This Is the Life (Amy Macdonald song)

"This Is the Life"
Single by Amy Macdonald
from the album This Is the Life
B-side "This Much Is True"
Released 10 December 2007 (UK)
25 April 2008 (Europe)
18 July 2008 (Germany)
20 October 2008 (France)
Format CD single, digital download
Recorded 2007
Genre Indie pop, folk
Length 3:07
Label Vertigo
Writer(s) Amy Macdonald
Producer(s) Pete Wilkinson
Amy Macdonald singles chronology
"L.A."
(2007)		 "This Is the Life"
(2007)		 "Run"
(2008)

"This Is the Life" is an indie pop / folk song by Scottish singer-songwriter Amy Macdonald from her 2007 album of the same title. It was released on 10 December 2007 in UK, and in April 2008 in most of European countries, becoming a major hit worldwide. It has so far been Macdonald's most successful single, topping six charts and reaching the top ten in 11 charts around the world. The music video consists of pictures of Macdonald and her friends' night out.

The song was used in a 2010 advert for the Fiat 500 shown across Europe.[1] It was also used in the early 2011 as an advert in Norway and re-entered the chart directly at number one. It is also used as an opening theme for a Polish television series True Law.

The track was also released in the U.S. on a vinyl 45 rpm single (Decca UCGR-00199-1) with unique picture sleeve, backed with "Let's Start a Band."

Charts performances

The song was first released in late 2007 in the UK, but achieved a moderate success, peaking at #28. In 2008, it was then successively released in many European countries, achieving huge success on The Dutch Mega Top 50 and the Dutch Top 40 where it became the biggest hit of 2008 and the best selling single for a female artist, the Ultratop 50 (Belgium Flanders), the Ultratop 40 (Belgium Wallonia), and on FIMI (Italian) chart, the German Singles Chart and the SNEP (France) chart, where it was #2. The song was also high ranked on the airplay and digital charts and had a long run in Austria, Switzerland and Belgium (Wallonia).

In Spain the song had a long run in the singles chart in 2009, peaking at #3 in the official Spanish Singles Chart compiled by PROMUSICAE, and being certified 2x Platinum with sales of over 80,000 units.

Track listings

CD single
  1. "This Is the Life" — 3:05
  2. "This Much Is True" — 2:44
Digital download
  1. "This Is the Life" — 3:05
  2. "This Is the Life (acoustic version)" — 3:06

Charts and sales

Peak positions

Chart (2008) Peak
position
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 40)[2] 1
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[3] 1
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Wallonia)[4] 1
Czech Republic (Rádio Top 100)[5] 1
Denmark (Tracklisten)[6] 8
European Hot 100 Singles[7] 2
France (SNEP)[8] 2
Germany (Media Control Charts)[9] 2
Hungary (Rádiós Top 40)[10] 2
Italy (FIMI)[11] 2
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[12] 1
Norway (VG-lista)[13] 6
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[14] 3
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[15] 3
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)[16] 2
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[17] 28
U.S. Billboard Triple A[18] 25
Chart (2011) Peak
position
Norway (VG-lista)[13] 1
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[17] 58

Year-end charts

Chart (2008) Position
Austrian Singles Chart[19] 8
Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart[20] 1
Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[21] 3
Dutch Singles Chart[22] 1
European Hot 100[23] 9
French Airplay Chart[24] 16
French Digital Singles Chart[25] 4
French Singles Chart[26] 29
German Singles Chart[27] 8
Swedish Singles Chart[28] 19
Swiss Singles Chart[29] 5
Chart (2009) Position
Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart[30] 89
Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart[31] 74
European Hot 100[32] 14
German Singles Chart[33] 28
Hungarian Airplay Chart[34] 4
Italian Singles Chart[35] 4
Spanish Singles Chart[36] 6
Swiss Singles Chart[37] 24

Decade-end charts

(2000–2009) Position
German Singles Chart[38] 7

All-time charts

Country Position
Switzerland[39] 4

Certifications and sales

Region Certification Sales/shipments
Belgium (BEA)[40] Platinum 30,000*
Germany (BVMI)[41] Platinum 300,000^
Italy (FIMI)[42] Gold 10,000*
Spain (PROMUSICAE)[43] 2× Platinum 40,000^
Switzerland (IFPI Switzerland)[44] Gold 15,000x

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
xunspecified figures based on certification alone

