"Somewhere Only We Know" is a song composed and performed by English

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

band Keane, officially released as the first single from their debut album, '' Hopes and Fears'' (2004). The single peaked at number three on the UK Singles Chart during its first week of sales, becoming the band's

signature song A signature (; from , "to sign") is a depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. Signatures are often, but not always, handwritten or styliz ...

and biggest hit single to date. In 2013, the song was covered by

Lily Allen Lily Rose Beatrice Allen (born 2 May 1985) is an English singer, songwriter, and actress. List of awards and nominations received by Lily Allen, Her accolades include a Brit Award, alongside nominations for a Grammy Award and a Laurence Olivi ...

for a John Lewis Christmas advert; Allen's version reached number-one in the UK Singles Chart. In 2022 it was covered by Rhianne.

Composition and recording

The first demo was composed by

Tim Rice-Oxley Timothy James Rice-Oxley (born 2 June 1976) is an English musician, best known for being the keyboardist, backing vocalist and songwriter of the alternative rock band Keane. In 2010, he formed a side-project, Mt. Desolation, with his Keane b ...

in about 2001. Rice-Oxley said that the song came from "hammering away on the piano" explaining It was first played on the guitar just before Dominic Scott left the band, and recorded as a demo the same year with a

Yamaha CP-70 The Yamaha CP-70 is an electric piano manufactured by Yamaha Corporation between 1976 and 1985. The instrument was based on earlier electric piano technology, but took advantage of improved pickups along with the company's longstanding experienc ...

instead of the guitar. Keane recorded the final version in 2003 at the Helioscentric Studios,

Rye, East Sussex Rye is a town and civil parish in the Rother District, Rother district of East Sussex, England, from the sea at the confluence of three rivers: the River Rother (Eastern), Rother, the River Tillingham, Tillingham and the River Brede, Brede. An ...

for the album. Keane also played this song at the

Live 8 Live 8 was a string of benefit concerts that took place on 2 July 2005, in the G8 states and South Africa. They were timed to precede the G8 conference and summit held at the Gleneagles Hotel in Auchterarder, Scotland, from 6–8 July 2005 ...

concert in London, along with the single " Bedshaped". A demo version of "Somewhere Only We Know" was leaked into the internet in 2004. This version features a different length (4:24) and an extra

bridge A bridge is a structure built to Span (engineering), span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or railway) without blocking the path underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, whi ...

. Chaplin's shouts near the coda of the final version do not feature in the demo. "Somewhere Only We Know" is a traditional piano rock song. The piano is the most prominent instrument due to its harmonic and rhythmic role. It is played in quavers throughout the whole song, holding the tempo and the rhythmic pattern. The studio version is recorded in 87 bpm, and follows a

time signature A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates th ...

– the most commonly used in traditional rock songs. It is in the key of

A major A major is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has three sharps. Its relative minor is F-sharp minor and its parallel minor is A minor. The A major scale is: Changes needed for the ...

. The song form can be analysed as ABAB CBCB, a variation of the

strophic form Strophic form – also called verse-repeating form, chorus form, AAA song form, or one-part song form – is a song structure in which all verses or stanzas of the text are sung to the same music. Contrasting song forms include through-composed, ...

. The verse (A) chord progression is a plain (I-II-V), one of the most used chord progressions in music; the chorus (B) presents a (VI-III-IV-V) progression; the variation of the verse section (C) presents a (II-III-IV-V) progression. The bassline was recorded by Rice-Oxley. When played live (up until 2007 with the arrival of bassist Jesse Quin), this song uses a pre-recorded bass, which is played in an

Apple An apple is a round, edible fruit produced by an apple tree (''Malus'' spp.). Fruit trees of the orchard or domestic apple (''Malus domestica''), the most widely grown in the genus, are agriculture, cultivated worldwide. The tree originated ...

PowerBook G4 The PowerBook G4 is a series of notebook computers manufactured, marketed, and sold by Apple Computer between 2001 and 2006 as part of its PowerBook line of notebooks. The PowerBook G4 runs on the RISC-based PowerPC G4 processor, designed by t ...

. The 16-beat rhythm was made by Hughes.

