Writing's on the Wall (Sam Smith song)

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"Writing's on the Wall"
File:Writing's on the Wall by Sam Smith.png
Single by Sam Smith
Released 25 September 2015
Format
Recorded 2015:
RAK Studios
Abbey Road Studios
The Pierce Rooms
Genre Orchestral pop
Length 4:38
Label Capitol
Writer(s)
Producer(s)
Sam Smith singles chronology
"Omen"
(2015)		 "Writing's on the Wall"
(2015)
James Bond theme chronology
"Skyfall"
(2012)		 "Writing's on the Wall"
(2015)
Music video
"Writing's on the Wall" on YouTube

"Writing's on the Wall" is a song by English singer and songwriter Sam Smith; from the 2015 James Bond film Spectre. The song was released as a digital download on 25 September 2015.[1] The song was written by Smith and Jimmy Napes, and produced by the latter alongside Steve Fitzmaurice and Disclosure and released on 25 September 2015.

"Writing's on the Wall" received mixed reviews, especially when compared to previous Bond theme songs.[2][3][4][5] The mixed reception to the song led to Shirley Bassey trending on Twitter on the day it was released.[6][7] The single became the first Bond movie theme to reach number one in the UK Singles Chart. It also reached the top 10 in a few other European countries, but unlike other James Bond themes, it was not as successful outside Europe, only peaking at number 43 in Canada and Australia and number 71 on the Billboard Hot 100. Only the instrumental version of the song appeared on the film's official soundtrack album. The song won the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song at the 73rd Golden Globe Awards[8] and the Academy Award for Best Original Song at the 88th Academy Awards.

Background and composition

"Writing's on the Wall" was co-written by Smith and Jimmy Napes.[9] Smith said that the song came together in one whirlwind session: he and Napes wrote it in under half an hour and quickly recorded a demo. When they listened back to that recording, they were so pleased with Smith's vocal performance that they ended up using it on the final release—albeit with some added muscle in the arrangement.[10] On 8 September 2015 Sam Smith announced that he was singing the song for the James Bond film Spectre. He described performing the theme as "one of the highlights of my career".[11] The English band Radiohead also composed a song for the film, "Spectre", which went unused.[12]

The song is written in the key of F minor with a tempo of 66 beats per minute (Larghetto). Smith's vocals range from A ♭3 to D♭5.[13] The singer expressed some backlash at his vocal performance, feeling it was "horrible to sing" as the notes are "just so high".[14]

Critical reception

The song received a mixed response from critics at the time of its release. Alexis Petridis of The Guardian wrote "Writing's on the Wall attempts to capture the mood of Adele's Skyfall theme – but backs Sam Smith's claim it only took 20 minutes to write."[15] Lewis Corner of Digital Spy rated it 3 out of 5 stars.[16] Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph called the song a "monster Bond ballad", stating, "(The song) is very, very slow and surprisingly restrained, at times floating by on resonant piano notes, the faintest brush stroke of orchestra, with all the focus on Smith's intense, tremulous vocal, rising with controlled pace and tension to an audacious chorus pay-off".[17]

Commercial performance

In the United Kingdom, "Writing's on the Wall" became the first James Bond theme to reach number one, on the issue dated 8 October 2015. The previous highest-charting Bond themes were Adele's "Skyfall" and Duran Duran's "A View to a Kill", which both reached number two. It also became Smith's fifth UK number-one single within two years. The song spent a total of 16 consecutive weeks in the UK Singles Chart. In the United States, "Writing's on the Wall" debuted and peaked at number 71 on the Billboard Hot 100, compared to the previous Bond song, "Skyfall", which debuted at number 8 in October 2012. In Canada, the song debuted at and peaked number 43. In Australia, the song performed moderately, debuting at number 44, and later peaking at number 43, but in Ireland, the song was a much bigger hit, debuting and peaking at number 9. The song has also charted in several other European countries though to a far lesser degree than its predecessor.

Track listing

Digital download[18]
No. Title Length
1. "Writing's on the Wall"   4:38
CD single and vinyl[19][20]
No. Title Length
1. "Writing's on the Wall"   4:38
2. "Writing's on the Wall" (Instrumental) 4:38

Credits and personnel

Recording and management
Personnel
  1. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  2. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  9. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  10. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  11. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  13. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  14. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  15. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  16. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  19. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  20. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  21. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 23 November 2015.
  22. ↑ "Austriancharts.at – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall" (in German). Ö3 Austria Top 40. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  23. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  24. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall" (in French). Ultratop 50. Retrieved 20 November 2015.
  25. ↑ "Sam Smith – Chart history" Canadian Hot 100 for Sam Smith. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  26. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201546 into search.
  27. ↑ "ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Digital Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201540 into search.
  28. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  29. ↑ "Sam Smith: Writing's On The Wall" (in Finnish). Musiikkituottajat – IFPI Finland. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
  30. ↑ "Lescharts.com – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved 22 November 2015.
  31. ↑ "Officialcharts.de – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall". GfK Entertainment. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
  32. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  33. ↑ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Single (track) Top 40 lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
  34. ↑ "Chart Track: Week 40, 2015". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
  35. ↑ "Italiancharts.com – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall". Top Digital Download. Retrieved 13 November 2015.
  36. ↑ "Sam Smith – Chart history" Japan Hot 100 for Sam Smith. Retrieved 17 December 2015.
  37. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  38. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  39. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  40. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription required)
  41. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Sam Smith search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 17 October 2015.
  42. ↑ "Dutchcharts.nl – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
  43. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  44. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. (subscription required)
  45. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2015-10-08". Scottish Singles Top 40. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
  46. ↑ "SNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201605 into search.
  47. ↑ "SNS IFPI" (in Slovak). Hitparáda – Singles Digital Top 100 Oficiálna. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: insert 201546 into search.
  48. ↑ "Spanishcharts.com – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall" Canciones Top 50. Retrieved 24 November 2015.
  49. ↑ "Swedishcharts.com – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall". Singles Top 60. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
  50. ↑ "Swisscharts.com – Sam Smith – Writing's on the Wall". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 14 December 2015.
  51. ↑ "Archive Chart: 2015-10-08" UK Singles Chart. Retrieved 2 October 2015.
  52. ↑ "Sam Smith – Chart history" Billboard Hot 100 for Sam Smith. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  53. ↑ "Sam Smith – Chart history" Billboard Adult Contemporary for Sam Smith. Retrieved 18 November 2015.
  54. ↑ http://www.officialcharts.com/charts/end-of-year-singles-chart/
  55. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found. Enter Writing's on the Wall in the field Keywords. Select Title in the field Search by. Select single in the field By Format. Select Gold in the field By Award. Click Search
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