You Were Meant for Me (Jewel song)

"You Were Meant for Me"
Standard artwork (U.S. CD cardboard release pictured)
Single by Jewel
from the album Pieces of You
B-side
  • "Cold Song"
  • "Rocker Girl"
  • "Emily"
Released November 12, 1996
Format CD single
Recorded 1994
Genre Folk-pop
Length 4:13 (Album Version)
3:45 (Album/Radio Edit)
Label Atlantic
Songwriter(s)
  • Jewel Kilcher
  • Steve Poltz
Producer(s)
  • Ben Keith
  • Peter Collin
Jewel singles chronology
"Who Will Save Your Soul"
(1996)		 "You Were Meant for Me"
(1996)		 "Foolish Games"
(1997)

"Who Will Save Your Soul"
(1996)		 "You Were Meant for Me"
(1996)		 "Foolish Games"
(1997)

"You Were Meant for Me" is a folk-pop song written by Jewel and Steve Poltz and performed by Jewel on her first album, Pieces of You. It relates the singer's comprehension of a failed relationship and how she coped with that reality in her life. It was the second single from that album and went on to receive a great deal of recognition. It became a hit and reached #2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 for 2 weeks, held off by "Can't Nobody Hold Me Down" by Puff Daddy & Mase and "Hypnotize" by The Notorious B.I.G. It reached #1 on the Adult Contemporary chart for a single week.[1]

"Foolish Games/You Were Meant for Me" ranked at number 15 on Billboard's All Time Top 100 in 2008.[2] When the All Time chart was retabulated for the chart's 55th anniversary in 2013, it remained in the top 20 at number 17.[3] The song was also re-recorded for Jewel's Greatest Hits album with backing vocals from the country trio Pistol Annies.

Background

"You Were Meant for Me" was Jewel's second single to be taken from her debut album.

Atlantic Records had Jewel re-record the song for a more radio-friendly version. Initially, the first version that was released was the "Juan Patino Radio Mix" (with a music video produced by Sean Penn). This version did not gather much attention, and it was later cancelled, with the video pulled from MTV and VH1. Jewel returned again into the studio to record the song for a third time. The version produced is known as the "radio version" and is featured on Greatest Hits.

The original radio version, "Juan Patino Radio Mix", was never released commercially but on a promotional LP titled Phyllis Barnabee Finally Gets a Bra in 1996. The actual "radio version" was released on a commercial CD single and later on a re-release of Pieces of You.

Steve Poltz later referenced the record in his song, "Happier Hour", through the lyrics, "Did I ever tell you I wrote a hit with Jewel? I was truly meant for you and you were truly meant for me."

Composition

"You Were Meant for Me" is written in the key of E minor with a moderate, swinging tempo of 114 beats per minute. The song follows a chord progression of Cadd9–G/B–C–Em, and Jewel's vocals span from G3 to C5.[4]

Music video

A music video was directed by Lawrence Carroll for the Radio Edit. Steve Poltz appeared in the video. In the video Jewel and Poltz appeared together in numerous scenes, most of them depicting how both of them wants to be together but always separated. In one scene, Poltz tries to reach for Jewel's hand, but a curtain appears between them and separating their hands. In another scene, Jewel lies in front of Poltz and starts to undress and reveals her underwear, but instead of reaching for him, she moves away from him, leaving Poltz with his arms raised towards her. Other scenes including Jewel lies beside a little pond with some little ships (which is also the single's cover), Jewel sits inside a boat in the middle of a room alone, and Jewel sits on a side of a bedroom while Poltz, shirtless, was in the other side and tries to reach towards her.

The video won the award for Best Female Video at the 1997 MTV Video Music Awards.

