Gravity (Sara Bareilles song)

"Gravity"
Single by Sara Bareilles
from the album Little Voice
Released February 3, 2009 (U.S.)
Format Music video, digital download
Recorded 2007
Length 3:52
Label Epic Records
Songwriter(s) Sara Bareilles
Producer(s) Eric Rosse
Sara Bareilles singles chronology
"Winter Song"
(2008)		 "Gravity"
(2009)		 "King of Anything"
(2010)

"Winter Song"
(2008)		 "Gravity"
(2009)		 "King of Anything"
(2010)

"Gravity" is a song written and performed by Sara Bareilles. It was released as the third single from her major-label debut album Little Voice (2007). The track was produced by Eric Rosse. Its music video was released on February 3, 2009. Bareilles said she wrote the song after her "first real heartbreak", and was hoping the ballad would help others in similar situations. The song was originally on her first album Careful Confessions, but was later included on Little Voice.

Critical analysis

"Gravity" was generally commended by music critics. Chris Klimek of The Washington Post calls the song "haunting" and states that "Gravity is strong evidence that Bareilles's songcraft may yet warrant the stardom she's attained."[1] Shirley Brinkley writes for The Virginian-Pilot that this is her favorite song, and that "It speaks to the paradoxes and complexity of relationships".[2] Michael Menachem of Billboard writes, "[T]his melodic, introspective ballad is Bareilles' finest moment."[3] The Hollywood Reporter mentioned the song in their review of one her concerts, stating it was the "night's bravest and most powerful performance" when "she brilliantly sang fan favorite Gravity".[4] Mark Savage for BBC News has called it a "tearjerking ballad" and characterized it as Bareilles' calling card.[5]

Music video

As a promotional project to support her single "Gravity", Bareilles released a music video for the track. A homage to the short film Powers of Ten, the video features a single, unbroken take of the singer strolling in the middle of a street while people are walking behind her bringing lights, balloons, and globes of other planets representing a journey through the solar system and into deep space.[6][7]

Cover versions

Kelly Clarkson covered the song in Durham, North Carolina, during her Stronger World Tour, in which she praised Bareilles's voice and lyrics. Bareilles responding the following day by tweeting: “Holy pipes, Batman! Kelly Clarkson sang Gravity. Whoah. Gurrrl. Can. Sang. So Cool!”[8]

Brittany Cairns performed this song for her blind audition on the first season of The Voice - Australia. Cairns' version peaked at number 58 on the ARIA chart in April 2012.[9]

More recently, former Girls' Generation member Jessica covered the song in December 2015 in collaboration with women's magazine, Grazia. The re-recording highlighted Jung's return to the music industry following her departure from Girls' Generation.[10]

The song is frequently used in fan YouTube videos with romantic couples from TV shows or movies.

A shipping video featuring a clip montage of the characters Annie and Jeff set to "Gravity" was made by a Community fan in November 2009, halfway through the first season of the show.[11] The video inspired show creator Dan Harmon[12] and he included a similar sequence of clips of the two characters in the second season episode "Paradigms of Human Memory". Dan Harmon paid for the rights to the song himself. The clips of Annie and Jeff were immediately followed by clips of the characters Pierce and Abed again set to "Gravity", as a parody to show how easy it is make any set of characters appear romantically interested in one another. Bareilles eventually made an appearance as a hot-air balloon guide in "Intro to Felt Surrogacy", the ninth episode of the series' fourth season.

It was used as the closing song in the pilot episode of the Starz series Gravity.

On So You Think You Can Dance, Season 5, Mia Michaels choreographed a dance that Kayla and Kupono performed. In the dance, Kupono was a drug that Kayla was addicted to.

Charts

Chart (2012) Peak
position
South Korea International Singles (Gaon)[13] 44
Chart (2013) Peak
position
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[14] 27
Chart (2017) Peak
position
Scotland (Official Charts Company)[15] 64

References

  1. ↑ http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-16407518.html The Washington Post May 1, 2008
  2. ↑ The Virginian-Pilot (Norfolk, VA)November 11, 2010
  3. ↑ Menachem, Michael (March 7, 2009). "Gravity: Sara Bareilles", Billboard 121 (9): 38. Retrieved 2012-09-16.
  4. ↑ "Sara Bareilles - Concert Review". The Hollywood Reporter. 2010-10-14. Retrieved 2012-09-17.
  5. ↑ Savage, Mark (2008-06-17). "Entertainment | Sara Bareilles' fairytale success". BBC News. Retrieved 2012-09-17.
  6. ↑ "Sara Bareilles - Gravity". YouTube.
  7. ↑ "Motion Theory - Gravity". Musiconline.com.br. Retrieved 2014-12-11.
  8. ↑ http://www.lovelyish.com/2012/02/01/kelly-clarkson-covers-gravity-gets-endorsed-by-sara-bareilles/
  9. ↑ "The ARIA Report Week Commencing ~ 30 April 2012 ~ Issue #1157" (PDF). pandora.nla.gov.au. 30 April 2012. Retrieved 23 May 2016.
  10. ↑ i3anana story (2015-12-31), Jessica Jung — Gravity, retrieved 2018-04-18
  11. ↑ "Gravity (Jeff/Annie)". YouTube. VeritasProductions. Nov 14, 2009. Retrieved 18 July 2014.
  12. ↑ Dan Harmon [@danharmon] (15 November 2009). "I was told women watch TV differently than men, but wow. Great editing, @tweetingkerry! bit.ly/3G7D5p" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  13. ↑ "South Korea Gaon International Chart (Week: February 12, 2012 to February 18, 2012)". Gaon Chart. January 5, 2013. Archived from the original on December 19, 2012. Retrieved January 5, 2013.
  14. ↑ "Charts.nz – Sara Bareilles – Gravity". Top 40 Singles.
  15. ↑ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved May 13, 2017.
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