I'm Ready"
ReleasedOctober 18, 1984
RecordedMarch–mid 1984
StudioLittle Mountain Sound (Vancouver, Canada)
GenreRock
Length3:53
LabelA&M
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Bryan Adams singles chronology
"This Time"
(1983) 		"Run to You"
(1984) 		"Somebody"
(1985)
Music video
"Run to You" on YouTube

"Run to You" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Bryan Adams. It was released in 1984 as the lead single from his fourth album, Reckless (1984). The track deals with the subject of infidelity, and is sung from the perspective of a man who declares that he will continue to "run to" his seductive mistress over his faithful partner; critic Ira Robbins for CMJ called it a "cheating classic".[1] In the accompanying music video, however, Adams portrays his guitar as the object of desire.[2]

The song topped the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart and peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100. It has appeared on all of his compilation albums. The single was certified Gold in Canada in 1985.[3]

Writing and recording

[edit]

After a tour in Asia, Adams started the recording for Reckless.[4] The recording for "Run to You" started on March 27, 1984, at Little Mountain Sound, Vancouver, Canada and continued through the middle of the year.[4] It was mixed on September 21, 1984, in New York by Jim Vallance.[4] The song, written January 10, 1983, became the last song written for Reckless.[4] Adams and Vallance originally wrote the song for Blue Öyster Cult, but the group turned it down. The song was then offered to .38 Special, who also declined to record the song.[5]

Adams wrote the riff by jamming on his guitar, but never took it seriously because he had added a "really silly...background vocal part" to the demo that obscured the riff's potential. After writing the rest of the song and deciding to record it, he brought his entire band into the studio, and he said hearing the whole band play it "was like hearing the song for the first time. And that first take is what you hear on the album now."[6] The UK 12 inch single (AMY224) states on the rear of the sleeve that contains a "specially remixed version" and that the "original version appears on the A+M album Reckless AMA5013". However, the label states that the track is taken from the album with a running time of 3min 59 sec.

Release and reception

[edit]

"Run to You" was released worldwide on October 18, 1984, and became one of the most successful songs from Reckless on the American rock charts and arguably one of Bryan Adams's most recognizable and popular songs.[4] It was his first number one song on the Billboard Top Rock Tracks chart, a position it held for four weeks, and it spent an additional five weeks at number two (all behind Don Henley's "Boys of Summer"). It also reached number six on the Billboard Hot 100.[7] "Run to You" reached the top 20 on the Canadian singles chart and remained there for seven weeks, peaking at number four. It held the highest Canadian chart position Adams had attained at the time of release and became his third top-20 single in Canada.[8] It was nominated for a Juno award for song of the year in Canada. "Run to You" was released the following month in Ireland and peaked at number eight and reached number 11 on the UK Singles Chart. It was his second single to chart in Europe.[9][10]

Billboard said it was "Full-blast rock" and that "Adams' raspy attack wrestles pop hooks into submission."[11] Stewart Mason from AllMusic said "Run to You" was the first of the album's six top 30 hits, and in retrospect, "one of the weakest of the lot. Although the song has a thundering chorus, the kind that sounds truly excellent blasting through FM speakers, there is quite literally not much else to the song: of the song's nearly four-minute length, over half of the song is devoted to repeats of the chorus and an unimaginative instrumental breakdown that leads into a seemingly endless vamp on the chorus to fade."[12] The long instrumental is indicative of the theme of the music video where the protagonist is serenading his guitar as the object of his affection.

In 1984, the song was promoted heavily in an episode of the NBC sitcom Double Trouble. The song was also featured in the 2002 video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City.

Music video

[edit]

The music video was shot in London, England and later Los Angeles.[13] Directed by Steve Barron, it was nominated for the 1985 MTV Video Music Awards in five different categories: Best Direction, Best Special Effects, Best Art Direction, Best Editing, and Best Cinematography. While the song did not win any of the awards, it has received more MTV Video Music Award nominations than any other of Adams' songs.[14] The English actress Lysette Anthony appears in the video.

Personnel

[edit]

Charts

[edit]

Certifications

[edit]
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)[22] Gold 50,000^
Denmark (IFPI Danmark)[23] Gold 45,000‡
United Kingdom (BPI)[24] Platinum 600,000‡

^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Rage version

[edit]
"Run to You"
Single by Rage
from the album Saviour
Released1992
GenreDance
Length3:41
LabelIntercord
Songwriter(s)
  • Jim Vallance
  • Bryan Adams
Producer(s)
  • Barry Leng
  • Duncan Hannant
Rage singles chronology
"Run to You"
(1992) 		"Why Don't You"
(1993)

English urban dance act Rage (known as En-Rage in some European countries) covered "Run to You" in 1992. After having failed to chart when released the first time in May 1992, the single gained an unexpected boost in popularity due to controversy in the UK music media about the band's name: they shared their name with a German heavy metal band who had been recording under the same since 1984. After changing their name to En-Rage in some European countries to avoid legal action from the German band, they re-released the single six months later, and this time, it peaked at number three in the UK (eight places higher than the Bryan Adams version) in November 1992.[25]

