"Worn Me Down" is a song by American singer

Rachael Yamagata Rachael Yamagata (born September 23, 1977) is an American singer-songwriter and pianist from Arlington, Virginia. She began her musical career with the band Bumpus before becoming a solo artist and releasing five EPs and four studio albums. Her ...

. It was released as a single from her debut CD, '' Rachael Yamagata (EP)'' and was the first single of off her first full-length album, ''

Happenstance Happenstance, a portmanteau of ''happening'' and ''circumstance'', may refer to: Film and TV * ''Happenstance'' (film), a 2000 French film by Laurent Firode * "Happenstance" (CSI), a season seven episode of the American crime drama ''CSI'' Music * ...

'', which was released on June 8, 2004 in the U.S, and it is considered to be her most famous song to date.

Background

"Worn Me Down" first appeared on Rachael Yamagata's five song debut EP where it was listed as a featured song, and was released on October 7, 2003. In 2004, the song was released as a single from the EP in Germany. It was one of two songs on the EP that were re-recorded for her full-length album ''

'' and by comparison, the re-arranged version of the song had a more produced sound,Zerwas, Katie (2004-07-13)
"How the World Will Learn to Spell 'Yamagata' in Lights."
''PopMatters.'' Retrieved 2010-08-06 featured edgier electric guitars and drums,Boeckel, Gentry (2004-06-11)
"Rachael Yamagata."
''Stylus.'' Retrieved 2010-08-06 and a dominant orchestration. The melody has been called "straight-forward", and Yamagata's voice as being mature, highly emotional, and raspy. Her vocal style on "Worn Me Down" has been compared to that of

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and

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.Adair, David (2005-05-23)
"Rachel Yamagata: Happenstance."
''contactmusic.'' Retrieved 2010-08-06 Prior to the album's release, several critics believed that "Worn Me Down" would be the first single Yamagata would put out off of the full-length album, but with differing reasons.Hogan, Marc (2004-01-26)
"Rachael Yamagata EP."
''PopMatters.'' Retrieved 2010-08-06 The lyrics convey feelings of helplessness and obsessiveness; they are from the viewpoint of a woman in a twisted romance, and she has virtually given up on the man she is with, who is in fact infatuated with another woman.Sweeting, Adam (2005-05-13)
"Rachael Yamagata, Happenstance."
''Guardian.'' Retrieved 2010-08-06

Reception

In general, critics gave positive to review to the song, claiming that "Worn Me Down" is an excellent platform for showcasing Yamagata's talent and maturity, and it has been called an "everlasting" song.Fragassi, Selena (2008-10-04)
"Rachael Yamagata plays both sides of the heart in Chicago return."
''Venus Zine.'' Retrieved 2010-08-07 However, some were dissatisfied with "Worn Me Down". ''PopMatters'' writer Marc Hogan called it "the disc's crassest moment", accusing Yamagata of placating to the Adult Contemporary audience with a generic song composition. Additionally, critics were split between the version that appeared on the EP and the one that appeared on ''Happenstance''. Katie Zerwas of ''PopMatters'' felt that the album version was overproduced and favored the version on the EP, whereas Gentry Boeckel of ''Stylus'' found that the EP version of "Worn Me Down" was "in an inferior form", stating that the one on the album was "100% better than the original.

Success

In 2005, "Worn Me Down" premiered on the Billboard Charts under Adult Pop Songs, reaching No. 33, and stayed in the Top 40 for five weeks. "Worn Me Down on the Visualizer."''Adult Pop Songs.'' Retrieved 2010-08-06 Additionally, it was a Top 5 Hit at AAA radio, and was a favorite single in Billboard Music columnists' Michael Paoletta's "2004 in Review". The video for "Worn Me Down" also made the VH1 Top 40 list in December 2004 at No. 37, and peaked at No. 36 a few weeks later. It remained on the VH1 charts just under two months, before falling off after the week of February 12, 2005. "Worn Me Down" has been called a hit song, and has appeared on several television shows. It remains a favorite among fans. It is a very personal song to Yamagata, so much so that it has caused her to weep while performing it, and has even prompted some concert goers to shout out "On t’aime!" during a particularly intimate performance. It has also been recorded by several a cappella groups."Baggage Claim."
''Amalgamates.'' Retrieved 2010-08-07

Chart performance

Song appearances

Promotional CD

Personnel

*Vocals, Tambourine - Rachael Yamagata *Lead Guitar - Kevin Salem *Rhythm Guitar, Electric Piano (Rhodes), Synthesizer (Ms 2000), Shaker - John Alagía *Bass - Stewart Myers *Cello - Oliver Kraus *Drums - Brian Jones *Saxophone (Baritone) - Jason Singer *Assistant engineer – Alex Dixon, Oswald Bowe, Ted Young *Engineer, Technician (Basic Tracking) - Jeff Juliano *Mixed by - Jeff Juliano, John Alagía *Music By, Lyrics By - Rachael Yamagata *Producer – John Alagia *Recorded by (Bass & Drums) - Stewart Myers **Credits from Discogs."Rachael Yamagata - Worn Me Down."
''Discogs.'' Retrieved 2010-08-06

Other Versions

* Album Version 3:43 * Alternative Version 4:34 * Marcus Dravs Remix 4:58 * KCRW Sessions 3:45

References

{{Rachael Yamagata 2004 songs