Ecclesiastes 4-6 | Solomon’s Dissatisfaction

Published on Sep 24, 2012

I have written on the Book of Ecclesiastes and the subject of the meaning of our lives on several occasions on this blog. In this series on Ecclesiastes I hope to show how secular humanist man can not hope to find a lasting meaning to his life in a closed system without bringing God back into the picture. This is the same exact case with Solomon in the Book of Ecclesiastes. Three thousand years ago, Solomon took a look at life “under the sun” in his book of Ecclesiastes. Christian scholar Ravi Zacharias has noted, “The key to understanding the Book of Ecclesiastes is the term ‘under the sun.’ What that literally means is you lock God out of a closed system, and you are left with only this world of time plus chance plus matter.”

Let me show you some inescapable conclusions if you choose to live without God in the picture. Solomon came to these same conclusions when he looked at life “under the sun.”

1. Death is the great equalizer (Eccl 3:20, “All go to the same place; all come from dust, and to dust all return.”)
2. Chance and time have determined the past, and they will determine the future.  (Ecclesiastes 9:11-13)
3. Power reigns in this life, and the scales are not balanced(Eccl 4:1)
4. Nothing in life gives true satisfaction without God including knowledge (1:16-18), ladies and liquor (2:1-3, 8, 10, 11), and great building projects (2:4-6, 18-20).

You can only find a lasting meaning to your life by looking above the sun and bring God back into the picture.

This was easily my favorite scene of the finale, because it spoke plainly to the much-debated dilemma of the modern woman: Can we have it all? And won’t success at work and at home bring us the happiness men have always had?

This scene reminded me of another TV boss and protege: Don Draper and Peggy Olson of Mad Men. Like Liz, Peggy has pursued success under the tutelage of an older male boss; like Jack, Don is mostly an alcoholic with a great voice. If only Liz could go back in time and explain this bit to Peggy: that having it all, that getting what the men get, is no guarantee of happiness.

30 Rock Finale and the Lesson of Ecclesiastes

Last week, the television show 30 Rock aired its series finale, and under the surface the episode was a surprisingly philosophical treatment of the question, “How can I find fulfillment in life?”

When the show began seven years ago, I—like most white, well-educated, professional women in their twenties—loved Tina Fey’s character, Liz Lemon. She was like us. Her boss Jack Donaghy neatly identified her in the very first episode: “a New York third-wave feminist, college-educated, single-and-pretending-to-be-happy-about-it, over-scheduled, undersexed, you buy any magazine that says ‘healthy body image’ on the cover and every two years you take up knitting for … a week.” Her flaws and foibles were not the superficial quirks most rom-com heroines are given; despite Jack’s neat summation, Liz was a real character rather than just a character type, and we appreciated that. The show’s frenetic pace, absurd situations, and self-aware jokes displayed Tina Fey’s signature style and blazed a trail for other female writers and producers to follow.

The show, unfortunately, got worse instead of better. To be honest, I haven’t kept up with the most recent seasons. Nonetheless, out of nostalgia and an enduring affection for Tina Fey, last night I curled up with a bowl of very hot shrimp curry and my laptop to watch the final episode of 30 Rock.

There were a couple of plot lines to catch up on—I discovered that Liz Lemon is now married, with two adopted children, and that the TV show she produced, TGS, is ending. Lemon is grappling with the life of a stay at home mom and clearly misses her job. When she drops by the office to check on her boss, she finds out that she must produce one final episode of TGS, and she goes back to work.

The 30 Rock finale—amazingly enough—morphed from there into a somewhat overt exploration of the meaning of life. Facing the end of an era, the characters ask, “What did it all mean? How will I be happy now?”

This plays out differently for each of the main characters, but the quest for fulfillment can be seen most clearly in the relationship between Jack and Liz (which was arguably the best part of the show in any episode). Jack has reached the pinnacle of his career, achieving everything he’d hoped.

“Take a look at my new view,” he tells Liz in his office. “A city built on the religion of capitalism, and I am its high priest… Even those who hate me…Even they must acknowledge me as a God…”

“And this makes you happy?” she says, skeptical.

“It should…”

Then Lemon quotes Yoda: “Dark times are these.”

