"Leaving Las Vegas" is a song written by

David Baerwald David Francis Baerwald (born July 11, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and musician. Career Baerwald first came to prominence in 1986 as one half of the duo David & David, with David Ricketts. David and David's sole album, ' ...

and performed by American musician, singer, songwriter and actress

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, pop, country, folk, and blues. She has released eleven studio albums, five compilations and three li ...

, that appears on Crow's debut album, ''

Tuesday Night Music Club ''Tuesday Night Music Club'' is the debut album from American singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow, released on August 3, 1993. The first two singles from the album were not particularly successful. However, the album gained attention after the success ...

'' (1993). It charted within the top 60 in the United States and the top 30 in Canada. Crow performed the song on her live album '' Sheryl Crow and Friends: Live from Central Park''. While the release date likely reflects its physical availability as a single or an official date tied to radio promotion, "Leaving Las Vegas" was in regular rotation at such influential radio stations as KIIS-FM in Los Angeles as early as mid-May 1994—an early sign that Crow would make inroads at Top 40 radio at a time of significant transition for the radio format.

Title

The song's title was based on the semi-autobiographical 1990 novel of the same name by the late John O'Brien, who was a good friend of one of the song's writers,

. However, on a performance on the ''

Late Show with David Letterman The ''Late Show with David Letterman'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS, the first iteration of the The Late Show (franchise), ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by ...

'', Sheryl Crow stated that the song was "autobiographical." This infuriated Baerwald and the rest of the original Tuesday Night Music Club who helped write most of the album. Though O'Brien's suicide occurred soon after this incident, his family came forward to state there was no connection.

Critical reception

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

from ''

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 ...

'' wrote, "It's time for the critically revered Crow to finally get a moment of radio fame. Bright spot on her "''

''" album is a kicky blend of acoustic strumming and percussion. Crow's voice is raw and incredibly expressive, which helps the song's cinematic lyrics pack the powerful punch they do." Troy J. Augusto from ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' stated, "This slow-rolling number sports nifty acoustic guitar, dramatic lyrics and loads of Crow’s character-filled, rough-and-tumble vocal stylings. Plus she’s cute as a button and is a natural on stage. What more could you want?" Linda Ryan from the ''

Gavin Report The ''Gavin Report'' was a San Francisco-based radio industry trade publication. The publication was founded by radio performer Bill Gavin in 1958. Its Top 40 listings were used for many years by programmers to decide content of programs. The pu ...

'' noted that the track "has a slow, hypnotic groove that entranced almost as thoroughly as her dusty,

whiskey Whisky or whiskey is a type of distilled alcoholic beverage made from fermented grain mash. Various grains (which may be malted) are used for different varieties, including barley, corn, rye, and wheat. Whisky is typically aged in wooden cask ...

-soaked vocals." Pan-European magazine ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later ...

'' commented, "Miss Crow doesn't believe in

Elvis Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977), or simply Elvis, was an American singer and actor. Dubbed the "Honorific nicknames in popular music, King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as Cultural impact of Elvis Presley, one ...

' tribute to the capital of showbizz, and gets out of town on an adventurous funky synth bassline a lot of

singer/songwriter A singer-songwriter is a musician who writes, composes, and performs their own musical material, including lyrics and melodies. In the United States, the category is built on the folk-acoustic tradition, although this role has transmuted thr ...

s would not dare to think of." A reviewer from ''People (magazine), People Magazine'' described it as "a disillusioned, neon-dazzled desert tune".

Music video

The song was accompanied by Crow's first ever promotional video. It was directed by David Hogan, who also shot her video for "All I Wanna Do (Sheryl Crow song), All I Wanna Do". The 1993 video shows Crow performing the song with her guitar in the dark, with only some parts of her face lit up. Other scenes include famous Vegas images such as dancers and Elvis Presley lookalikes walking on a highway, "leaving Las Vegas", and Peter Berg driving with Crow in the passenger seat of his convertible. The video uses an edited version of the song.

Track listing

* UK cassette single (Cat. No. 580 644-4) # "Leaving Las Vegas" # "Leaving Las Vegas" – Live in Nashville * UK CD 1 (Cat. No. 580 645-2) # "Leaving Las Vegas" # "I Shall Believe" – Live at the Borderline # "What I Can Do for You" – Live at the Borderline * UK CD 2 (Cat. No. 580 647-2) # "Leaving Las Vegas" – Live in Nashville # "No One Said It Would Be Easy" – Live in Nashville # "The Na-Na Song" – Live in Nashville

Charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leaving Las Vegas (Song) 1993 songs 1994 singles Music videos directed by David Hogan Sheryl Crow songs Song recordings produced by Bill Bottrell Songs about California Songs about Las Vegas Songs written by Brian MacLeod (U.S. musician) Songs written by David Baerwald Songs written by David Ricketts Songs written by Kevin Gilbert (musician) Songs written by Sheryl Crow