Crawling (song)

"Crawling" is a song by American rock band Linkin Park. It is the second single from their debut album Hybrid Theory and is the fifth track on the album. It was released in 2001 as their second single and won a Grammy for Best Hard Rock Performance in 2002. In January 2011, "Crawling" was released in a Linkin Park DLC pack for Rock Band 3.

"Crawling"
Single by Linkin Park
from the album Hybrid Theory
B-side"Papercut" (Live from the BBC)
ReleasedMarch 1, 2001[1]
Format
RecordedNew Orleans, Louisiana, 1998–2000
GenreNu metal[2]
Length3:29
LabelWarner Bros.
Songwriter(s)Linkin Park
Producer(s)Don Gilmore
Linkin Park singles chronology
"One Step Closer"
(2000)		 "Crawling"
(2001)		 "Papercut"
(2001)
Audio sample
  • file
  • help
Music video
"Crawling" on YouTube

Background

"Crawling" is one of the few songs on Hybrid Theory that does not prominently feature Mike Shinoda's rap sung lyrics. The intro to "Crawling" has been remixed in live versions over the years. Since 2008's Projekt Revolution, Mike Shinoda has rapped the first verse of "Hands Held High" over the intro to Reanimation version of "Crawling", titled "Krwlng" (featuring Staind frontman Aaron Lewis). In 2009, Shinoda rapped two verses of "Hands Held High" over the intro of "Crawling", which first verse started with an a cappella or a bassline before the Reanimation intro started, in which Shinoda raps the second verse. Singer Chester Bennington remarked that "Crawling" was the most difficult Linkin Park song to sing live, stating "Crawling has caused me the most trouble live more than any other song." Bennington also commented on the meaning of "Crawling" by stating it was inspired by his own battles with substance abuse. "Crawling is about feeling like I had no control over myself in terms of drugs and alcohol, hence the line "These wounds they will not heal...".[3] The song is recorded in the key of C# minor.

A live version of "Crawling" was included as a B-side to "Breaking the Habit".

Music video

The video was directed by Brothers Strause. It portrays a young woman's inner conflict dealing with an abusive relationship. The woman (portrayed by Katelyn Rosaasen) closes off to the rest of the world, represented with the special effects of crystals forming around her. By the end, the crystals recede.

This video was supposed to have a "darker" ending to it when the first synopsis was written, being a take on Species where a psycho fan kills the band, but Warner Bros. rejected the idea, and the final ending was written in its place.[4][5]

"Crawling" was the first music video with Dave Farrell in the band. Phoenix returned to Linkin Park just before they began work on this video.

The video was nominated for Best Rock video on MTV's Video Music Awards. It lost to Limp Bizkit's "Rollin".[6]

Bonus content

The bonus feature on the CD is the same footage that is a hidden easter egg on Frat Party at the Pankake Festival. However, the footage here is uncensored, while the footage on "Frat Party" is censored.

A "Strictly Limited Numbered Edition" DVD single was also released which includes a live version of "Crawling" that was performed at the Dragon Festival, though the audio is dubbed with the studio version of the song. The video has a multiple camera angle feature which allows viewers to see different camera angles of the performance with the use of the DVD remote control. The DVD also has four 30-second live snippets of "One Step Closer", "By Myself", "With You", and "A Place for My Head". The live "Crawling" video is available on Warner Bros. Records YouTube channel, which was uploaded on February 9, 2010.[7] The live Crawling video is also available as a DVD extra to "Frat Party at the Pankake Festival".

Personnel

Cover versions

Coldplay frontman Chris Martin performed a solo piano rendition of "Crawling" live in early August 2017. The performance was a tribute to Chester Bennington, who died on July 20, 2017, from suicide.[8]

The song was performed by the band along with Bring Me the Horizon vocalist Oliver Sykes filling in for Chester's vocals and DJ and record producer Zedd on drums during the Linkin Park and Friends: Celebrate Life in Honor of Chester Bennington show at the Hollywood Bowl on October 27, 2017.

Staind frontman Aaron Lewis performed a tribute version of "Crawling" live on stage on August 10, 2017 at Look Park in Florence, Massachusetts.[9]

American rock band New Years Day performed a cover version on their 2018 EP Diary of a Creep.

A cover version by Dream State is featured on the 2018 compilation album Songs That Saved My Life.

