When I'm Gone (3 Doors Down song)

"When I'm Gone" is a song by American rock band 3 Doors Down. It was released in October 2002 as the lead single from their second album, Away from the Sun. It peaked at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in April 2003. The song also spent seventeen weeks atop the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart from November 2002 through March 2003, becoming one of the longest-running number-one singles on that chart.[1] The song also peaked at number two on the Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart almost reaching number one by one spot from Queens of the Stone Age's "No One Knows" on the issue dated February 15, 2003. It spent one week atop the Top 40 Mainstream chart for one week on May 3, 2003 and also peaked at number three on the Adult Top 40 chart.

"When I'm Gone"
Single by 3 Doors Down
from the album Away from the Sun
ReleasedOctober 21, 2002
Format
Genre
Length4:20
LabelRepublic
Songwriter(s)
  • Brad Arnold
  • Todd Harrell
  • Chris Henderson
  • Matt Roberts
3 Doors Down singles chronology
"Be Like That"
(2001)		 "When I'm Gone"
(2002)		 "The Road I'm On"
(2003)

The song has been featured in the crime drama series Third Watch, in the episode "A Ticket Grows in Brooklyn" (2003).[2]

Background and meaning

"When I'm Gone" was written by Brad Arnold, Matthew Roberts, Todd Harrell and Christopher Henderson. "There are only a few songs we’ve written on the road and 'When I’m Gone' is the only hit we’ve written on the road," Todd Harrell said on the band's official website.[3] "We were playing it in Europe and could immediately tell it was something special. From day one, it got the crowd up. I always knew it would do well," Harrell continued.[3]

Brad Arnold wrote the song thinking of unconditional love, for when being removed from loved one by miles, or time, or other obstacles. "When I'm Gone" does not necessarily mean being gone permanently. "It's asking a question, just please love me when I'm gone. And not just like when I'm dead and gone, but when I'm gonna come back. And that's kind of one thing it's about. But at the same time it's kind of about unconditional love. It's a lot of different statements it's asking of the person in that song. And it's like just the fulfillment of those different needs for every situation that it mentions. So I guess that song is just about needing someone really to be there for you unconditionally, and when you're gone," Arnold said of the song.[4]

Music video

There are two music videos for the song. The official music video was directed by The Emperor. It features the band performing live on the USS George Washington in the Mediterranean Sea on October 2, 2002.[5] Although the lyrics don't have anything to do with the army or war, the music video was dedicated to all military personnel serving in the United States military.[4]

The original video features the band members in a swamp, being buried alive while playing. It was directed by Marc Klasfeld and only aired on MuchMusic USA in the US.[6]

Live performances

"When I'm Gone" was first performed live on February 28, 2001 at Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium in Spartanburg, South Carolina. As of April 1, 2019, it has been performed 445 times, making it the fourth most performed song by 3 Doors Down.[7]

Track listings
  • AUS version
  1. "When I'm Gone" (album version) – 4:20
  2. "Changes" (album version) – 3:56
  3. "Living a Lie" (previously unreleased) – 3:35
  4. "Pop Song" – 3:12
  • Tracks off various versions
  1. "When I'm Gone" (radio edit) – 3:02

Charts

Weekly charts
Chart (2002–2003) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[8] 64
Canada (Nielsen SoundScan)[9] 10
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[10] 95
US Billboard Hot 100[11] 4
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[12] 3
US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[13] 2
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[14] 1
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[15] 1

Year-end charts
Chart (2003) Position
US Billboard Hot 100[16] 5

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[17] Gold 500,000^

^shipments figures based on certification alone

References
  1. Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications), page 633.
  2. "3 Doors Down". IMDb. Retrieved 2019-09-21.
  3. Union, Wonderful. "Official Site". 3 Doors Down. Retrieved 2019-09-17.
  4. Songfacts. "When I'm Gone by 3 Doors Down - Songfacts". www.songfacts.com. Retrieved 2019-09-08.
  5. 3 Doors Down - When I'm Gone. YouTube. Retrieved on April 11, 2013.
  6. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vn9LZNNeDJk
  7. "When I'm Gone by 3 Doors Down song statistics". Setlist.fm. Retrieved April 1, 2019.
  8. Kent, David (2006). Australian Chart Book 1993-2005. St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. ISBN 0-646-45889-2.
  9. "3 Doors Down Chart History (Hot Canadian Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  10. "Dutchcharts.nl – 3 Doors Down – When I'm Gone" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  11. "3 Doors Down Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  12. "3 Doors Down Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  13. "3 Doors Down Chart History (Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  14. "3 Doors Down Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  15. "3 Doors Down Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 14, 2019.
  16. "Billboard Top 100 – 2003". Billboardtop100of.com. Retrieved January 30, 2020.
  17. "American single certifications – 3 Doors Down – When I'm Gone". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 30, 2020. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.