History

The song was mixed by

Mark "Spike" Stent Mark "Spike" Stent (born 3 August 1965) is an English record producer and mixing engineer who has worked with many international artists including Madonna, Marshmello, U2, Beyoncé, Björk, Depeche Mode, Echo & the Bunnymen, Grimes, Ed Sheeran, ...

. Three-inch pocket CDs were released as a limited edition of 1000, containing the

B-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of phonograph record, vinyl records and Compact cassette, cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a Single (music), single usually ...

"Snowed Under" as well as links to receive a

polyphonic Polyphony ( ) is a type of musical texture consisting of two or more simultaneous lines of independent melody, as opposed to a musical texture with just one voice ( monophony) or a texture with one dominant melodic voice accompanied by chords ...

ringtone via

SMS Short Message Service, commonly abbreviated as SMS, is a text messaging service component of most telephone, Internet and mobile device systems. It uses standardized communication protocols that let mobile phones exchange short text messages, t ...

. These copies are now valued at £20 due to their rarity. This song was the first Keane item released on vinyl format. The records were numbered and limited to 5,000 copies, only sold in the United Kingdom. The B-side "Walnut Tree" was recorded during the James Sanger sessions at Les Essarts, Normandy, France. The song's lyrics refer to Manser's Shaw, a place in

Battle A battle is an occurrence of combat in warfare between opposing military units of any number or size. A war usually consists of multiple battles. In general, a battle is a military engagement that is well defined in duration, area, and force co ...

that Keane members used to visit in their childhood days and the site of the

Battle of Hastings The Battle of Hastings was fought on 14 October 1066 between the Norman-French army of William, Duke of Normandy, and an English army under the Anglo-Saxon King Harold Godwinson, beginning the Norman Conquest of England. It took place appr ...

, fought on 14 October 1066. According to Rice-Oxley, they wrote the song after returning to Battle from London after failing to achieve musical success. The "pathway" referenced in the song refers to the trail between the house of Rice-Oxley's parents and the local pub. Richard Hughes, Keane's drummer, offered the following explanation of the song on Chris Flynn's fansite:

B-sides

; Snowed Under The song talks about a place called "Manser's Shaw" in

Battle, East Sussex Battle is a town and civil parishes in England, civil parish in the Districts of England, district of Rother District, Rother in East Sussex, England. It lies south-east of London, east of Brighton and east of Lewes. Hastings is to the south- ...

where the band used to spend their childhood days. It was inspired by a poem. "Snowed Under" was the only B-side played live during 2004, 2005, and early 2006, because of its appearance on the CD+DVD version of '' Hopes and Fears'', as well as in the

Japan Japan is an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean off the northeast coast of the Asia, Asian mainland, it is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan and extends from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea ...

ese version of it. Like "Walnut Tree", this song was mixed by Andy Green. "Snowed Under" also titles the band's debut album, with the line "someone who understands your hopes and fears". ; Walnut Tree The lyrics talk about waiting for someone under a walnut tree, but Rice-Oxley has not given this meaning. It appeared on the '' Music from the OC: Mix 2'' soundtrack. James Sanger is credited on this song for his contributions at his studios in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. This song was mixed by Andy Green.

Music videos

There are three

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

s for this song: ; UK version Keane appear coming out of a studio and taking a

taxi A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a Driving, driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of thei ...

. Then they come across a forest where the "simple thing" aliens live (called Roxleys by some fans). Each Roxley represents the spirit of a tree. This international video was directed by Corin Hardy, produced by Kit Hawkins for White House Pictures, and shot between 22 and 23 November 2003. Hardy was influenced by the movie ''

Princess Mononoke is a 1997 Japanese animated historical drama, historical fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki. Set in the Muromachi period of Japanese history, the film follows Ashitaka, a young Emishi prince who journeys west to cure his curs ...

'' and created the "simple thing" aliens based on the "Kodama" appearing in that film. The video saga starts with an image of a backstage door shortly before Keane walk through it with Tom holding a

snare SNARE proteins – "Soluble NSF attachment protein, SNAP REceptors" – are a large protein family consisting of at least 24 members in yeasts and more than 60 members in mammalian and plant cells. The primary role of SNARE proteins is to m ...

