"Jesus, Take the Wheel" is a song written by

Brett James Brett James Cornelius (born June 5, 1968) is an American country music singer, songwriter, and record producer based in Nashville. James' compositions have been credited on 494 recordings by a wide variety of artists. Signed to Career Records ( ...

Hillary Lindsey Hillary Lee Lindsey is an American singer-songwriter. She has written songs with or for a number of artists including Michelle Branch, Faith Hill, Martina McBride, Shakira, Lady A, Gary Allan, Sara Evans, Carrie Underwood, Kellie Pickler, Bo ...

and

Gordie Sampson Gordon Francis Sampson (born July 30, 1971) is a Canadian singer-songwriter and producer from Big Pond, Nova Scotia. Beginning his career as a performer on his hometown island of Cape Breton, both in bands and on his own, Sampson has gone on t ...

, 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, ...

artist

Carrie Underwood Carrie Marie Underwood (born March 10, 1983) is an American singer. She rose to prominence after winning the fourth season of ''American Idol'' in 2005. Her single " Inside Your Heaven" made her the only country artist to debut atop the ''Bil ...

. It was released on October 18, 2005 as the first single from Underwood's debut album '' Some Hearts'' (2005). The ballad tells of a woman seeking help from

Jesus Jesus, likely from he, יֵשׁוּעַ, translit=Yēšūaʿ, label= Hebrew/ Aramaic ( AD 30 or 33), also referred to as Jesus Christ or Jesus of Nazareth (among other names and titles), was a first-century Jewish preacher and relig ...

in an emergency and surrendering control to a higher power. "Jesus, Take the Wheel" became the first of Underwood's record-setting 15 number-one singles on 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 adverti ...

Hot Country Songs 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 sa ...

chart, spending six weeks at the number one position. The song enjoyed

crossover Crossover may refer to: Entertainment Albums and songs * ''Cross Over'' (Dan Peek album) * ''Crossover'' (Dirty Rotten Imbeciles album), 1987 * ''Crossover'' (Intrigue album) * ''Crossover'' (Hitomi Shimatani album) * ''Crossover'' (Yoshino ...

success, peaking at number four on the ''Billboard''

Hot Christian Songs Hot Christian Songs is a music chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. It ranks the popularity of Christian songs using the same methodology developed for the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, the magazine's flagship songs c ...

chart and charting on the ''Billboard''

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

chart. It also became a top twenty hit on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. "Jesus, Take the Wheel" has sold over 2.743 million copies in the United States as of February 2016 and has been certified three-times Platinum by the

RIAA The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/ ...

. Underwood has performed "Jesus, Take the Wheel" during multiple awards show appearances and has included the song on the set list for all of her headlining concert tours. "Jesus, Take the Wheel" won the

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 ...

s for Best Female Country Vocal Performance and Best Country Song and it won Single of the Year at the 2005 Academy of Country Music Awards, amongst other nominations at these and other award ceremonies. The song ranked number four on CMT's "40 Greatest Songs of the Decade".

Composition

"Jesus, Take the Wheel" is a

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι� ...

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, whi ...

song that lasts for three minutes and forty-six seconds. The song is composed in the key of

A major A major (or the key of A) 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 key of A major is the only k ...

and is set in the

time signature The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note va ...

of 4/4

common time The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note val ...

with a moderately slow

tempo In musical terminology, tempo ( Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (ofte ...

of 76

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 ...

. Underwood's vocal range spans over two octaves from F to G. The song was written at co-writer

's house and is centered around the premise of what happens "when

takes the wheel," a phrase

brought to the writing session as a possible title. Lyrically, the song tells the story of a woman who survives a car crash, seemingly as part of a miracle of divine intervention. Personal stories from the writers' pasts influenced details of the song's lyrics. Upon the song's release, some critics questioned the marketability of launching Underwood's career with an overtly faith-based song.

Critical reception

In a review of ''Some Hearts'',

Stephen Thomas Erlewine Stephen Thomas Erlewine (; born June 18, 1973) is an American music critic and senior editor for the online music database AllMusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for AllMusic, as well as a freelance writer, oc ...

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

praised Underwood's delivery of the song, writing that she "sounds equally convincing on such sentimental fare as "Jesus, Take the Wheel" as on the soaring pop "Some Hearts."" In 2013, Matt Bjorke of ''RoughStock'' ranked "Jesus, Take the Wheel" as the tenth-best song of Underwood's career at that point, writing that that song "show dthe strength of her voice through complex vocal runs and tender verse readings." On a similar ranking in 2017, Chuck Dauphin of ''

'' placed the song as Underwood's fourth-best song to date. ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first known for its ...

'' ranked the song as Underwood's eighth-best, based on a reader-voted poll, in 2015 and wrote that "as Underwood's vocals soared into the stratosphere during the track's final chorus, so did her career."

Charts performance

"Jesus, Take the Wheel" debuted at number 39 on the ''

chart and eventually hit number one in January 2006, becoming the first of Underwood's record-setting 15 number-ones. The song spent six weeks atop the chart. "Jesus, Take the Wheel" additionally peaked at number four on the

chart and at number 23 on the

chart. This

airplay helped the song reach the upper tier of the all-genre ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart, where it reached a peak position of 20. "Jesus, Take the Wheel" also hit number one of the Canadian country airplay chart compiled by ''

Radio & Records ''Radio & Records'' (''R&R'') was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It started as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006 and became a relaunched sister ...