Recognizing his discontentment, Jack sets out to make himself happy, creating a “Six Sigma Wheel of Happiness Domination” and seeking to fulfill himself through faith, work, arts and leisure, sex and relationships, family, philanthropy, hobbies, and hair.  

Despite his success in every slice of the pie chart, Jack remains unfulfilled, and tells Liz,

“Work is never going to make you happy, Lemon, and anyone who tells you differently is a fool.”

“Are you kidding me? What have we been talking about for the last seven years?”

“I don’t know anymore. For the first time in my life, I don’t know what I need. Maybe I’ll buy a boat.”

“Oh my God. This whole time you’ve been telling me how to run my life, you didn’t know what you were talking about. You’re just an alcoholic with a great voice.”

“Careful, Lemon, you’re playing with fire.”

“You made me buy into this whole life. When I met you I was perfectly happy with what I had—eating night cheese and transitioning my pajamas into daywear—you’re the one who told me to want more. And now, when I need you most, you’re bailing on me?”

But then, that truth was there all along. If Peggy had been looking for it, she could have seen it in Don Draper’s life, or in the words of Ecclesiastes:

All things are wearisome,
more than one can say.
The eye never has enough of seeing,
nor the ear its fill of hearing.
What has been will be again,
what has been done will be done again;
there is nothing new under the sun. (1:8-9)

In the 30 Rock finale, Jack and other characters discover that their attempts to find fulfillment fall flat—even success is meaningless. Of course, sitcoms don’t usually end on a nihilistic note, and 30 Rock is no exception.

In the final scenes, Liz rushes to stop Jack from jumping off a bridge, yelling, “There’s so much to live for! Don’t you want to see how Mad Men ends?” (Funnily enough, 30 Rock might be the best answer to the question of how Mad Men ends.) Rather than committing suicide, though, Jack is simply jumping onto a yacht, planning a soul-searching trip around the world. Being on the boat, he says, gives him new insight almost immediately—for example, he realizes that he (non-romantically) loves Lemon. Their relationship is restored. As he floats off, he comes up with a new business plan—“Clear dishwashers!”—and immediately his joie de vivre is back.

It’s not exactly the conclusion that the writer of Ecclesiastes comes to—“Fear God, and keep his commandments” (12:13)—but it’s not too far off from some of his (or her) earlier conclusions: that “there is nothing better for a person than to enjoy their work” (3:22), or that “two are better than one” (4:9), or that “when God gives someone wealth and possessions, and the ability to enjoy them, to accept their lot and be happy in their toil—this is a gift of God” (5:19).

The answers that Liz and Jack find are incomplete,  but that doesn’t mean that 30 Rock doesn’t shine a light on the very truth of the human condition: that there is nothing new under the sun, and that our attempts to attain happiness are often meaningless, a chasing after the wind.

As Christians, sometimes we skip that part. We gloss over the difficult truths about our world, skipping merrily past the existential angst, the broken realities of a sin-marred creation, and going straight to the happy shiny Jesus truth.

But what I loved about 30 Rock, when it was at its best, was how it told the truth about the way that success and popularity and work and relationships and money and pleasure and food (with Lemon, always the food) don’t fix us. They’re just band-aids, and what we need is open heart surgery.

Just as we loved Tina Fey for her realistic flaws, we loved 30 Rock for pointing out some of the absurdities and angst in what it means to be human. Maybe the Church should be willing to pause there, with Tina Fey and the author of Ecclesiastes, for a little while longer too.

Related posts:

Kelly Clarkson – Because Of You

From David Hodges website:

David Hodges is a Grammy award-winning writer/producer/artist hailing from Little Rock, AR.

As the former writer and keyboardist of the band Evanescence, he and his band mates took home Best New Artist as well as the Best Hard Rock Performance trophy for their hit “Bring Me To Life” in 2004. Evanescence’s debut album Fallen has sold over 15 million copies worldwide.

David went on to write and produce Kelly Clarkson’s biggest worldwide single to date, “Because Of You”, which appeared on Clarkson’s 11 million-selling album Breakaway and garnered him the 2007 BMI Song Of The Year honor. The song was covered by Reba McEntire as the first single off her Duets album, and quickly rose up the country charts in 2007 becoming McEntire’s 30th Top 2 country single.