. They get into a British taxi cab. A little spirit (a "simple thing" alien) is inside the taxi. Then they arrive in a wooded area (in East Sussex, owned by Anthony Becvar, an acquaintance of Corin Hardy). The "simple thing" alien remains in the cab. They began walking through the forest, "an empty land", across a "fallen tree" and finally arrive at a stream. They are now playing the song in the stream. Near the end of the song, the little spirits, Roxleys, appear again and get closer to Keane. Finally, lights representing their hearts shine. ; United States version 1 The video is the same without the "simple thing" aliens. ; United States version 2 and other countries This video was shot on 29 May 2004 in Hollywood, California, and directed by The Saline Project. The song kicks off and Keane are playing a gig on the stage with a photograph of a forest behind them. Soon, the photograph becomes real, and Keane are playing in the forest it represents. After the chorus, the forest becomes a city, and buildings start to grow. In the last chorus, it starts raining before converting into a forest again. The forest disappears, and then Keane are playing again on the stage.

Cover art

The cover art, designed by Madefire and Alex Lake, represents maple leaves falling, as on the music video. It also relates to the themes of the B-sides, "Walnut Tree" and "Snowed Under". Although neither of these songs appear on the ''Hopes and Fears'' album, they are relatively well known due to live performances and soundtracks. The letters reading "KEANE" are also in the background, featuring the red leaves.

Track listings

Enhanced CD single Catalogue number: CID849
The CD included two different wallpapers for the PC and the official UK release music video. # "Somewhere Only We Know" – 3:58 # "Snowed Under" – 3:51 # "Walnut Tree" – 3:40 # "Somewhere Only We Know" (CD-ROM video) – 3:56 UK 7-inch vinyl Catalogue number: IS849 # "Somewhere Only We Know" # "Snowed Under" UK 3-inch pocket CD Released 19 July 2004. It included links for download polyphonic and real ringtones. # "Somewhere Only We Know" # "Snowed Under"

Alternative versions

German enhanced CD single Released 26 March 2004. # "Somewhere Only We Know" # "Snowed Under" Spanish enhanced CD single Released 16 April 2004. # "Somewhere Only We Know" # "Walnut Tree" # "Somewhere Only We Know" (video)

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

Lily Allen version

In 2013, English singer

released a cover version of the song. It was released on 10 November 2013 in the United Kingdom as a digital download through

Parlophone Parlophone Records Limited (also known as Parlophone Records and Parlophone) is a record label founded in Germany in 1896 by the Carl Lindström Company as Parlophon. The British branch of the label was founded on 8 August 1923 as the Parloph ...

and

Regal Recordings Regal Recordings is a British record label functioning as an Record label#Imprint, imprint of Parlophone, Parlophone Records. Background Regal Records was a British record label founded in 1913 as a subsidiary of the UK branch of Columbia Rec ...

. The song was selected as the soundtrack to the

John Lewis John Robert Lewis (February 21, 1940 – July 17, 2020) was an American civil rights activist and politician who served in the United States House of Representatives for from 1987 until his death in 2020. He participated in the 1960 Nashville ...

2013 Christmas advertisement. The song reached number one in the UK Singles Chart, becoming her third number-one single. "Somewhere Only We Know" is included on Allen's third studio album, '' Sheezus''. A portion of the proceeds from the sales of the single were donated to

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization. It was founded in the UK in 1919; its goal is to improve the lives of children worldwide. The organization raises money to imp ...

's Philippine Typhoon Appeal campaign. Allen's version of the song was used for the trailer of ''

The Little Prince ''The Little Prince'' (, ) is a novella written and illustrated by French writer and aviator Antoine de Saint-Exupéry. It was first published in English and French in the United States by Reynal & Hitchcock in April 1943 and was published po ...

'' (2015), which was shown in French. Allen's version of the song was also used on an advertisement by Brazilian telecommunications company Vivo in 2015. The Labour Party used this version in a campaign video for the 2017 general election.

Music video

The video for the song is a composite made by editor Chris Morris of the John Lewis "The Bear and the Hare" Christmas advert, directed by Elliot Dear and Yves Geleyn, and its making-of video, directed by Jake & Josh (Jacob Hopewell & Josh Hine), allowing the song to run to its full length.

Commercial performance

On 24 November 2013, "Somewhere Only We Know" reached number one in the UK Singles Chart, thus becoming Allen's third number-one single following "

Smile A smile is a facial expression formed primarily by flexing the muscles at the sides of the mouth. Some smiles include a contraction of the muscles at the corner of the eyes, an action known as a Duchenne smile. Among humans, a smile expresses d ...

