"Underneath Your Clothes" is a song by Colombian singer-songwriter

Shakira Shakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll ( , ; born 2 February 1977), professionally known by the mononym Shakira, is a Colombian singer and songwriter. Born and raised in Barranquilla, she has been referred to as the " Queen of Latin Music" and is n ...

for her third studio album and English-language debut, '' Laundry Service'' (2001). The

power ballad A sentimental ballad is an emotional style of music that often deals with romantic and intimate relationships, and to a lesser extent, loneliness, death, war, drug abuse, politics and religion, usually in a poignant but solemn manner.J. M. Cu ...

was the second English language single released from the album; being released on 11 February 2002. It features lyrics by Shakira with music and production from Shakira and

Lester Mendez Lester Mendez is a multi-platinum, Grammy award-winning record producer, songwriter and composer. His production/writing credits include a multitude of successful hits with Shakira, Jewel, Nelly Furtado, Jessica Simpson, Enrique Iglesias, and ot ...

. Lyrically, the song tells the story of the unconditional love that a woman has for her boyfriend, with lyrics about being worthy of somebody's love for being a good person and having maternal instincts. Some critics commended the song for being a highlight from the album. However, others were more critical towards her songwriting and the song's production, which according to them resembled

the Bangles The Bangles are an American pop rock band formed in Los Angeles, California, in 1981. The band recorded several singles that reached the U.S. top 10 during the 1980s, including "Manic Monday" (1986), "Walk Like an Egyptian" (1986), " Hazy Shad ...

' "

Eternal Flame An eternal flame is a flame, lamp or torch that burns for an indefinite time. Most eternal flames are ignited and tended intentionally, but some are natural phenomena caused by natural gas leaks, peat fires and coal seam fires, all of which c ...

" and

the Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

' "

Penny Lane "Penny Lane" is a song by the English rock band the Beatles that was released in February 1967 as a double A-side single with "Strawberry Fields Forever". It was written primarily by Paul McCartney and credited to the Lennon–McCartney songwr ...

". The song became a success on the charts, topping the charts of seven countries, while also reaching the top ten in several countries, including the United States. The accompanying music video for the song was directed by fashion photographer

Herb Ritts Herbert Ritts Jr. (August 13, 1952December 26, 2002) was an American fashion photographer and director known for his photographs of celebrities, models, and other cultural figures throughout the 1980s and 1990s. His work concentrated on black a ...

. It depicts Shakira's loneliness as a tourist musician. It features Shakira's then-boyfriend Antonio de la Rúa, whose unpopularity in Argentina led to a ban of her albums there. Shakira promoted the song with a series of live performances across the world, while also performing it on her worldwide tours,

Tour of the Mongoose Tour of the Mongoose (also known as El Tour de la Mangosta in hispanophone countries) is the third concert tour by Colombian singer and songwriter, Shakira, in support of her fifth studio album and first English album, ''Laundry Service'' (2001) ...

(2002–2003),

Oral Fixation Tour Oral Fixation Tour (known as Tour Fijación Oral in hispanophone countries) was the fourth concert tour by Colombian singer and songwriter, Shakira. It was launched in support of her sixth and seventh studio albums '' Fijación Oral, Vol. 1'' (20 ...

(2006–2007),

The Sun Comes Out World Tour The Sun Comes Out World Tour (also known as the Sale el Sol World Tour) was the fifth concert tour by Colombian singer and songwriter Shakira, launched in support of her eighth and ninth studio albums, '' She Wolf'' (2009) and ''Sale El Sol'' ( ...

(2010–2011) and

El Dorado World Tour The El Dorado World Tour was the sixth world tour by Colombian singer and songwriter Shakira, in support of her diamond certified eleventh studio album, ''El Dorado''. Comprising a total of 54 shows, the tour visited Europe, Asia, North America ...

(2018).

Background and release

After releasing her first live album, '' MTV Unplugged: Shakira'' (2000), which won her first

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

, Shakira expressed the desire to breakthrough in the United States and the world with songs in English. With the help of a personal tutor, and after studying the lyrics of

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

and the poetry of

Walt Whitman Walter Whitman (; May 31, 1819 – March 26, 1892) was an American poet, essayist and journalist. A humanist, he was a part of the transition between transcendentalism and realism, incorporating both views in his works. Whitman is among ...

, she started writing songs in English "with a dictionary in one hand and a thesaurus in the other." During the songwriting process for ''Laundry Service'', Shakira wrote "Underneath Your Clothes" as a love song for de la Rúa. She explained that, "If you check the subject of my songs, most of them talk about my own experiences and feelings and what I was actually going through in my life." "Underneath Your Clothes" was released to US radio stations as the second single from the album in February 2002, while the physical single was released in May 2002.