Hodges also penned the single, “What About Now”, which appears on American Idol Chris Daughtry’s debut album Daughtry. The 4x platinum Daughtry to date is credited as the fastest selling debut rock album in Soundscan history. “What About Now” also happens to be the first single on Westlife’s album “Who We Are.” David also won a BMI Pop award for this song.

David wrote the first single “Crush” for American Idol’s David Archuleta, which had the highest chart debut of any single since January 2007. David has since written songs for & released by Carrie Underwood, Train, Christina Perri, Celine Dion, David Cook, Lauren Alaina, The Cab, & many others.

In less than 10 years, David Hodges has been nominated for 6 Grammys & 1 Golden Globe, has won 5 BMI pop awards & 1 BMI country award, has had at least one album in the Billboard 200 for the last 8 consecutive years, and has written on albums that have sold over 50 million copies worldwide.

Because of You (Kelly Clarkson song)

“Because of You”
Single by Kelly Clarkson
from the album Breakaway
Released	August 16, 2005
Format	CD single digital download
Recorded	2004 North Hollywood, California (NRG Recording Studios)
Genre	Adult contemporary pop soft rock
Length	3:44
Label	RCA
Writer(s)	Kelly Clarkson David Hodges Ben Moody
Producer	David Hodges Ben Moody
Kelly Clarkson singles chronology
“Behind These Hazel Eyes” (2005) “Because of You” (2005) “Walk Away” (2006)

“Because of You” is a song by American recording artist Kelly Clarkson for her second studio album Breakaway (2004). It was written by Clarkson along with its producers David Hodges and Ben Moody. It was released on August 16, 2005 by RCA Records, as the fourth single (third in Europe) from Breakaway. Clarkson originally wrote “Because of You” when she was 16 years old to cope with the emotional distress caused by her parents’ divorce. She wanted the song to be included on her debut studio album, Thankful (2003), but her record label thought that it was not suitable to be included in the album. She then polished the song with Hodges and Moody before successfully convincing her label to include it in Breakaway.

Lyrically, “Because of You” explores the pain of a deteriorating relationship. Critics noted that the lyrics are Clarkson’s ode to her father. The song begins with a piano-led melody and as it launches into the chorus, the sound of a roaring guitar becomes apparent. Critically, “Because of You” garnered positive reviews by music critics, who praised its expressive lyrics, creative arrangement and Clarkson’s vocal prowess. It became Clarkson’s most successful single around the world; in the United States, it peaked at number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 and sold over 1.5 million digital downloads. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). Internationally, “Because of You” topped the charts in the Netherlands, Denmark and Switzerland as well as reaching the top ten in Australia, Austria, Canada, Germany, Belgium, Hungary, Ireland, and the United Kingdom.

The song’s accompanying music video was directed by Vadim Perelman. Clarkson wrote the treatment for the video herself in order to reflect the pain that the she felt due to her parents’ divorce. The video’s plot centers on Clarkson engaging in a heated argument with her husband in front of her child before realizing that she was repeating her parents’ mistake. It won in the category for Best Female Video at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards. “Because of You” was performed live at numerous venues, including the My December Tour (2007) as well as the All I Ever Wanted Tour (2009). It was covered by several artists including Ronan Parke, who is a runner-up in the fifth series of Britain’s Got Talent. In 2007, the song was recorded by Reba McEntire as a duet with Clarkson, which was released as a lead single for McEntire’s album Reba: Duets.

Background and writing

“Because of You” was written by Clarkson, David Hodges and Ben Moody while the production was handled by Hodges and Moody.^[2] They also wrote and produced another track entitled “Addicted” that appeared in Clarkson’s album Breakaway (2004).^[3] Clarkson originally wrote “Because of You” when she was 16 years old as a means of coping with the emotional distress caused by the divorce of her parents.^[4][5] She wrote the lyrics of the song in less than 25 minutes.^[3]

In an interview with The Guardian, Clarkson said that she wanted to include the song in her first album, Thankful (2003), but she was laughed at.^[1] Then, she took the initiative to polish the song by sending a tape to Moody and worked with Hodges as her songwriting partner. Clarkson explained, “Hearing the Evanescence album, you can obviously tell that David and Ben have a real passion for music and that big kind of background. And I have a big voice and I like the music to match it, so it was a real dream team.”^[3]

