Why (Rascal Flatts song)
| "Why" | |
|---|---|
| Song |
"Why" is the title of a song recorded by American country band Rascal Flatts. It is the third single from their sixth studio album, Unstoppable. It was released to radio stations on September 29, 2009 and debuted at #44 on the U.S. Billboard US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for the week of October 10, 2009. It was written by Rob Mathes and Allen Shamblin.
Content
The song is a slow-tempo song, sung from the perspective of a man whose close friend has committed suicide. All three members of Rascal Flatts said that they had difficulty recording the song, because they all knew someone close to them that committed suicide.
Reception
Roughstock gave the song a favorable review. Bobby Peacock of the website says of the song, “The lyrics alone are beautiful.”[1] The song also received special mention in Matt Bjorke's original review of the Unstoppable album, where he wrote that "Levox has NEVER sounded better vocally."[2] Chris Neal of Country Weekly gave it three stars out of five, saying that lead singer Gary LeVox "handles the lyric as delicately as its subject matter[…] calls for" but said that the "climactic arena rock guitar solo[…]rob[s] some of the song of its intimacy."[3] Since the song is a true account of the suicide of a great guitarists and vocalist that never "hit it big" the guitar solo has always seemed as much of a tribute to the man who "left the stage in the middle of the song" as the song itself. Allen Shamblin captured the moment under the oak trees at the little country cemetery and expresses it beautifully.
Chart performance
"Why" peaked at number 18 on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts dated for November 14, 2009. It held the peak before falling to number 19 on the week of November 28 before returning to number 18 a week later. The song did not reach the Billboard Hot 100 proper, but peaked at number 2 on the Bubbling Under Hot 100, which is equivalent to number 102 on Hot 100. It was the lowest-peaking official single release of Rascal Flatts' career until "Changed" reached number 20 in May 2013.
| Chart (2009) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[4] | 18 |
| US Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100[5] | 2 |
References
- ^ Roughstock “Why” Review
- ^ Roughstock “Unstoppable” Review
- ^ Neal, Chris (2009-11-16). "Reviews: Singles". Country Weekly. 16 (40): 54. ISSN 1074-3235.
{{cite journal}}:|access-date=requires|url=(help) - ^ "Rascal Flatts Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2011). Top Pop Singles 1955–2010. Record Research, Inc. p. 732. ISBN 0-89820-188-8.