Composition and lyrics

"Underneath Your Clothes" has lyrics by

, and music and production by Shakira and

. Both arranged the track, while Mendez also provided keyboards and horn arrangements, while Shakira and Rita Quintero also serving with background vocals. It was recorded at

The Hit Factory The Hit Factory is a recording studio in New York City owned and operated by Troy Germano. History On March 6, 1975, Edward Germano, a singer, record producer, and one of the principal owners of the Record Plant Studios New York, purchased the ...

Miami Miami ( ), officially the City of Miami, known as "the 305", "The Magic City", and "Gateway to the Americas", is a coastal metropolis and the county seat of Miami-Dade County in South Florida, United States. With a population of 442,241 at t ...

Florida Florida is a U.S. state, state located in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia (U.S. state), Geo ...

, Compass Point Studios, Bahamas, while being mixed and recorded at the Crescent Moon Studios, Miami, Florida. According to the sheet music published at MusicNotes.com by

Sony/ATV Music Publishing Sony Music Publishing (formerly Sony/ATV Music Publishing) is the largest music publisher in the world, with over five million songs owned or administered as of end March 2021. US-based, it is part of the Sony Music Group, which is itself owned ...

, "Underneath Your Clothes" is written in the key of A major, set in a moderately slow tempo of 88

beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ( ...

. Shakira's vocal range spans from the low-note of AB3 to the high-note of C5. The

introduction Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and g ...

follows the

chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from the common practice ...

of A–D–A–D-Fm, while the verses follow the chord progression of Cm-D–Esus–E. Lyrically, the song is an "ode" to the positivity one gains when pursuing a relationship with a good person, with Shakira "mentally undress ngher man, fantasizing about the 'territory' she claims as her own." As noted by Chuck Taylor 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 advertis ...

'', the song is "a thought-provoking ballad that finds a novel way to deliver a message of love and devotion." "Underneath your clothes/There's an endless story/There's the man I chose/That's my territory," she sings. During the song, she "repeatedly describes herself as a good girl, worthy of her boyfriend's love, and as a woman of very developed maternal instincts." As noted by

Alexis Petridis Alexis Petridis ( el, Αλέξης Πετρίδης; born 13 September 1971) is a British journalist, head rock and pop critic for the UK newspaper ''The Guardian'', as well as a regular contributor to the magazine '' GQ''. In addition to his mus ...

of ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers ''The Observer'' and ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the Gu ...

'' and Matt Cibula of ''

PopMatters ''PopMatters'' is an international online magazine of cultural criticism that covers aspects of popular culture. ''PopMatters'' publishes reviews, interviews, and essays on cultural products and expressions in areas such as music, television, ...

'', the song has "a

Beatles The Beatles were an English Rock music, rock band, formed in Liverpool in 1960, that comprised John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. They are regarded as the Cultural impact of the Beatles, most influential band of al ...

-influenced brass arrangement" and a melody from

' "

Critical reception

"Underneath Your Clothes" received good critical reception as it represented "a large part of Shakira's style". While calling her voice "odd", Chuck Taylor of ''

'' wrote that it "dart from a delicate, girlie, Jewel-like delivery to a determined, tough-chick croon - it certainly gives the song a signature edge and multiple layers that seem to draw out something new with each successive spin." Lisa Oliver of ''

Yahoo! Music Yahoo! Music was a brand under which Yahoo! provided a variety of music services, including Internet radio, music videos, news, artist information, and original programming. Previously, users with Yahoo! accounts could gain access to hundreds of ...

'' claimed to find similarities between Shakira's and Jewel's vocals, calling it "a Jewel-esque ground swelling". Ted Kessler of ''

The Observer ''The Observer'' is a British newspaper published on Sundays. It is a sister paper to ''The Guardian'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', whose parent company Guardian Media Group Limited acquired it in 1993. First published in 1791, it is the ...

'' noted that the song "may be slightly kooky pop-rock, but it's sung by someone with the range of an operatic diva." Alex Henderson of

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

picked the song as a highlight from the album, while

Robert Christgau Robert Thomas Christgau ( ; born April 18, 1942) is an American music journalist and essayist. Among the most well-known and influential music critics, he began his career in the late 1960s as one of the earliest professional rock critics and ...

wrote that its lyrics have an "awkward, carnal, unhesitatingly female chauvinist." Matt Cibula of ''

'' said that "it could have been a great little thing, ..simple, graceful, light, but now it’s a damned mess," citing the "tell-tale touches" at the start, the Bangles’ "Eternal Flame" influence and "

" trumpets by the end" as examples. Cibula called it "a potentially cool song

hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

has been studioed out of existence." Frank Kogan of '' The Village Voice'' criticized the lyrics, calling it a song "with no fresh insights on the subject."

