"Just Another Day in Paradise" is a song co-written and recorded by American
country music
Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...
singer
Phil Vassar that reached the top of the ''
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 ...
''
Hot Country Singles & Tracks
Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States.
This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...
chart, becoming Vassar's first Number One as an artist. It was released in June 2000 as the second single from his
self-titled debut album. It also peaked at #35 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 making it a minor crossover hit and is Vassar's highest peaking song on the chart. The song was written by Vassar and
Craig Wiseman.
Content
The song tells the story of a couple raising a family, and dealing with all the mundane domestic distractions, from
sour milk
Soured milk denotes a range of food products produced by the acidification of milk. Acidification, which gives the milk a tart taste, is achieved either through bacterial fermentation or through the addition of an acid, such as lemon juice or vineg ...
and a broken
washing machine
A washing machine (laundry machine, clothes washer, washer, or simply wash) is a home appliance used to wash laundry. The term is mostly applied to machines that use water as opposed to dry cleaning (which uses alternative cleaning fluids and ...
to a stack of bills.
Critical reception
Deborah Evans Price, of ''
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 ...
'' magazine, reviewed the song favorably, calling it "a celebration of the joys and challenges of the American family." She goes on to say that Vassar has a "strong, warm voice, and he does so much more than simply sing a song. He injects it with personality and emotion - and he truly brings it to life".
['']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 ...
'', June 3, 2000
Music video
The music video was directed by Gerry Wenner, and premiered on CMT on June 29, 2000, during "The CMT Delivery Room". The video shows Vassar filming their family on a
camcorder
A camcorder is a self-contained portable electronic device with video and recording as its primary function. It is typically equipped with an articulating screen mounted on the left side, a belt to facilitate holding on the right side, hot-swa ...
at a house, such as a closeup shot of the eggs, a shot of burnt toast, as well as the mother preparing breakfast for the kids, looking at sour milk, sitting on a broken washing machine, having pizza by candlelight, and the family preparing for bed. Throughout the video, Vassar sings and plays piano on a beach, and singing in a living room, and on the same beach, along with their family spending time on the same beach. At the end of the video, the house is revealed to be a film set on the beach and looks just like a toy, and Vassar is sitting in the kitchen.
Chart positions
"Just Another Day in Paradise" debuted at number 65 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot Country Singles & Tracks for the week of June 10, 2000.
Year-end charts
Notes
Parodies
This song was parodied by country parodist
Cledus T. Judd
James Barry Poole (born December 18, 1964) is an American country music artist who records under the name Cledus T. Judd. Known primarily for his parodies of popular country songs, he has been called the "Weird Al" Yankovic of country music, and ...
on his album ''
Cledus Envy
''Cledus Envy'' is a 2002 album released by country music parodist Cledus T. Judd, released on Monument Records. It features "Leave You Laughin'", Judd's first serious song. Phil Vassar contributes a spoken line to the end of "Just Another Day in ...
'' under the title "Just Another Day in Parodies". Vassar makes a spoken cameo at the end of Judd's parody.
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Just Another Day In Paradise (Song)
2000 singles
2000 songs
Phil Vassar songs
Songs written by Phil Vassar
Songs written by Craig Wiseman
Arista Nashville singles
Song recordings produced by Byron Gallimore