You're Only Human (Second Wind)
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| “You're Only Human (Second Wind)” | |||||
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| Single by Billy Joel from the album Greatest Hits - Volumes I & II |
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| Released | 1985 | ||||
| Format | 7" | ||||
| Recorded | 1985 | ||||
| Genre | Pop, Rock | ||||
| Length | 4:48 | ||||
| Label | Columbia | ||||
| Writer(s) | Billy Joel | ||||
| Producer | Phil Ramone | ||||
| Billy Joel singles chronology | |||||
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"You're Only Human (Second Wind)" is a hit song written in 1985 and performed by Billy Joel for the express purpose of teenage suicide prevention.
Billy was asked if he could write a song about suicide in the hopes of promoting its prevention in teenagers. He agreed, but was concerned about his original draft which took a downbeat tone he thought would in fact encourage kids to end it all. In response, Joel created a new song with a bouncy joyous beat and lyrics that stress personal forgiveness and optimism about life.
The song appeared in Billy Joel's Greatest Hits in 1985 and became a top ten hit, peaking at #9 on the Billboard chart. It was digitally recorded.
During the song, Joel audibly laughs after briefly hesitating during one of the verses. He decided to keep the mistake in the recorded version as it seemed to illustrate his point in the song about personal fallibility.
The drowning man in the music video is Adam Savage from MythBusters.
[edit] Single and album edits
The single version is slightly shorter than the album version, removing the sax solo between the bridge and the third verse.
[edit] Chart positions
| Charts | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 9 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 2 |
| UK Singles Chart | 94 |