According to Moody, he was very impressed with Clarkson and the song itself, saying “She had these ideas already in place for songs; all I really had to do was build music around them and develop them. It was quite easy.”^[2] Clarkson also admitted that “Because of You” is the most depressing song she has ever written.^[1] Despite the revelation, she told Entertainment Weekly in August 2011 that she wanted to be remembered for the song because she had to work hard to get it on Breakaway (2004) when everyone was against it. She added, “I think I’m most proud of that song – just getting it on an album because no one liked it until it hit no. 1 worldwide and everybody was on board.”^[6]

Composition

	“Because of You” (2004) Menu 0:00 “Because of You” is a piano ballad composed in E minor.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

“Because of You” is a piano ballad^[7] with a length of three minutes and thirty-nine seconds.^[8] It is set in common time and has a moderate tempo of 69 beats per minute. It is composed in the key of F minor, and then modulated to the key of G minor, with Clarkson’s vocal range spanning over two octaves from A_b3 to E_b5.^[9] Bill Lamb of About.com described the song as “a big pop ballad that expresses raw emotion.”^[10] Tony Heywood of MusicOMH noted that the song’s piano arrangement is reminiscent of Tori Amos.^[11] Lyrically, “Because of You” is a fiery ode to Clarkson’s father,^[12] which is a dark exploration of emotional pain from a damaging relationship.^[13] The song begins with Clarkson singing “oohs” over a somber piano which creates a “wintry tone.”^[14] As the song launches into the chorus, the roaring guitar is evident,^[15] and the lyrics, “Because of you I never stray too far from the sidewalk / Because of you I learned to play on the safe side so I don’t get hurt,” were deemed as “touching” by Dave Donelly of Sputnikmusic.^[12]

Critical reception

“Because of You” received universal critical acclaim. Film Laureate of Blogcritics considered “Because of You” and “Where Is Your Heart” as his two favorite songs from Breakaway, writing “[Clarkson] commands these two songs like a seasoned pro and directs herself in her songs the way Steven Spielberg said Barbra Streisand directs herself in her songs as if she’s directing an actor in a movie.”^[16] Dave Donnelly of Sputnikmusic compared the song to Evanescence‘s “My Immortal” (2003). He added that Clarkson managed to take the piano-driven song in a different direction with a “stormy, hard blues vocal… avoiding the typical raised-key final chorus cliché along the way”.^[12] On the other hand, Bill Lamb of About.com lambasted the lyrics of the song and considered it as a 16-year-old work rather than an accomplished pop songwriter.^[10] Christa L. Titus of Billboard lauded the song for its absence of schmaltz factor, “only a potent, pained, grown-up anthem of gross betrayal and loss.” She concluded her review, writing “it is time for Clarkson to return to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100; she has certainly become the most consistent hope for top 40 staple status.”^[17] Critics also lauded Clarkson’s vocal prowess in the song. Pam Avoledo of Blogcritics thought that vocally, the song is Clarkson’s “shining” moment.^[18] Tony Heywood of MusicOMH noted that in the song, Clarkson’s voice is “full of vulnerability, ache and wounded pride.”^[11] In May 15, 2007, the song was listed as one of the recipients of BMI Pop Awards.^[19] At the 24th ASCAP Pop Music Awards, the song was honoured with the Most Performed Songs award.^[20] On July 2008, BBC News reported that according to Performing Right Society, “Because of You” was the second most played song in the United Kingdom over the last five years, following Daniel Powter‘s “Bad Day (2005).”^[21] On March 5, 2013 Billboard ranked the song #7 in its list of Top 100 American Idol Hits of All Time.^[22]

Chart performance

“Because of You” entered the Billboard Hot 100 at number 99 on the week ending September 3, 2005.^[23] On November 19, 2005, the song peaked at number seven and became her sixth single to reach the top-ten.^[24][25] It also topped the Pop Songs chart on the week ending October 29, 2005.^[26] It became the seventh best selling single of the 2000s decade on the Pop Songs chart complied by Billboard.^[27] On January 31, 2008, “Because of You” was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).^[28] As of October 2012, the song has sold 1,729,000 digital copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.^[29] In Canada, “Because of You” debuted at number 60 on the Canadian Hot 100 on the week ending July 14, 2007.^[30] Two weeks later, the song jumped to a new peak at number 36 and stayed in the position for two weeks.^[31] It was certified gold by Music Canada on December 4, 2007 for shipments over 40,000 units.^[32] The single also appeared and peaked on the UK Singles Chart at number seven on the week ending December 4, 2005.^[33]