''. "Jesus, Take the Wheel" has been certified three-times Platinum in the United States as of August 2015. The Mastertone of the song was also certified Platinum in July 2008, making Underwood the first country artist to have two songs reach this milestone (after "

Before He Cheats "Before He Cheats" is a song by American singer Carrie Underwood from her debut studio album, ''Some Hearts'' (2005). Written by Chris Tompkins and Josh Kear, it was released as the fourth single from the album. The song tells the story of a woman ...

"). As of February 2016, "Jesus, Take the Wheel" has sold 2,473,000 copies in the United States. In 2007, "Jesus, Take the Wheel" was certified Gold by

Music Canada Music Canada (formerly Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)) is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It ...

Live performances

Underwood gave her debut performance of the song at the 2005

Country Music Association Awards The Country Music Association Awards, also known as the CMA Awards or CMAs, are presented to country music artists and broadcasters to recognize outstanding achievement in the country music industry. The televised annual presentation ceremony ...

. On May 23, 2006, she again sang it at the 41st annual

Academy of Country Music Awards The Academy of Country Music Awards, also known as the ACM Awards, were first held in 1966, honoring the industry's accomplishments during the previous year. It was the first country music awards program held by a major organization. The academ ...

, where she won the Single of the Year Award for the song. ''Billboard'' described the latter performance as "captivating". In April 2006, she sang it on the CMT Awards, where "Jesus, Take the Wheel" won two major awards: Breakthrough Video of the Year and Female Video of the Year. Underwood performed the song during her debut tour: Carrie Underwood: Live in Concert, and has subsequently performed the track in all of her tours as well as during her sets at the

CMA Music Festival The CMA Music Festival is a four-day music festival centered on country music, hosted each June by the Country Music Association (CMA) in Nashville, Tennessee. Beginning in 1972 under the name Fan Fair, the event now draws over 400 artists and c ...

Stagecoach A stagecoach is a four-wheeled public transport coach used to carry paying passengers and light packages on journeys long enough to need a change of horses. It is strongly sprung and generally drawn by four horses although some versions are dra ...

, C2C: Country to Country and

Glastonbury Glastonbury (, ) is a town and civil parish in Somerset, England, situated at a dry point on the low-lying Somerset Levels, south of Bristol. The town, which is in the Mendip district, had a population of 8,932 in the 2011 census. Glastonbur ...

festivals.

Music video

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 promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...

was Underwood's first and was directed by Roman White. It features her singing in various backgrounds such as a living room, through shelves, standing by a wall, and sitting in a chair. A woman, a young couple, and an older couple are all shown through the video trying to ease a baby, fighting over bills and making up, and trying to feed his wife respectively. The music video for it was originally slated for release on November 4, 2005 but was delayed and made available at a later date on

Yahoo! Yahoo! (, styled yahoo''!'' in its logo) is an American web services provider. It is headquartered in Sunnyvale, California and operated by the namesake company Yahoo Inc., which is 90% owned by investment funds managed by Apollo Global Mana ...

Launch. "Jesus, Take the Wheel" was nominated for Music Video of the Year at the 2006

Country Music Association The Country Music Association (CMA) was founded in 1958 in Nashville, Tennessee. It originally consisted of 233 members and was the first trade organization formed to promote a music genre. The objectives of the organization are to guide and enha ...

Awards and was ranked No. 64 on CMT's 100 Greatest Videos.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Awards and nominations

Notable covers

*2007: ''

American Idol ''American Idol'' is an American singing competition television series created by Simon Fuller, produced by Fremantle North America and 19 Entertainment, and distributed by Fremantle North America. It aired on Fox from June 11, 2002, to ...

'' sixth season contestant LaKisha Jones *2009: ''American Idol'' eighth season contestant Danny Gokey *2011:

Vince Gill Vincent Grant Gill (born April 12, 1957) is an American country music singer, songwriter and musician. He has achieved commercial success and fame both as frontman of the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s and as a solo artist ...

, during ''

Academy of Country Music The Academy of Country Music (ACM) was founded in 1964 in Los Angeles, California as the Country & Western Music Academy. Among the founders were Eddie Miller, Tommy Wiggins, and Mickey and Chris Christensen. They wanted to promote country musi ...

Girls Night Out'' *2012: ''American Idol'' eleventh season contestant Hollie Cavanagh *2012:

Kristin Chenoweth Kristin Dawn Chenoweth (; born Kristi Dawn Chenoweth; July 24, 1968)Kristin Cheno ...

, featured in the '' GCB'' episode "Hell Hath No Fury" and released on its official soundtrack *2013: '' The Voice '' fourth season contestant Danielle Bradbery

Cultural references

The song is mentioned by title in eighteenth episode of the third season of ''

The Big Bang Theory ''The Big Bang Theory'' is an American television sitcom created by Chuck Lorre and Bill Prady, both of whom served as executive producers on the series, along with Steven Molaro, all of whom also served as head writers. It premiered on CBS ...

.''

Release history

Notes

References

{{authority control 2000s ballads 2005 singles 2005 songs Canadian Country Music Association Song of the Year songs Arista Nashville singles Carrie Underwood songs Country ballads Vehicle wreck ballads Music videos directed by Roman White Song recordings produced by Mark Bright (record producer) Songs about Jesus Songs written by Brett James Songs written by Gordie Sampson Songs written by Hillary Lindsey