" (2006) and " The Fear" (2009). Although the song spent a total of three non-consecutive weeks at the top spot, it did not reach number one on the

UK Singles Downloads Chart The UK Singles Downloads Chart is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC) on behalf of the music industry. Since July 2015, the chart week runs from Friday to Thursday, with the chart date given as the following Thursday. The main chart con ...

. It sold 46,279 copies during its second week at number one, the lowest number for a number-one single since

Taio Cruz Adetayo Ayowale Onile-Ere (born 23 April 1980), known professionally as Jacob Taio Cruz ( ), is an English singer-songwriter, rapper, and record producer. Cruz was discovered in the mid-2000s by American record producer Tricky Stewart, joinin ...

's " Break Your Heart" sold 42,746 copies in its third week at number one in 2009. In total the single sold over 600,000 copies. According to the BPI, the single was awarded a

gold disc Music recording certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped, sold, or streamed a certain number of units. The threshold quantity varies by type (such as album, single, music video) and by nation or territory (see ...

in January 2014, representing 400,000 sales. The song was included on the album '' Now 86!'' which sold more than 1.1 million copies to become the UK's best-selling album of 2013.

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from CD single liner notes. * Tom Chaplin – songwriter * Richard Hughes – songwriter *

– songwriter *Lily Allen – lead vocals *Paul Beard – producer, arranger, mixer, piano, percussion, programming *Paul Sayer – acoustic guitar *James Banbury – string arrangement *Joe Kearns – engineer and mixer *Andy Cook – assistant *Will Hicks – assistant *Matt Dougthy – assistant *Jason Elliot – additional programming *Stuart Hawkes – mastering

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

In popular culture

"Somewhere Only We Know" appeared on Season 1 Episode 2 of ABC's

medical drama A medical drama is a Television film, television movie or film in which events center upon a hospital, clinic, doctor's office, a paramedic, or any other medical topic or environment. Most recent medical drama (film and television), dramatic progra ...

''Grey's Anatomy'' in 2005, and has since been associated with the show. The Keane recording was also included in the soundtrack of the 2009 film '' He's Just Not That Into You'', and in the trailers of the Alejandro Agresti's 2006 film ''The Lake House'' as well as the 2011 Disney animated film ''

Winnie the Pooh Winnie-the-Pooh (also known as Edward Bear, Pooh Bear or simply Pooh) is a fictional Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic teddy bear created by English author A. A. Milne and English illustrator E. H. Shepard. Winnie-the-Pooh first appeared by ...

''. The song also appears in the

Netflix Netflix is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service. The service primarily distributes original and acquired films and television shows from various genres, and it is available internationally in multiple lang ...

television series ''

Beef Beef is the culinary name for meat from cattle (''Bos taurus''). Beef can be prepared in various ways; Cut of beef, cuts are often used for steak, which can be cooked to varying degrees of doneness, while trimmings are often Ground beef, grou ...

''.

Darren Criss Darren Everett Criss (born February 5, 1987) is an American actor, singer, and songwriter. He rose to fame starring on the television series ''Glee (TV series), Glee'' (2010–2015) and received a Primetime Emmy Awards, Primetime Emmy Award and ...

performed a cover of the song as character

Blaine Anderson Blaine Devon Anderson is a fictional character from the American musical comedy-drama television series ''Glee (TV series), Glee''. Played by Darren Criss, Blaine was introduced in the Never Been Kissed (Glee), sixth episode of the Glee season ...

in Season 2 Episode 18 of the TV series ''

Glee Glee may refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 3000 album) * ''Glee'' (Logan Lynn album) * Gle ...

.'' As of September 2024, the cover is the second most popular streamed song by the Glee cast on Spotify, with over 93 million monthly listeners.

References

External links

Official site

Keane.fr - Information about the record in French
{{Authority control 2004 songs 2004 singles Interscope Records singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Island Records singles Keane (band) songs Lily Allen songs Parlophone singles Rock ballads Songs written by Richard Hughes (musician) Songs written by Tim Rice-Oxley Songs written by Tom Chaplin UK singles chart number-one singles