Accolades

"Underneath Your Clothes" is listed at number 391 on ''

Blender A blender (sometimes called a mixer or liquidiser in British English) is a kitchen and laboratory appliance used to mix, crush, purée or emulsify food and other substances. A stationary blender consists of a blender container with a rotating ...

s "The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born" list. Bill Lamb of '' About.com'' picked the song at number four on his "Top 10 Shakira Pop Songs", while Robert Copsey of ''

Digital Spy Digital Spy (DS) is a British-based entertainment, television and film website and brand and is the largest digital property at Hearst UK. Since its launch in 1999, Digital Spy has focused on entertainment news related to television programmes ...

'' placed the song at number 3 on their "Shakira's 10 best songs", writing that it "remains the ultimate Shakira ballad for the mere fact that we can still remember every single world of it to this day." The website ''Latin Post'' ranked it as her eighth biggest hit, calling it "a powerful ballad." The song entered ''

''s list of her Biggest Hits at number 5.

Commercial performance

The song was commercially successful and peaked atop the charts in Australia, Austria, and Belgium; being certified platinum in the three countries. In Australia, the song debuted at number two, peaking two weeks later at the top of the charts, while spending 20 weeks inside the ARIA Charts. In Austria, "Underneath Your Clothes" debuted at number two, remaining for three consecutive weeks at the position, before moving to the top the following week. The song topped the charts of Hungary, Ireland and Netherlands. In other countries, the song experienced commercial success, reaching number two in France, Germany, New Zealand, Norway and Switzerland. In other countries, it became a top five or a top-10 hit. In the United States, "Underneath Your Clothes" entered the charts at number 70 in March 2002. In its fourth week, the song entered the top 40 at number 33, while cracking the top 20 two weeks later. The song eventually peaked at number nine, on the issue dated 18 May 2002 becoming her second top-10 hit on the chart. According to Sony Music Canada, the song has been certified as gold in the United States. In the United Kingdom, it reached number three, becoming her second consecutive top-three single. It entered "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles of 2002" at number five, while her other single "Whenever Wherever" was placed at number 2.

Music video

Background and storyline

American

photographer A photographer (the Greek φῶς (''phos''), meaning "light", and γραφή (''graphê''), meaning "drawing, writing", together meaning "drawing with light") is a person who makes photographs. Duties and types of photographers As in othe ...

directed Director may refer to: Literature * ''Director'' (magazine), a British magazine * ''The Director'' (novel), a 1971 novel by Henry Denker * ''The Director'' (play), a 2000 play by Nancy Hasty Music * Director (band), an Irish rock band * ''Di ...

the

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

for "Underneath Your Clothes", his last music video directorial effort before his death in December 2002. It starts with a

black-and-white Black-and-white (B&W or B/W) images combine black and white in a continuous spectrum, producing a range of shades of grey. Media The history of various visual media began with black and white, and as technology improved, altered to color. ...

scene of a reporter asking Shakira how she feels about crossing over into the English-speaking music market, and the singer, ironically, answers him in Spanish. Shakira claimed in her "MTV Making the Video" of the song that the "Crossover" claims had been her daily bread, and that she heavily at wished for this to be included into the video. The video illustrates her loneliness as a music artist when she goes on tour. Then, scenes of the singer performing the song live with her band and passionately hugging her boyfriend (played by her real-life then boyfriend Antonio de la Rúa) are shown.

Reception

The appearance of Antonio de la Rua in the video led to music retailer Tower Records Argentina banning sales of her albums in the country. The reason behind the ban was that de la Rua's father

Fernando de la Rúa Fernando de la Rúa (15 September 19379 July 2019) was an Argentine politician and a member of the Radical Civic Union (UCR) political party who served as President of Argentina from 10 December 1999 to 21 December 2001. De la Rúa was born in ...

, who was the President of Argentina at that time, had resigned "in the midst of profound economic and political turmoil in the country", and the decision to ban sales of Shakira's albums was a "direct protest against Antonio De la Rua - not Shakira".

Live performances

To promote the single, Shakira went on to a number of places. She performed the track on the television programs '' CD:UK'' , ''Domingo Legal'', ''

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 ''Late Show'' franchise. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and was produced by Letterman's production co ...