In Australia, the song debuted and peaked at number four on the issue dated December 5, 2005.^[34] It was certified gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA) for shipments over 35,000 units.^[35] The song became the 58th best-selling single in Australia in 2006.^[36] In New Zealand, “Because of You” debuted on New Zealand Singles Chart at number 37 on the week ending December 5, 2005,^[37] and peaked at number 19 two weeks later.^[38] On the week ending March 20, 2006, “Because of You” debuted at number eight on the German Singles Chart.^[39] Three weeks later, it peaked at number four and stayed in the position for three consecutive weeks.^[39] The song was certified gold by The Federal Association of Music Industry for shipments over 150,000 copies.^[40] In Europe, “Because of You” received a commercial success. The song topped the charts in the Netherlands^[41] and Switzerland^[42] and reached the top five in Austria,^[43] Belgium (Flanders),^[44] Ireland^[45] and Norway.^[46]

Music video

Development

The accompanying music video for “Because of You” was directed by Vadim Perelman and was produced by Rhonda Vernet.^[47] Clarkson wrote the treatment for the video herself in order to reflect the pain that the she felt due to her parents’ divorce.^[48] Nevertheless, Clarkson also allowed Perelman to take control of the production of the video.^[49] According to Perelman, he wanted to create a disconnection to show “that this kind of dysfunctional family can exist anywhere.”^[50] In an interview with MTV News, Clarkson confessed that the video is sad, rationalizing, “It’s a sad song, so the video obviously has to follow that. But it ends really happy and everything and the family, my family, ends up breaking the cycle of my parents.”^[49] Since the music video deals specifically with her parents’ divorce, Clarkson had to seek for her parent’s permission. She explained,

“It’s very close to home [for me]. I OK’d it with my family and everything because they think it’s important, because we’re obviously very different now than we were when we were younger. And it’s important for people to see that raw kind of emotion that happens in life. It sucks sometimes, so it’s important to see that I think. And that’s what we’re portraying in the video.”^[49]

In the video, the younger version of Clarkson is played by Kennedy Nöel, the daughter of her musical director, Jason Halbert.^[51] The music video of “Because of You” premiered on October 3, 2005, on Total Request Live.^[50]

Synopsis

Clarkson and her younger self (Kennedy Nöel) in the music video of “Because of You.”

The video starts at the Clarkson’s household. There, she and her husband are engaged in a heated argument and he threatens to smash down a picture of the family at one point. Time freezes still and her husband becomes immobile; Clarkson, however, is immune to this. Looking around her house, she sees her younger self. Hand in hand, the younger and older versions of Clarkson relive her troubled childhood as various painful memories are seen, such as the younger Clarkson making a picture for her father, who tosses it into the sink, and Clarkson’s mother making an unappreciated dinner for her father as she puts the father’s dinner into the bin. These events drive her mother to the point of taking pills and crying in front of the younger Clarkson. The breaking point is finally seen when Clarkson’s parents have a physical fight and throw objects at each other. Soon after, Clarkson’s father packs his bags and leaves. The older Clarkson runs back in time to the present and instead of fighting with her husband, they make up. They then see that their daughter in the video had seen them fight, and they embrace her and each other. Throughout the music video, Clarkson is shown singing on the front porch, her mother’s bed and a room full of mirrors, reflecting an image of her younger self.^[49]

Reception and accolades

Elizabeth Black of VH1 ranked the music video at number four in her list of “Five Emotive Music Video Performances.” She reasoned, “Kelly Clarkson practically sobs her way through this hurt and angry expression of the pain that the narrator’s father has caused her through his absence and lack of love.”^[52] The music video won the category of Best Female Video at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards.^[53][54] This marks the second time Clarkson has won the same category two years in a row; her first win in the category was at the 2005 MTV Video Music Awards for the music video of “Since U Been Gone.”^[55] The music video was also nominated for the category of Viewer’s Choice Award,^[56] but lost to Fall Out Boy‘s “Dance, Dance” (2005).^[57] At the 2006 MuchMusic Video Awards, the music video won the category of People’s Choice: Favourite International Artist.^[58] The video was also nominated at the 2006 MTV Australia Video Music Awards in the category of Best Pop Video,^[59] but lost to Ashlee Simpson‘s “Boyfriend” (2005).^[60] According to Jocelyn Vena of MTV, the video for “Because of You” was referenced in Taylor Swift‘s music video for “Mine” (2010), writing “When Swift’s character remembers the fights her parents used to have, her memories mirror Clarkson’s attempts to exorcise the demons of her past to find love in her future.”^[61]