Commercial performance

The song has seen a success in many countries. In the United Kingdom, the song debuted and peaked at number 16 and stayed on the chart for eight weeks. It reached the top ten in Canada and Austria. It reached the top thirty and top forty in many countries, it was more successful than "One Step Closer". However, it peaked only at number 79 in the United States, becoming their lowest charting single until they released "Given Up", which peaked at number 99, although it managed to peak at number five on the Modern Rock Track Chart and number three on the Mainstream Rock Track Chart. Despite the low peak, the song remained for 20 weeks at the bottom of the chart, which is longer than the 18 weeks spent by "One Step Closer".

Track listing

All tracks are written by Linkin Park.

CD single
No.TitleLength
1."Crawling" (Album Version)3:29
2."Papercut" (Live from the BBC)3:08
3."Backstage Video Footage" (Video)9:56
DVD single
No.TitleLength
1."Crawling" (Live Video)3:31
2."Crawling" (Album Version)3:29
3."4x30 Second Live Video Snippets"2:00

Charts

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
Italy (FIMI)[35] Gold 25,000*
United Kingdom (BPI)[36] Gold 400,000
United States (RIAA)[1] Gold 500,000

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
sales+streaming figures based on certification alone

References
  1. "American single certifications – Linkin Park – Crawling". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
  2. Green, Chris. "Linkin Park have launched a venture capital brand, but can such a company ever be rock n' roll?". The Independent. (June 25th, 2015). Retrieved on October 11th, 2015
  3. Hyclak, Anna (2009-07-17). "Linkin Park's Bennington Discusses His Drug Addiction | SPIN | Newswire". SPIN. Retrieved 2013-04-13.
  4. Linkin Park - The making of Crawling on YouTube
  5. "Crawling (Official Video) on YouTube". from Linkin Park's YouTube Channel
  6. "Crawling". Songfacts.com. Retrieved 2009-03-13.
  7. "Crawling (Live Video Version) on YouTube". From the Warner Bros. Records YouTube Channel
  8. "Watch Coldplay's Chris Martin Cover Linkin Park's 'Crawling'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
  9. "Staind Reunion and Bennington + Cornell Tributes Highlight Aaron Lewis Charity Gig". Loudwire. Retrieved 2018-11-12.
  10. "Australian-charts.com – Linkin Park – Crawling". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  11. "Austriancharts.at – Linkin Park – Crawling" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  12. "Ultratop.be – Linkin Park – Crawling" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  13. "Brazil" (PDF). ABPD. October 6, 2001. Retrieved April 1, 2014.
  14. "Offiziellecharts.de – Linkin Park – Crawling". GfK Entertainment Charts.
  15. "Irish-charts.com – Discography Linkin Park". Irish Singles Chart.
  16. "Dutchcharts.nl – Linkin Park – Crawling" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  17. "Charts.nz – Linkin Park – Crawling". Top 40 Singles.
  18. "Swedishcharts.com – Linkin Park – Crawling". Singles Top 100.
  19. "Swisscharts.com – Linkin Park – Crawling". Swiss Singles Chart.
  20. "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved June 21, 2020.
  21. "Linkin Park: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company.
  22. "Linkin Park Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  23. "Linkin Park Chart History (Alternative Songs)". Billboard.
  24. "Linkin Park Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard.
  25. "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Change the chart to CZ – SINGLES DIGITAL – TOP 100 and insert 201730 into search. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
  26. "Le Top de la semaine : Top Singles Téléchargés – SNEP (Week 30, 2017)" (in French). Syndicat National de l'Édition Phonographique. Retrieved August 2, 2017.
  27. "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
  28. "Portuguesecharts.com – Linkin Park – Crawling". AFP Top 100 Singles. Retrieved August 5, 2017.
  29. "ČNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select SINGLES DIGITAL - TOP 100 and insert 201730 into search. Retrieved August 1, 2017.
  30. "Linkin Park Chart History (Hot Rock Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved August 3, 2017.
  31. "Jaaroverzichten 2001". Ultratop. Retrieved November 29, 2019.
  32. "Top 100 Single-Jahrescharts". GfK Entertainment (in German). offiziellecharts.de. Retrieved January 13, 2020.
  33. "The Official UK Singles Chart 2001" (PDF). UK Singles Chart. ChartsPlus. Retrieved March 18, 2020.
  34. "Hot Rock Songs – Year-End 2017". Billboard. Retrieved September 20, 2019.
  35. "Italian single certifications – Linkin Park – Crawling" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved December 26, 2018. Select "Tutti gli anni" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Crawling" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli online" under "Sezione".
  36. "British single certifications – Linkin Park – Crawling". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved May 1, 2020. Select singles in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Crawling in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
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