'', '' TRL'' and the '' 2002 Party in the Park'' event at Hyde Park among others. The limited edition of the album, entitled '' Laundry Service: Washed & Dried'' (2002) presented an acoustic version of the song as a

bonus track An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...

. She performed an acoustic version of the song on '' VH1 Divas Live in Las Vegas'' (2002). The singer's second

live album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early 20th century as individual 78 rpm records co ...

, '' Live & Off the Record'' (2004), presented a live version of the song performed during an April 2003 concert in

Rotterdam Rotterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Rotte'') is the second largest city and municipality in the Netherlands. It is in the province of South Holland, part of the North Sea mouth of the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta, via the ''"N ...

, Netherlands, which was part of the singer's ''

'' (2002–2003). Shakira performed the song live at the concerts for her ''

'' (2006–2007) and ''

'' (2010-2011), however the song was not in the set-list of the Spanish and Latin American concerts. The performances were included on the ''

'' and the '' Live from Paris'' CD/DVD, respectively. Shakira presented a piano mix of the song at the "Ein Herz für Kinder" and "Clinton Global Initiative", with only vocals and piano, and excluded the complete second half of the song.

Cover versions

* Irish singer Kieran Goss covered "Underneath Your Clothes" for the charity album '' Even Better Than the Real Thing Vol. 1''. * Swedish singer

Amy Diamond Amy Linnéa Deasismont (born 15 April 1992), previously known under the stage name Amy Diamond, is a Swedish singer. She is known for her single "What's in It for Me (Amy Diamond song), What's in It for Me". The song was a 2005 hit in Sweden, De ...

covered it on the ''Super Troupers'' compilation album. * Brazilian girl group Rouge performed a Portuguese version called "Você Me Roubou" (''You stole me''). * Diana in Series 7 of Spanish talent show '' Operación Triunfo'' (''Operation Triumph'') covered the song. * Shakira performed the song with German band Big Soul on the season 1 finale of the German version of ''

X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003) ...

''.

Formats and track listings

CD maxi # "Underneath Your Clothes" (album version) – 3:44 # "Underneath Your Clothes" (acoustic version) – 3:55 # "Underneath Your Clothes" (Mendez club radio edit) – 3:24 # "Underneath Your Clothes" (Thunderpuss club mix) – 6:52 # "Underneath Your Clothes" (video) CD single # "Underneath Your Clothes" (album version) – 3:44 # "Underneath Your Clothes" (acoustic version) – 3:55

Personnel

* Producer by Shakira * Co-produced by Lester Mendez for Living Stereo * Arranged by Shakira and Lester Mendez * Keyboards: Lester Mendez * Guitars: Tim Pierce and Brian Ray * Bass: Paul Bushnell * Percussion: Richard Bravo * Drums: Abraham Laboriel Jr. * Horn arrangements: Lester Mendez * Horn charts and direction: Camilo Valencia * Trumpet: Tony Concepción * Trumpet and piccolo trumpet: Jim Hacker *

Baritone A baritone is a type of classical male singing voice whose vocal range lies between the bass and the tenor voice-types. The term originates from the Greek (), meaning "heavy sounding". Composers typically write music for this voice in ...

and tenor sax: Ed Calle * Bass trombone and tuba: Joe Barati * Trombone and bass trombone: Dane Teboe * Background vocals: Shakira and Rita Quintero * Recording engineers:

Terry Manning Terry Manning is an American photographer, composer, singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, audio engineer, and visual artist. In a career spanning more than 50 years, he has worked with Led Zeppelin, Iron Maiden, Bryan Adams, ...

, Javier Garza and Gustavo Celis * Mixing engineer: Eric Schilling * Additional engineers: Carlos Paucar, Mike Couzzi, Jorge González and Alfred Figueroa * Assistant engineers: Jorge González, Tony Mardini, Ken Theis, Ed Williams, Chris Carroll, Christine Tramontano, Nicholas Marshall, Oswald Bowe and Alex Dixon

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2000s ballads 2001 songs 2002 singles Dutch Top 40 number-one singles Epic Records singles Irish Singles Chart number-one singles Music video controversies Music videos directed by Herb Ritts Number-one singles in Australia Number-one singles in Austria Number-one singles in the Czech Republic Number-one singles in Hungary Number-one singles in Portugal Rock ballads Shakira songs Song recordings produced by Lester Mendez Songs written by Lester Mendez Songs written by Shakira Ultratop 50 Singles (Flanders) number-one singles