Live performances

Clarkson performed “Because of You” at the 48th Grammy Awards which took place on February 8, 2006, at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. Donning a red dress and singing from beside a grand piano, her performance in that event garnered positive reviews from critics. Elysa Gardner of USA Today lauded Clarkson’s performance and ranked it as one of the three best performances, writing, “The pre-performance clip of a girlish-looking Clarkson emphasized how little Kelly has matured. The girl most likely to escape the American Idol stigma was in fine, creamy voice, and kept the Mariah-esque riffing to a minimum.”^[62] Robert Lloyd of Los Angeles Times considered Clarkson’s performance as one of the highlights in the event and described her performance as a “thin-skinned rendition […] in which her whole being seemed involved.”^[63] Yahoo! Music praised Clarkson’s rendition of the song, calling it “perfectly fine” despite the saying that it was “a little reminiscent of those many mediocre, superficial ballads trotted out on ‘Idol.'”^[64] On August 21, 2007, Clarkson performed “Because of You” and “Never Again” (2007) on the fifth season of Canadian Idol.^[65]

“Because of You” was performed at the My December Tour (2007). Clarkson’s performance of the song was accompanied only by Wurlitzer organ that earned her a prolonged ovation when she sent her voice soaring into the rafters.^[66] While touring at Beacon Theatre, New York City, Clarkson performed the song using only one keyboard, which was deemed by Donna Freydkin of USA Today as the most memorable moment of the event.^[67] She also performed the song using only a keyboard as an instrument during her tour at Massey Hall, Toronto.^[68] “Because of You” was also performed at the All I Ever Wanted Tour (2009). Clarkson’s performance of the song during the tour in the Hammerstein Ballroom, New York City, was given a positive review by Jim Cantiello of MTV. He explained that Clarkson’s powerful rendition “literally stopped the show […] for almost 30 seconds because the audience erupted in such wild applause.”^[69] Caryn Ganz of Rolling Stone noted that Clarkson sang the song to pay homage to Reba McEntire who was in the audience.^[70]

Track listing

Credits and personnel

Recording

• Recorded by Dan Certa at NRG Recording Studios, North Hollywood, California

Personnel

Source:^[74]

Charts and certifications

Release history

Cover versions

On June 4, 2011, Britain’s Got Talent contestant, Ronan Parke covered “Because of You” in the finale of the fifth series of the show. His performance garnered standing ovation from the audience as well as the four judges.^[121] Parke also recorded the song and included it in his debut album, Ronan Parke. In an interview with Digital Spy, Parke stated that it was really challenging to record “Because of You.” He added, “I asked the producer if we could leave out some of the big notes. We left them until the end and I was actually a bit scared by the noise that came out of me – I didn’t know I could sound that loud!”^[122] Lisa Tucker covered the song on the fifth season of American Idol. However, her performance was met with negative reviews from the judges and she was consequently eliminated from the show.^[123][124] “Because of You” was also covered by Kim Bo Kyung, who was a contestant in South Korean singing competition show, Superstar K2. Her performance received positive response from the judges and was considered as one of the highlights in the show even though she failed to advance into the Top 11.^[125] Following her elimination, she recorded the studio version of “Because of You” which was released as a digital download by Sony Music Entertainment due to an overwhelming demand.^[126] She also received a personal video message from Clarkson who gave her words of advice and support.^[127] The song also was covered by Orange Caramel, a South Korean girl group, on Christmas Day for MBC‘s special programme, “ICON”.^[128]

