Something About the Way You Look Tonight
| "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Elton John | ||||
| from the album The Big Picture | ||||
| A-side | "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" (single edit) | |||
| B-side |
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| Released | ||||
| Format | ||||
| Genre | Soft rock | |||
| Length |
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| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Chris Thomas | |||
| Elton John singles chronology | ||||
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| "Something About the Way You Look Tonight"/"Candle in the Wind 1997" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Elton John | ||||
| from the album The Big Picture | ||||
| A-side |
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| B-side | "You Can Make History (Young Again)" | |||
| Released | ||||
| Format | ||||
| Genre | ||||
| Length |
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| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) | ||||
| Producer(s) | Chris Thomas | |||
| Elton John singles chronology | ||||
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"Something About the Way You Look Tonight" is a song by Elton John, released in 1997 as the first single from his 26th studio album The Big Picture.
Later, the single was also released as a double A-side single with "Candle in the Wind 1997". That single and its video were dedicated to the memory of Diana, Princess of Wales, who died that year, with proceeds from the sale of the single going towards Diana's charities.[1][2] According to the Recording Industry Association of America, with certified sales, this double A-side is "the best-selling single of all time."[3][4] The Guinness World Records 2009 states that the song is "the biggest-selling single since UK and US singles charts began in the 1950s, having accumulated worldwide sales of 33 million copies".[5]
The video for the song featured actors and actresses from the UK television programme This Life, as well as supermodels Kate Moss and Sophie Dahl and is regarded as one of Elton John's best videos. John has publicly revealed (through his "warts and all" documentary Tantrums and Tiaras) that he finds videos "fucking loathsome" and after the album The Big Picture refrained from appearing in his own videos unless they were cameo appearances.
Sales and chart positions
In the UK alone, the double A-side single with "Candle in the Wind 1997" sold over 4,930,000 copies (8× Platinum), making the song the best-selling single ever in UK history.[6] It remained for five weeks at the number-one position. In the US, the double A-side single spent 14 weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100. The best-selling single in Billboard history and the only single ever certified Diamond in the US, the single sold over 11 million copies in the US.[7][8] On the US adult contemporary chart, however, "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" and "Candle In the Wind 1997" charted separately; while the tribute to Princess Diana peaked at number 2 on this chart,[9] "Something About the Way You Look Tonight" spent 10 weeks at number 1 in late 1997 and early 1998. This double-sided single holds the record for the fewest weeks in a chart year from a year-end number-one single, with as few as eight. (In 1998, it had 34 more total weeks, however it was number 8 in the year-end list of 1998).
Charts
Year-end charts
| End-of-year chart (1997) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[10] | 1 |
Decade-end charts
| Chart (1990–1999) | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[11] | 5 |
All-time charts
| Chart | Position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[12] | 41 |
Personnel
- Elton John: piano, vocals
- Davey Johnstone: guitars
- John Jorgenson: guitars
- Bob Birch: bass
- Guy Babylon: keyboards
- Charlie Morgan: drums and percussion
- Paul Carrack: organ
- Carol Kenyon: backing vocals
- Jackie Rawe: backing vocals
- Strings arranged by Guy Babylon and Anne Dudley
- Conducted by Anne Dudley
| Preceded by "Do They Know It's Christmas?" by Band Aid |
UK best-selling single in history[13] 14 September 1997 – present |
Succeeded by none |
| Preceded by "The Drugs Don't Work" by The Verve |
UK Singles Chart number-one single 14 September 1997 – 19 October 1997 |
Succeeded by "Spice Up Your Life" by Spice Girls |
| Preceded by "Men in Black" by Will Smith |
Australia ARIA Singles Chart number-one single 5 October 1997 – 9 November 1997 |
Succeeded by "Barbie Girl" by Aqua |
| Preceded by "Tubthumping" by Chumbawamba |
New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart number-one single 5 October 1997 – 9 November 1997 |
Succeeded by "Da Ya Think I'm Sexy?" by N-Trance |
| Preceded by "4 Seasons of Loneliness" by Boyz II Men |
Billboard Hot 100 number one single (with "Candle in the Wind 1997") 11 October 1997 – 10 January 1998 |
Succeeded by "Truly Madly Deeply" by Savage Garden |
| Preceded by "How Do I Live" by LeAnn Rimes |
Billboard Adult Contemporary number-one single November 22, 1997 – January 24, 1998 |
Succeeded by "My Heart Will Go On" by Celine Dion |
References
- ↑ "Candle In The Wind raises £38 million for Diana's charities after Elton John's moving performance at Princess' funeral". Daily Mail. 11 August 2015.
- ↑ "17 Years Ago, Elton John's 'Candle In the Wind 1997' Started Its 14-Week No. 1 Run" (11 October 2014). Billboard. 11 August 2015.
- ↑ "RIAA News Room – The American Recording Industry Announces its Artists of the Century – Nov 10, 1999". Recording Industry Association of America website. RIAA. 10 November 1999. Retrieved 2014-02-14.
'Candle In The Wind 1997' soon surpassed Bing Crosby’s 'White Christmas' to become the best-selling single of all time.
(certified sales) - ↑ Elton John: Biography | Rolling Stone Music Rolling Stone "Candle in the Wind 1997," easily became the all-time highest-certified single".
- ↑ Guinness Book of Records, 2007 Edition, page 187
- ↑ "Pride special: Celebrating the biggest selling singles by LGBT artists". The Official Charts Company. 25 June 2016.
- ↑ "Elton John: Biography - Rolling Stone Music". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 27 September 2014.
- ↑ "The American Recording Industry Announces its Artists of the Century". RIAA. Retrieved 2 February 2010.
- ↑ "Adult Contemporary chart for the week of 9/27/1997". Billboard.com. Retrieved 2011-12-05.
- ↑ "Billboard Top 100 - 1997". Retrieved 2010-08-28.
- ↑ Geoff Mayfield (December 25, 1999). 1999 The Year in Music Totally '90s: Diary of a Decade - The listing of Top Pop Albums of the '90s & Hot 100 Singles of the '90s. Billboard. Retrieved October 15, 2010.
- ↑ "The Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Songs (50-41)". Nielsen Business Media, Inc. Retrieved 2008-10-04.
- ↑ UK Top 10 Best Selling Singles ukcharts.20m.com
