Sober (Pink song)
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

"Sober" is a song by the American singer-songwriter
Pink Pink is the color of a namesake flower that is a pale tint of red. It was first used as a color name in the late 17th century. According to surveys in Europe and the United States, pink is the color most often associated with charm, politeness, ...
, taken from her fifth studio album, ''
Funhouse A funhouse or fun house is an amusement facility found on amusement park and funfair midways and is where patrons encounter and interact with various devices designed to surprise, challenge, and amuse them. Unlike thrill rides or dark rides, f ...
'' (2008). It was written by Pink and
Kara DioGuardi Kara Elizabeth DioGuardi (; born December 9, 1970) is an American songwriter, record producer, music publisher, A&R executive, and singer. She writes music primarily in the pop rock genre. DioGuardi has worked with many popular artists; sales o ...
, with additional writing by
Nate "Danja" Hills Floyd Nathaniel Hills (born February 22, 1982), professionally known as Danja (), is an American record producer and songwriter from Virginia Beach, Virginia. Starting off as a co-producer for Timbaland, he has since then created an extensive cat ...
and Marcella Araica, while production was done by Danja,
Tony Kanal Tony Ashwin Kanal (born 27 August 1970) is a British-American musician, record producer, songwriter, and animal rights activist. Kanal is the bassist and co-writer for the American rock bands No Doubt and Dreamcar. His musical work outside of t ...
and
Jimmy Harry Jimmy Harry is an American songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist who currently resides in Los Angeles, California. Harry has worked with artists such as Madonna, Pink, Weezer, Kylie Minogue, Kelly Clarkson, Fischerspooner, Oh Land, and ...
. The song was released as the album's second single on October 31, 2008, firstly through digital download and later was added to U.S. radio stations on December 1, 2008. The
power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and c ...
song talks about the quiet sense of comfort in being sober, with the singer claiming it was about the vices that we choose. The song received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who commended the track for being a heartfelt track, with some praising its lyrical content. However, few critics dismissed the track, calling it "more of the same" from her previous music. Furthermore, the song was nominated for a
Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a female in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The awar ...
in 2010. Commercially, "Sober" attained success on the charts, reaching the top-ten in over thirteen countries, while reaching the top-twenty in the U.S., as well as the top of '' Billboard''s
Adult Top 40 The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems ...
chart. A music video for the track was directed by Jonas Akerlund and it finds Pink at a party with her doppelgänger.


Background and recording

In February 2008, Pink announced that she and her husband Carey Hart had separated, which led the singer to write songs for a new album. It was confirmed that she was working with many music producers such as
Butch Walker Bradley Glenn "Butch" Walker (born November 14, 1969) is an American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was the lead guitarist for the glam metal band SouthGang from the late 1980s to early 1990s as well as the lead vocalist ...
,
Billy Mann William H. Mann (born William Isaiah Erlichman; December 20, 1968) is a Grammy-nominated American songwriter, record producer and founder of independent music publishing company Green & Bloom/Topline, as well as chairman of management firm Man ...
, Eg White and Danja. While working on the album, she penned a track called "Sober" with
Kara DioGuardi Kara Elizabeth DioGuardi (; born December 9, 1970) is an American songwriter, record producer, music publisher, A&R executive, and singer. She writes music primarily in the pop rock genre. DioGuardi has worked with many popular artists; sales o ...
, claiming it was "about the vices that we choose." She added, "I had this idea in my head, 'like how do I feel this good sober?' So I brought that idea to Danja and with this awesome girl Kara DioGuardi and we wrote this song, Sober. And it's a pretty telling song and then me and
Tony Kanal Tony Ashwin Kanal (born 27 August 1970) is a British-American musician, record producer, songwriter, and animal rights activist. Kanal is the bassist and co-writer for the American rock bands No Doubt and Dreamcar. His musical work outside of t ...
and
Jimmy Harry Jimmy Harry is an American songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist who currently resides in Los Angeles, California. Harry has worked with artists such as Madonna, Pink, Weezer, Kylie Minogue, Kelly Clarkson, Fischerspooner, Oh Land, and ...
finished it, production-wise, threw some strings on it and made it a little bit darker and a little bit more rocky." Danja and Marcella Araica contributed to additional lyrics, with Danja, Kanal and Harry serving as the producers of the song. Araica, Harry and Jake Davis recorded the track at Sha Recording (
Malibu, California Malibu ( ; es, Malibú; Chumash: ) is a beach city in the Santa Monica Mountains region of Los Angeles County, California, situated about west of Downtown Los Angeles. It is known for its Mediterranean climate and its strip of the Malib ...
), 3:20 Studios (
Los Feliz, Los Angeles Los Feliz (, ; Spanish for "The Feliz amily, ) is a hillside neighborhood in the greater Hollywood area of Los Angeles, California, abutting Hollywood and encompassing part of the Santa Monica Mountains. The neighborhood is named after the Feli ...
) and Henson Recording Studios (
Virginia Beach, Virginia Virginia Beach is an independent city located on the southeastern coast of the Commonwealth of Virginia in the United States. The population was 459,470 at the 2020 census. Although mostly suburban in character, it is the most populous city ...
). Stevie Blacke arranged and performed all the strings, Jimmy Harry was also responsible for guitars and keyboards, while Tony Kanal provided bass.