Reba McEntire and Kelly Clarkson version

“Because of You”
Single by Reba McEntire and Kelly Clarkson
from the album Reba: Duets
Released	May 15, 2007
Format	CD single digital download
Recorded	2007
Genre	Country pop
Length	3:45
Label	MCA Nashville
Writer(s)	Kelly Clarkson David Hodges Ben Moody
Producer	Tony Brown Reba McEntire
Reba McEntire chronology
“Love Needs a Holiday” (2006) “Because of You” (2007) “The Only Promise That Remains” (2007)
Kelly Clarkson chronology “Never Again” (2007) “Because of You” (2007) “Sober” (2007)

In 2007, Clarkson re-recorded “Because of You” as a duet with American country singer Reba McEntire. The song was released as a single on May 15, 2007, as the lead single for McEntire’s album, Reba: Duets. The duet garnered mixed reviews from critics who felt that even though McEntire’s singing was pleasant, she brought nothing new to the song. At the 50th Grammy Awards, McEntire and Clarkson received a nomination in the category of Best Vocal Country Collaboration for the song. In the United States, “Because of You” became McEntire’s seventh song to peak at number two at Hot Country Songs. It also became Clarkson’s first song to appear on the chart. The music video was directed by Roman White which depicts McEntire and Clarkson as two retro Hollywood lounge singers. The plot centers on Clarkson’s relationship with her abusive partner which is witnessed by McEntire. The song was performed live by the two singers in various venues, notably at the 42nd Annual Academy of Country Music Awards and during their 2 Worlds 2 Voices Tour.

Background and composition

	“Because of You” (2007) Menu 0:00 A 21 second sample of “Because of You”, which incorporates the sound of guitar, strings, cymbals and violin.
Problems playing this file? See media help.

According to McEntire, Clarkson was the first singer to pair up with her for the album Reba: Duets (2007).^[129] She also claimed that “Because of You” was not the original song to be included in the album; it was another song that she recorded with Clarkson entitled “A Lot Like You.”^[130] McEntire explained that it was Narvel, her husband, who convinced her to go back in the studio and record “Because of You” after he heard both McEntire and Clarkson rehearsing the song.^[129] She expressed, “Narvel saw it. That wasn’t one of the songs we had talked about recording – matter of fact, Kelly and I had already recorded a song, ‘A Lot Like You,’ for the duet project, and he said, ‘You’ve got to do this one together,’ so we did.”^[130] Musically, the song is different from the original version. Thom Jhurek of Allmusic described the duet version as “a big, overblown power ballad” which incorporates “guitars compressed to the breaking point, sweeping strings, and enormous crashing cymbals.”^[131] The use of violin was also incorporated into the duet, giving it a melodramatic quality that was deemed “unnecessary” by Nancy Dunham of Blogcritics.^[132] The song was officially sent to radio stations on May 15, 2007, as the lead single from the album.^[133] It was added to country radio playlists on May 28, 2007.^[134]

Critical reception

The song received mixed reviews from critics. Lana Cooper of PopMatters loved the duet and deemed it as “the most unique track on the album.”^[135] She also felt that McEntire and Clarkson complemented each other in the song, writing “The double-feature cover of Clarkson’s hit showcases two women with exceptional and distinctive voices playing to one another’s strengths.”^[135] The same opinion was echoed by Nancy Dunham of Blogcritics who believed that “the two use just the right amount of vocal passion to make the ardent lyrics come alive, but stay out of the cheese zone.”^[132] Scott Sexton of About.com lauded the duet version of the song, writing “As of now anything Reba touches turns to gold, but with this hit alone she has a great shot at platinum.”^[136] Kevin John Coyne of Country Universe praised McEntire’s beautiful singing although he said that she did not bring “anything new” to the song.^[137] He also added that the song “had the potential to be reworked into an interesting mother/daughter confrontation” but he was disappointed because McEntire did not change the viewpoints of the song.^[137] He graded the production of the song as “C-“, writing “The end result is the song doesn’t make any sense, and is just confusing to listen to.”^[138] Thom Jurek of Allmusic criticized the instrumentation of the song, saying “This could have been a Meat Loaf reject from Bat out of Hell II.”^[131] Gayle Thompson of The Boot ranked “Because of You” at number ten in his list of “Top 20 Reba McEntire songs.”^[139] He also included both McEntire and Clarkson at number six for their duet of “Because of You” in his list of “Cross Country: Top 10 Country-Pop Duets.”^[140] Gary Trust of Billboard listed the pair as one of the 10 all-female hit collaborations that have scaled Billboard charts in recent years.^[141] On March 5, 2013 Billboard ranked the song #71 in its list of Top 100 American Idol Hits of All Time.^[142]