Track listings

[edit]
  • CD-maxi
  1. "Run to You" (7-inch) – 3:41
  2. "Run to You" (instrumental) – 3:57
  3. "Run to You (12-inch) – 5:43
  4. "Ease the Pain" (full) – 5:02

Charts

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ Robbins, Ira (January 1999). "Bryan Adams". CMJ New Music Monthly (65). CMJ Holdings, Corp.: 58.
  2. ^ Eddy, Chuck (September 17, 2014). "100 Best Singles of 1984". Rolling Stone. Retrieved June 16, 2015.
  3. ^ "CRIA Certifications". Canadian Recording Industry Association. Archived from the original on June 5, 2012. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  4. ^ a b c d e "Album notes for Anthology by Dave Marsh (CD booklet). A&M Records (A&M 5613)". October 18, 2005.
  5. ^ Tunis, Walter (January 13, 2009). "Around the world with Bryan Adams". Malaysia Star. Archived from the original on June 14, 2012. Retrieved July 31, 2019.
  6. ^ "Run To You - Bryan Adams reveals who the song/riff was originally written for..." YouTube. August 2014. Retrieved November 17, 2021.
  7. ^ "Artist Chart History (singles) - Bryan Adams". Allmusic. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  8. ^ "Bryan Adams - Canadian Album Chart". RPM. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  9. ^ "Bryan Adams". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  10. ^ "Irish Album Chart". irish-charts.com. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  11. ^ "Reviews". Billboard. November 3, 1984. p. 82. Retrieved February 10, 2023.
  12. ^ "Run to You". Allmusic. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  13. ^ "The Life Of Bryan" (in Danish). -skolarbete.nu. Archived from the original on March 28, 2013. Retrieved June 24, 2008.
  14. ^ "Rock On The Net: Bryan Adams". Rock On The Net. September 5, 1986. Retrieved September 1, 2008.
  15. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (Illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 12. ISBN 0-646-11917-6. N.B. The Kent Report chart was licensed by ARIA between 1983 and June 19, 1988.
  16. ^ "Bryan Adams – Run to You" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  17. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Bryan Adams" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40.
  18. ^ a b "The Irish Charts – Search Results – Run to You". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  19. ^ "Bryan Adams – Run to You". Top 40 Singles.
  20. ^ "Official Charts > Bryan Adams". The Official UK Charts Company. Retrieved January 25, 2016.
  21. ^ "1985 The Year in Music & Video: Top Pop Singles". Billboard. Vol. 97, no. 52. December 28, 1985. p. T-21.
  22. ^ "Canadian single certifications – Bryan Adams – Run to You". Music Canada.
  23. ^ "Danish single certifications – Bryan Adams – Run to You". IFPI Danmark. Retrieved August 28, 2024.
  24. ^ "British single certifications – Bryan Adams – Run to You". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved November 7, 2024.
  25. ^ a b "Rage: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 20, 2021.
  26. ^ Ryan, Gavin (2011). Australia's Music Charts 1988–2010 (PDF ed.). Mt Martha, Victoria, Australia: Moonlight Publishing. p. 228.
  27. ^ "En-Rage – Run to You" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  28. ^ "Rage %5BDance%5D – Run to You" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  29. ^ "Top RPM Dance/Urban: Issue 1766." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  30. ^ "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 9, no. 47. November 21, 1992. p. 23. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
  31. ^ "European Dance Radio Top 25" (PDF). Music & Media. February 13, 1993. p. 8. Retrieved November 2, 2021.
  32. ^ Nyman, Jake (2005). Suomi soi 4: Suuri suomalainen listakirja (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN 951-31-2503-3.
  33. ^ "En-Rage – Run to You" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  34. ^ "Nederlandse Top 40 – week 52, 1992" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  35. ^ "Rage %5BDance%5D – Run to You" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  36. ^ "Rage %5BDance%5D – Run to You". Singles Top 100. Retrieved May 2, 2021.
  37. ^ "En-Rage – Run to You". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  38. ^ "Rage Chart History (Bubbling Under Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  39. ^ "Year End Charts: Top Singles". Music Week. January 16, 1993. p. 8.
  40. ^ "Jaaroverzichten 1993" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  41. ^ "The RPM Top 50 Dance Tracks of 1993". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
  42. ^ "1993 Year-End Sales Charts" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 10, no. 51/52. December 18, 1993. p. 15. Retrieved February 1, 2020.
  43. ^ "Top 100 Singles–Jahrescharts 1993" (in German). GfK Entertainment. Retrieved September 15, 2019.
[edit]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Run_to_You_(Bryan_Adams_song)&oldid=1256017316"