Release

"Sober" was selected to be "
Funhouse A funhouse or fun house is an amusement facility found on amusement park and funfair midways and is where patrons encounter and interact with various devices designed to surprise, challenge, and amuse them. Unlike thrill rides or dark rides, f ...
"'s second single, after the huge success of " So What". It received airplay before release in Australia on
Today Network The Hit Network is an Australian commercial radio network owned and operated by Southern Cross Austereo. The network consists of 41 radio stations broadcasting a hot adult contemporary music format, as well as 6 digital radio stations. Histor ...
's stations and the Hot 30 Countdown and was the number one most added song on Australian radio. It was first released as a digital download on iTunes, on October 31, 2008, before being released to radio stations on December 1, 2008. While announced its release on her official website, Pink claimed, "It’s just a really, really personal beautiful song, one of my favorites.” While reviewing the single, Alex Fletcher wrote for Digital Spy that the song is "a dramatic U-turn from the brash and ballsy single 'So What', but reiterated that "it's a better representation of her 'Funhouse' album" than its lead single." ''
Slant Slant can refer to: Bias *Bias or other non-objectivity in journalism, politics, academia or other fields Technical * Slant range, in telecommunications, the line-of-sight distance between two points which are not at the same level * Slant d ...
s Jonathan Keefe disagreed, calling it an "oddly-chosen second single."


Composition and lyrics

"Sober" is a
power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, an energetic performance, and c ...
song, featuring heavy guitars and booming snare. It is written in the key of
E minor E minor is a minor scale based on E, consisting of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. Its key signature has one sharp. Its relative major is G major and its parallel major is E major. The E natural minor scale is: : Changes needed ...
(recorded in D minor) and set at 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 91
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 ...
, following a chord progression of D5–B5–F. In the song, Pink's vocals span from the low-note of D3 to the high-note of B5. Lyrically, the song speaks about the quiet sense of discomfort in being sober. Lucy Davies of ''
BBC Music BBC Music is responsible for the music played across the BBC. The current director of music is Bob Shennan, who is also the controller of BBC Radio 2, BBC Radio 6 Music, and the BBC Asian Network. Officially it is a part of the BBC's Radio ...
'' went further, writing that the song "discusses the blackouts resulting from drinking to avoid becoming those she sneers at." Chris William, writing for ''
Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, and popular cu ...
'', commented that the song finds Pink "questioning her need to be numbed by booze and noise." Mark Blankenship of ''New Now Next'' analyzed the song, writing that it is "about a woman who only loves herself when she’s drunk, who wishes she could like herself this much when she’s sober, but who can’t seem to pull herself out of her spiral. She later discussed the song's lyrics in two interviews, stating:


Critical reception

The song received generally favorable reviews from
music critics Music journalism (or music criticism) is media criticism and reporting about music topics, including popular music, classical music, and traditional music. Journalists began writing about music in the eighteenth century, providing commentary on w ...
. Davey Boy of '' Sputnikmusic'' called the song "a highlight that immediately follows the opener," praising her vocals, writing that they "are at her heartfelt best on this strings-assisted cut, which is sure to be a grower." Jon Dolan of ''
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 me ...
'' enjoyed the track, commenting that it "conflates the pain of love and the love of booze so convincingly that the girls from '
Lady Marmalade "Lady Marmalade" is a song written by Bob Crewe and Kenny Nolan, originally for Nolan's disco group. The song is famous for the repeated refrain of " ''Voulez-vous coucher avec moi''?" in French as part of the chorus, a sexually suggestive line t ...
' might want to regroup for an intervention." Susan Yudt of ''
Common Sense Media Common Sense Media (CSM) is an organization that reviews and provides ratings for media and technology with the goal of providing information on their suitability for children.
'' praised the track for "channel ngthe buzz of a love that's all-consuming, culminating in a breathtaking string quartet coda." Evan Sawdey wrote for ''
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, fi ...
'' that "Pink launches into the surprisingly downtrodden, a song that once again spends time convincing herself that everything’s alright." Andy Battaglia from ''
The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...
'' stated that 'Sober' is "a solemn song that slinks along at a slower speed, the better to bear out the grainy range of her voice." Spence D. of ''
IGN ''IGN'' (formerly ''Imagine Games Network'') is an American video game and entertainment media website operated by IGN Entertainment Inc., a subsidiary of Ziff Davis, Inc. The company's headquarters is located in San Francisco's SoMa distri ...
'' called it a "syncopated rhythm driven ballad," while Joan Anderman wrote for ''
Boston Globe ''The Boston Globe'' is an American daily newspaper founded and based in Boston, Massachusetts. The newspaper has won a total of 27 Pulitzer Prizes, and has a total circulation of close to 300,000 print and digital subscribers. ''The Boston Glob ...
'' that the song "finds the sweet spot between "
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 Ap ...
" and the
Red Hot Chili Peppers Red Hot Chili Peppers are an American rock band formed in Los Angeles in 1983, comprising vocalist Anthony Kiedis, bassist Flea, drummer Chad Smith, and guitarist John Frusciante. Their music incorporates elements of alternative rock, funk ...
." Michael Cragg of '' musicOMH'' was more mixed, writing that 'Sober' and 'Please Don't Leave Me' are catchy future singles, but both tread the same I-hate-you-I-love-you path she's walked down a dozen times." In the same vein, Alex Fletcher of '' Digital Spy'' called it "not one of her most memorable singles, but tshould find its way on to the nation's airwaves."


Accolades

"Sober" was nominated for a
Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a female in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The awar ...
in its 2010 edition, but lost it to Beyoncé's "
Halo Halo, halos or haloes usually refer to: * Halo (optical phenomenon) * Halo (religious iconography), a ring of light around the image of a head HALO, halo, halos or haloes may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Video games * ''Halo'' (franch ...
". While listing the "Top 100 Pop Songs of 2008", Bill Lamb of ''
About.com Dotdash Meredith (formerly About.com) is an American digital media company based in New York City. The company publishes online articles and videos about various subjects across categories including health, home, food, finance, tech, beauty, ...
'' placed the song at number 72, writing that "Pink is likely to make more than a few parents happy with the sentiments of this song celebrating the value of partying sober. She is one of the most consistent artists in the pop mainstream today." "Sober" was also on Lamb's "Top 10 Best Pink Songs" list, being ranked at number 6, while Nadine Cheung of ''
AOL Radio AOL Radio powered by Slacker (formerly AOL Radio powered by CBS Radio, and prior AOL Radio featuring XM) was an online radio service available in the United States only. It had over 200 free internet radio stations. History Roots AOL Radio ...
'' also listed her "Top 10 Songs", placing it at number 5. Jessica Letkemann of '' Billboard'' ranked "P!nk's 20 Biggest Billboard Hits", with "Sober" being the 15th, being praised for its "circular guitar riff and a big backbeat." In 2012, Mark Blankenship of ''New Now Next'' put the song at number-one on her best tracks, describing that "there are many reasons that 'Sober' is my jam. For one, the lyrics are dense and satisfying. It takes more than a superficial listen to catch the nuance f the song Plus, this story gets told with a thrilling rock score .. The 'spinning round' bridge is quiet and lovely, while the chorus is all shouts and emotion. The verses are fully of theatrical pauses and inflections, and the ending just drips with power notes. It’s amazing."