At the 42nd Annual Academy of Country Music Awards, McEntire and Clarkson received a nomination in the category of Musical Event of the Year for “Because of You,” but lost to Tracy Lawrence with Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw for their collaboration in “Find Out Who Your Friends Are” (2006).^[143] At the 50th Grammy Awards, McEntire and Clarkson received a nomination in the category of Best Vocal Country Collaboration for the song, but lost to Willie Nelson and Ray Price.^[144] The pair also received a nomination for the Vocal Event of the Year at the 2008 Academy of Country Music, but lost to Tracy Lawrence with Kenny Chesney and Tim McGraw for their collaboration in “Find Out Who Your Friends Are.”^[145] At the 2008 ASCAP Country Music Awards, the song was honoured with the Most Performed Songs award.^[146]

Chart performance

McEntire and Clarkson singing “Because of You” as part of the encore in 2 Worlds 2 Voices Tour.

In the United States, “Because of You” debuted at number 42 on the Hot Country Songs on the week ending June 2, 2007.^{[147][148][149]} On the week ending September 8, 2007, the song jumped to its new peak at number two and was held off the top spot by Rodney Atkins‘ “These Are My People” (2007).^[150] It became McEntire’s seventh song to peak at number two, and her first in over ten years.^[151] Had the song jumped to number one, it would have been McEntire’s 23rd number one song on the chart as well as the first remake of a pop song to top Hot Country Songs since Mark Chesnutt‘s cover of Aerosmith‘s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” spent two weeks at number one in 1999.^[152] “Because of You” also made an appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 at number 52,^[153] and peaked at number 50.^[154] In Canada, the song peaked at number 36 on the week ending July 21, 2007.^[155]

Music video

The music video, directed by Roman White, debuted on June 21, 2007.^[156][157] It depicts McEntire and Clarkson as 1930’s Hollywood lounge singers. In the video, McEntire encounters Clarkson attempting to conceal a bruise inflicted by the latter’s abusive partner. When Clarkson’s boyfriend is fighting with her, McEntire leaves the dressing room. While performing on stage, Clarkson witnesses her boyfriend flirting with another woman. After the performance, she smashes a vase out of anger in the dressing room. Her boyfriend enters the room to take her out for the rest of the evening. Though apprehensive, Clarkson leaves on his arm before looking back uncertainly at McEntire, who uncomfortably fiddles with a hairbrush as she watches them leave. The music video hit number one on CMT’s Top 20 Countdown on September 13, 2007.^[158] At the 2008 Country Music Television Awards, the music video received nominations for three awards. It received a nomination for the Video of the Year, but lost to Taylor Swift‘s “Our Song” (2007) and for the Collaborative Video of the Year, but lost to Bon Jovi featuring LeAnn Rimes, “Till We Ain’t Strangers Anymore” (2007). Roman White, who directed the music video, received a nomination for the Video Director of the Year, but lost to Michael Salomon.^[159]

Live performances

McEntire and Clarkson first performed “Because of You” together at the 42nd Annual Academy of Country Music Awards in May 2007.^[160] A month later, the pair performed the song in an episode of CMT Crossroads at Ryman Auditorium which debuted on Country Music Television on June 24, 2007.^[161] On September 19, 2007, they appeared on The Oprah Winfrey Show where they sang the song together.^[162] “Because of You” was also performed as the encore of the 2 Worlds 2 Voices Tour (2008), a co-headlining concert tour by McEntire and Clarkson.^[163]

Track listing

Charts

Year-end charts

See also

• List of Mainstream Top 40 number-one hits of 2005 (U.S.)
• List of Dutch Top 40 number-one singles of 2006
• List of European number-one hits of 2006
• List of number-one hits of 2006 (Switzerland)

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168. ^ “Reba McEntire Album & Song Chart History” Billboard Country Songs for Reba McEntire. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved April 4, 2011.
169. ^ “Best of 2007: Country Songs”. Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2007. Retrieved July 11, 2012.

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