Track listing

US Promo (Original Promo) (PRCD6416-2)

  1. You Were Meant for Me (Juan Patino Mix)
  2. Cold Song
  3. Rocker Girl
  4. Emily

Released originally in 1995

US Promo (re-issue) (PRCD6888)

  1. You Were Meant for Me (album edit)

US Promo Maxi (PRCD6605)

  1. You Were Meant for Me (album edit)
  2. You Were Meant for Me (album version)
  3. You Were Meant for Me (acoustic version)

US CD Single (075678702129) *

  1. You Were Meant for Me (album edit)
  2. Foolish Games (album version)

This CD single was re-issued after "Foolish Games" had been released as a single from the Batman & Robin soundtrack. Keeping to the original track listing the single contained a bonus track, the radio edit of "Foolish Games". The song was not listed on the inlay of the single

European CD Single

  1. You Were Meant for Me (album edit)
  2. Cold Song
  3. Rocker Girl

Charts and certifications

Awards

Year Nominee/work Award Result
1997"You Were Meant for Me"MTV Video Music Award for Best Female VideoWon
MTV Video Music Award - Viewer's ChoiceNominated
MTV Video Music Award for Video of the Year

Cover versions

Bellefire version

A single by the Irish girl group Bellefire was scheduled for release in June 2004, as the follow-up to "Say Something Anyway". The release was cancelled, although the track received some airplay in some far east countries. It is included on the album Spin the Wheel.

A promotional video exists and is included on a special edition of the Spin the Wheel album. The video was directed by Andy Hylton.

Other versions

  • The song was re-recorded by Hong Kong singer Fiona Sit in April 2005. The album was a success, leading to the release of a second edition, but the song was never promoted as a major single and acted as more of a 'bonus track' of the album.
  • On the 2007 American Idols Live! Tour, season six winner Jordin Sparks covered an acoustic version of the song and played it on guitar.

References

  1. ↑ Whitburn, Joel (2002). Top Adult Contemporary: 1961-2001. Record Research. p. 126.
  2. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/bbcom/specials/hot100/charts/top100-titles-20.shtml
  3. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/articles/list/2155531/the-hot-100-all-time-top-songs?list_page=8
  4. ↑ Poltz, Steve. "Jewel "You Were Meant for Me" Sheet Music in E Minor (transposable) - Download & Print". Musicnotes.com. Retrieved 2017-10-09.
  5. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – Jewel – You Were Meant for Me". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  6. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Jewel" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  7. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Jewel – You Were Meant for Me" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  8. ↑ "Charts.nz – Jewel – You Were Meant for Me". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  9. ↑ "Lista Przebojów Trójki - Polskie Radio Online". Lp3.polskieradio.pl. Retrieved 2014-01-12.
  10. ↑ "Jewel: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  11. ↑ "Jewel Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  12. ↑ "Jewel Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  13. ↑ "Jewel Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  14. ↑ "Jewel Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2010-08-31.
  15. ↑ "Jewel Chart History (Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2010-09-27.
  16. ↑ "RPM Year End Top 100 Hit Tracks". RPM. 15 December 1997. Retrieved 3 September 2017.
  17. ↑ "Billboard Top 100 - 1997". Retrieved 2010-08-28.
  18. ↑ "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles 1997". The Australian Record Industry Association Ltd. Archived from the original on November 2, 2015. Retrieved November 2, 2015.
  19. ↑ "Billboard Top 100 - 1998". Retrieved 2010-08-28.
  20. ↑ Geoff Mayfield (December 25, 1999). 1999 The Year in Music Totally '90s: Diary of a Decade - The listing of Top Pop Albums of the '90s & Hot 100 Singles of the '90s. Billboard. Retrieved October 15, 2010.
  21. ↑ Bronson, Fred (2 August 2018). "Billboard Hot 100 60th Anniversary Interactive Chart". Billboard. Retrieved 4 August 2018.
  22. ↑ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 1997 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association.
  23. ↑ "American single certifications – Jewel – You Were Meant for Me". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
  24. ↑ "Best-Selling Records of 1997". Billboard. BPI Communications Inc. 110 (5): 76. January 31, 1998. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved May 29, 2015.
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