Chart performance

"Sober" debuted at number 53 on the
Billboard Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streamin ...
issue dated December 13, 2008. After falling to number 65, the song jumped to number 49. In its fourth week, the song cracked the top-forty, reaching number 34, while in its eighth week, it entered the top-twenty, reaching number 20. After weeks fluctuating on the charts, the song reached a peak of number 15 on the issue dated March 7, 2009. In other ''Billboard'' component charts, "Sober" was even more successful, reaching number 3 on the
Pop Songs Pop Airplay (also called Mainstream Top 40, Pop Songs, and Top 40/ CHR) is a 40-song music chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' Magazine that ranks the most popular songs of pop music being played on a panel of Top 40 radio stations in the Un ...
chart, and topping the
Adult Top 40 The Adult Pop Airplay (formerly known as Adult Pop Songs and Adult Top 40) chart is published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine and ranks "the most popular adult top 40 as based on radio airplay detections measured by Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems ...
chart, becoming her third consecutive number-one there, with "
Who Knew "Who Knew" is a song by American singer Pink from her fourth studio album, ''I'm Not Dead'' (2006). Written by Pink, Max Martin and Lukasz "Dr. Luke" Gottwald, the song was originally released on May 8, 2006, by the LaFace label to radio as the ...
" and " So What" being the two prior. It was also the first time an artist scored three consecutive number ones on the Adult Top 40 in the chart's history, as well as the first time a female artist has achieved three number ones on the chart. As of May 2011, "Sober" has sold over 2,037,000 downloads in the United States, becoming the second million-selling song from the ''Funhouse'' album. Elsewhere, the song became a top-ten hit in over twelve countries. "Sober" made its debut on the
Australian ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian record chart, music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA beca ...
, entering at number 16 and peaking at number 6 six weeks later. In 2009, the song was certified double platinum by the
Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) is a trade association representing the Australian recording industry which was established in the 1970s by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing ...
for shipments of over 140,000 copies. In
New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...
, the song debuted at number 35 and peaked at number 7, on December 15, 2008. In the
United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, the song entered at number 80 and eventually peaked at number 9. In
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
, "Sober" peaked at number 4, and remained at its peak position for five non-consecutive weeks, while in
Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...
, it charted higher, reaching number 2. In
Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
, "Sober" debuted at number 66 and went on to peak at number 8.


Music video

The music video was directed by Jonas Akerlund and filmed in the last days of September in Stockholm, Sweden. It plays on a dream-like space between real and imagined over the course of a night. Pink hosts a party attended by a vamped up version of herself and the two quickly fall into bed, scratching and biting each other.


Synopsis

The video starts with views from the city and then a little TV is turned on in Pink's bedroom and Pink appears in white. The song starts, and Pink is shown in the bedroom lying on the bed alone, and a girl is shown walking out of the door of the room. As the first verse starts, Pink is shown sitting on a sofa in a party where her doppelgänger is drunk and flirting with different girls and guys. Pink's doppelgänger is shown in the bathroom, throwing up. Pink enters the bathroom and sits beside her doppelgänger who seemed disturbed and then walks out. Pink is now lying on the bed, her doppelgänger calls her up, but Pink doesn't answer her cell. As the chorus begins, Pink is shown singing on her bed in her bedroom and on the sofa in the party. And then pictures of a white room where Pink is dressed in a white outfit and wearing a white
pageboy The pageboy or page boy is a past hairstyle named after what was believed to be the haircut of a late medieval page boy. It has straight hair hanging to below the ear, where it usually turns under. There is often a fringe (bangs) in the front. T ...
wig can be shown. The second verse is sung in the same location. As the chorus starts again, Pink is shown walking in the room where the party was held where everybody is blacked out and drunk, including her doppelgänger. As the song reaches its climax, the
bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...
kicks off and Pink is shown making out with her doppelgänger in bed. The scene was cut or replaced by almost all TV channels. Various scenes from the video are then shown and the video ends with one of the Pinks walking out of the door of the bedroom leaving the other Pink alone.


Track listing

Single CD # "Sober" — 4:11 # "When We're Through" — 4:22 Maxi CD # "Sober" — 4:14 # "When We're Through" — 4:22 # "Sober" (Bimbo Jones Radio Edit) — 3:04 # "Sober" (Junior's Spinning Around Tribal Dub) — 9:00


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Certifications


Release history


References

{{Authority control 2000s ballads 2008 singles 2008 songs American power pop songs LaFace Records singles Music videos directed by Jonas Åkerlund Music videos shot in Stockholm Song recordings produced by Danja (record producer) Songs about alcohol Songs written by Danja (record producer) Songs written by Kara DioGuardi Songs written by Marcella Araica Songs written by Pink (singer) Pink (singer) songs es:Sober#Música