"3AM" (stylized as "3 am" on the album and "3 AM" on the single) is the third

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

and the third track from

Matchbox 20 Matchbox Twenty (also known as Matchbox 20 and MB20) is an American rock band formed in Orlando, Florida, in 1995. The group currently consists of Rob Thomas (lead vocals, guitar, keyboards), Brian Yale (bass guitar), Paul Doucette (drums ...

's debut album, ''

Yourself or Someone Like You ''Yourself or Someone Like You'' is the debut album by American rock band Matchbox 20. It was released on October 1, 1996, by Lava Records and Atlantic Records. Composition and release The album features a sound similar to traditional rock and p ...

''. The song topped the Canadian ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Top Singles chart for two weeks and the US ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Adult Pop Songs The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen B ...

chart for ten weeks; it was not eligible to chart on the ''Billboard''

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

at the time due to not receiving a physical release in the United States. Outside North America, "3AM" reached number 31 in Australia and became a minor hit in Europe.

Background and content

"3AM" was written by Rob Thomas, Jay Stanley, John Leslie Goff and Brian Yale while performing together in the early 1990s band

Tabitha's Secret Tabitha's Secret was an American rock band formed in March 1990 in Orlando, Florida. It was originally composed of lead vocalist Rob Thomas, John Goff and Jay Stanley on guitar, Brian Yale on bass (Colin Chrisman was the original bass player), ...

. The song was first recorded by that band on its debut EP, ''Tabitha's Secret?''. The lyrics are inspired by Thomas as an adolescent having to live with a mother fighting to survive cancer. In 1997, after the other members of Tabitha's Secret left to form Matchbox 20, Goff and Stanley released other early recordings of the band (including 3 A.M.) on ''

Don't Play with Matches ''Don't Play with Matches'' is the debut album of the American Alternative rock band Tabitha's Secret. The tracks were recorded in 1993–1995, although the album was released in 1997. It is thought that it was released to capitalise on the popul ...

''.

Music video

The video (directed by Gavin Bowden) was shot at the 99 Cents Only Store at Lankershim Blvd & Whipple St. in

North Hollywood, California North Hollywood is a neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, located in the San Fernando Valley. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, the El Portal Theatre, several art galleries, and the Academy of TV Arts and Sciences. The North H ...

in September 1997. It features the band sitting on sides of a street next to some telephone booths. A

supermarket A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. This kind of store is larger and has a wider selection than earli ...

is also shown. The video switches between color video clips and black-and-white still images. During the introduction and the third verse of the song, Thomas walks in the middle of the street with some construction signs and lights. During the third verse, a

Pontiac Trans Am The Pontiac Firebird is an American automobile that was built and produced by Pontiac from the 1967 to 2002 model years. Designed as a pony car to compete with the Ford Mustang, it was introduced on February 23, 1967, five months after GM's Che ...

with a bare-chested man and a woman inside stops in front of Thomas. The man gets out, revealing a catheter in his chest, receives three cigarettes from Thomas and then gets back in the Trans Am. Finally, during the last two choruses, the band is shown playing their instruments (presumably in the lobby of a hotel or office building) as rain can be seen falling from a large window behind them. The video ends with an image of Thomas standing next to the telephone booths.

Track listings

UK 7-inch single :A. "3 AM" – 3:46 :B. "Push" (acoustic) – 4:19 European and Australian CD single # "3 AM" – 3:46 # "Push" (acoustic) – 4:19 # "Shame" – 3:35

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

External links

Facts about Matchbox Twenty songs
{{DEFAULTSORT:3 A.M. (Matchbox Twenty Song) 1996 songs 1997 singles Atlantic Records singles Lava Records singles Matchbox Twenty songs RPM Top Singles number-one singles Song recordings produced by Matt Serletic Songs about loneliness Songs written by Rob Thomas (musician)