Letter to Me
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| “Letter to Me” | |||||
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| Single by Brad Paisley from the album 5th Gear |
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| Released | October 2007 | ||||
| Format | CD single | ||||
| Recorded | 2007 | ||||
| Genre | Country | ||||
| Length | 4:41 (album version) | ||||
| Label | Arista Nashville | ||||
| Writer(s) | Brad Paisley | ||||
| Producer | Frank Rogers | ||||
| Brad Paisley singles chronology | |||||
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"Letter to Me" is a single by country music singer-songwriter Brad Paisley. It is the third single released from his 2007 album 5th Gear. The song spent four weeks at Number One on the Billboard Hot Country Songs charts in February 2008, becoming his sixth consecutive Number One on that chart,[1] as well as his tenth overall.
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[edit] Content
In "Letter to Me", the song's narrator is an adult who is reflecting on his youth. Now older and wiser for having lived various teen-aged experiences, the narrator uses his experiences he had as a teenager to give his more youthful self advice on dealing with various situations.
Among the experiences are: dealing with the trauma of breaking up with a steady girlfriend after several months, breaking the habit of reckless driving (a police officer had pulled over and ticketed the teenager for failing to stop at a stop sign) and missing a much-anticipated homecoming bonfire rally to improve a failing algebra grade. The adult also guides his teen-aged self through dealing with older and wiser people, such as his family and teachers.
Other situations are more light-hearted, such as a first-date experience with the right girl. After a teaser about how good his wife and children look, the narrator gives his teen-aged self some final words about how the best years of his life lie ahead and that he now regrets he did not study Spanish and typing, finally noting, "I wish you wouldn't worry, let it be"
The song references many aspects of Paisley's childhood such as the corner of "Tomlinson and Eighth", two streets in his hometown of Glen Dale, West Virginia. Mrs. Brinkman, whose name is mentioned in the song, was (until 2007) a teacher at John Marshall High School in Glen Dale.[1] Linda Brinkman was Paisley's public speaking teacher. The music video included former classmates from Paisley's 1991 graduating class, and was filmed in Glen Dale. http://www.wtov9.com/communitycalendar/14196450/detail.html
[edit] Inspiration
Paisley was inspired to write "Letter to Me" after his wife, Kimberly Williams-Paisley, was asked in 2007 to write for a book entitled What I Know Now: Letters to My Younger Self. Upon hearing of the book, he thought that the concept of writing a letter to his younger self would be a good idea for a country song.[1] According to him, it took most of a week to write the song, as he would constantly change the lyrics and write a new letter every day.[1]
[edit] Peak positions
| Chart (2007-2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 40 |
| U.S. Billboard Pop 100 | 81 |
| Canadian Country Singles | 1 |
| Canadian Hot 100 | 58 |
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d Horner, Alanna (2008-03-10). "Story Behind the Song". Country Weekly 15 (5): 64.
| Preceded by "Our Song" by Taylor Swift |
Billboard Hot Country Songs number-one single February 2-February 23, 2008 |
Succeeded by "Cleaning This Gun (Come On In Boy)" by Rodney Atkins |
| Canadian Country Singles Chart number-one single January 4, 2008 |
Succeeded by "Our Song" by Taylor Swift |
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| Canadian Country Singles Chart number-one single January 18 - February 8, 2008 |
Succeeded by "In My Next Life" by Terri Clark |
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