| "It's Been Awhile" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Staind | ||||
| from the album Break the Cycle | ||||
| Released | April 14, 2001[1] | |||
| Format | CD single | |||
| Recorded | 2001 | |||
| Genre | Post-grunge | |||
| Length | 4:24 | |||
| Label | Elektra | |||
| Producer | Staind | |||
| Staind singles chronology | ||||
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"It's Been Awhile" [sic] is a single from 2001 off the album Break the Cycle by the alternative metal band Staind. The song is probably the band's best-known song, becoming a #5 hit on the Billboard Hot 100,[2] their only song to reach the pop Top 10. The song spent a second-best 20 weeks at #1 on the Billboard Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart[2] (behind only "Loser" by 3 Doors Down) and a then-record 16 weeks at #1 on the Billboard Hot Modern Rock Tracks chart,[2] beaten in 2007 by Foo Fighters with "The Pretender". The song is stylistically different from the other tracks on the album, which are Nu metal/Alternative metal songs and is considered by many critics and fans to be the first sign of Staind's transition from a nu metal to post-grunge band which would evolve on the band's next three albums.
Contents |
In "It's Been Awhile", singer Aaron Lewis sings of someone who takes stock of his life. He makes references to his previous drug addiction problem and failed relationships. Lewis mentions his father, though he believes he has only himself to blame for his problems.
The music video begins with Aaron Lewis going through some old photographs, one which happens to be an old girlfriend. The video then switches between him writing a letter to his girlfriend and the band performing casually in a room full of candles. There are brief shots of Aaron alone in the streets and looking at himself in the mirror while having second thoughts. Throughout the video, Aaron is seen continuously smoking cigarettes. At the end of the video, one of those cigarettes falls onto the floor and burns down his apartment.
The video was directed by Limp Bizkit frontman, Fred Durst.
| Chart (2001) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 5 |
| US Billboard Alternative Songs | 1 |
| US Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks | 1 |
| US Billboard Pop Songs | 3 |
| US Billboard Adult Pop Songs | 6 |
| UK Singles Chart | 15 |
| Australia ARIA Charts | 24 |
| Germany Media Control Charts | 43 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 18 |
| Ö3 Austria Top 40 | 54 |
| Dutch Mega Single Top 100 | 19 |
| RIANZ Top 40 Singles Chart | 13 |
| Swiss Singles Top 100 | 79 |
| Sweden Sverigetopplistan | 23 |
| Belgium Ultratop 50 | 46 |
| Preceded by "Duck and Run" by 3 Doors Down |
Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks number-one single April 28, 2001 – September 8, 2001 |
Succeeded by "How You Remind Me" by Nickelback |
| Preceded by "Drive" by Incubus |
Billboard Modern Rock Tracks number-one single April 28, 2001 – August 11, 2001 |
Succeeded by "Fat Lip" by Sum 41 |
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