Chart successions

Preceded by
"4 Minutes" by Madonna featuring Justin Timberlake		 Dutch Top 40 number-one single
7 June 2008 – 14 June 2008 		Succeeded by
"Viva Hollandia" by Wolter Kroes
Preceded by
"No Stress" by Laurent Wolf		 Belgian (Flanders) number-one single
28 June 2008 – 6 September 2008 		Succeeded by
"I Kissed a Girl" by Katy Perry
Preceded by
"Tired of Being Sorry (Laisse le destin l'emporter)"
by Enrique Iglesias and Nâdiya		 Belgian (Wallonia) number-one single (first run)
19 July 2008 – 23 August 2008 		Succeeded by
"Dégénération" by Mylène Farmer
Preceded by
"Dégénération" by Mylène Farmer		 Belgian (Wallonia) number-one single (second run)
6 September 2008 – 13 September 2008 		Succeeded by
"Rayon de soleil" by William Baldé
Preceded by
"I Kissed A Girl" by Katy Perry		 Ö3 Austria Top 40 number-one single
1 October 2008 – 23 October 2008 		Succeeded by
"So What" by Pink
Preceded by
"So What" by Pink		 Czech Airplay Top 100
15 December 2008 – 29 December 2008 		Succeeded by
"Viva La Vida" by Coldplay

References

  1. ↑ Amy-Macdonald.de (in German)
  2. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40.
  3. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  4. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life" (in French). Ultratop 50.
  5. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert {{{year}}}{{{week}}} into search.
  6. ↑ "Danishcharts.com – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life". Tracklisten.
  7. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/artist/278963/amy+macdonald/chart
  8. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life" (in French). Les classement single.
  9. ↑ "Chartverfulgong > Amy MacDonald > This Is the Life – musicline.de" (in German). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH.
  10. ↑ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége.
  11. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life". Top Digital Download.
  12. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
  13. ↑ 13.0 13.1 "Norwegiancharts.com – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life". VG-lista.
  14. ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life" Canciones Top 50.
  15. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life". Singles Top 60.
  16. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life". Swiss Singles Chart.
  17. ↑ 17.0 17.1 "Amy MacDonald: Artist Chart History" UK Singles Chart.
  18. ↑ http://www.billboard.com/artist/278963/amy+macdonald/chart?f=851
  19. ↑ 2008 Austrian Singles Chart Austriancharts.at (Retrieved 1 January 2009)
  20. ↑ 2008 Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart Ultratop.be (Retrieved 26 December 2008)
  21. ↑ 2008 Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart Ultratop.be (Retrieved 26 December 2008)
  22. ↑ 2008 Dutch Singles Charts Dutchcharts.nl (Retrieved 29 December 2008)
  23. ↑ 2008 Eurochart Hot 100 Billboard.com (Retrieved 26 December 2008)
  24. ↑ "2008 French Airplay Chart". Snep. Retrieved 2009-08-06.
  25. ↑ "2008 French Digital Chart" (in French). Snep. Retrieved 23 January 2010.
  26. ↑ 2008 French Singles Chart Disqueenfrance.com (Retrieved 28 January 2009)
  27. ↑ "Single Jahrescharts 2008" (in German). MTV. Retrieved 16 January 2010.
  28. ↑ "Årslista Singlar – År 2008" (in Swedish). Swedish Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 5 January 2011.
  29. ↑ 2008 Swiss Singles Chart Hitparade.ch (Retrieved 29 December 2008)
  30. ↑ "2009 Belgian (Flanders) Singles Chart" (in Dutch). Ultratop. Retrieved 22 January 2010.
  31. ↑ "2009 Belgian (Wallonia) Singles Chart" (in French). Ultratop. Retrieved 30 December 2009.
  32. ↑ "2009 Eurochart Hot 100". Billboard. Retrieved 15 January 2009.
  33. ↑ "Single Jahrescharts 2009" (in German). MTV. Retrieved 16 January 2010.
  34. ↑ "Éves összesített listák - MAHASZ Rádiós TOP 100 (súlyozott)". Mahasz. Mahasz.
  35. ↑ "FIMI - Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana - Ricerche e dati di mercato". Fimi.it. 2010-01-19. Retrieved 2010-12-18.
  36. ↑ "Single Jahrescharts 2009" (PDF) (in Spanish). PROMUSICAE. Retrieved 16 January 2010.
  37. ↑ "2009 Swiss Singles Chart". Swisscharts. Retrieved 9 January 2010.
  38. ↑ http://www.rtl.de/cms/unterhaltung/tv-programm/show/die-ultimative-chartshow/hits-neue-jahrtausend-download.html
  39. ↑ "Best of All-Time". SwissCharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2010-01-09.
  40. ↑ "Ultratop − Goud en Platina – 2008". Ultratop & Hung Medien / hitparade.ch.
  41. ↑ "Gold-/Platin-Datenbank (Amy MacDonald; 'This Is the Life')" (in German). Bundesverband Musikindustrie.
  42. ↑ "Italian single certifications – Amy MacDonald – This Is the Life" (in Italian). Federation of the Italian Music Industry. Select Online in the field Sezione. Enter Amy MacDonald in the field Filtra. The certification will load automatically
  43. ↑ Spanish certifications (Retrieved 20 December 2009)
  44. ↑ "The Official Swiss Charts and Music Community: Awards (Amy MacDonald; 'This Is the Life')". Hung Medien.

External links