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"Photograph" is a single released by the Canadian band Nickelback, the first from their fifth studio album, All the Right Reasons (2005).
Presumably, its lyrics look back at the adolescence of frontman Chad Kroeger, who was responsible for writing the song. The single became the band's third top ten hit in the United States, peaking at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. "Photograph" has sold over 1.4 million digital downloads in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan, though it is certified as 2x Platinum by the RIAA, since Roadrunner Records has not yet requested and paid for an updated certification. The song also topped the Billboard Mainstream Rock Tracks and Pop 100 charts.
The single was also a huge success on the Canadian charts, peaking at #1 and staying there for 7 weeks.
The song is an up-tempo track reminiscent of country music. The music video for the song was filmed in Hanna, Alberta, Canada, hometown to the majority of the band.
In 2007, "Photograph" was covered by The Chordials, an a cappella group at Cornell University. In that same year "Photograph" was voted the fifth most annoying song of all time in a Rolling Stone poll. [1]
In 2008, the single is once again showing on future single release lists in the UK. The single is being re-released on 23 June 2008 [1] to capitalise on the success of "Rockstar". "Photograph" was added to the C-list at BBC Radio 1 on 21 May 2008, climbing to the B-list the following week, and then to the A-List. It has also been added to the BBC Radio 2 C-list. "Photograph" originally peaked at number twenty-nine upon its first release, three years earlier. The song re-entered the UK Singles Chart at #52 on June 10, 2008, climbed to #29 a week later and reached a peak of #18, two weeks after the physical release, outpeaking the original release of the song.
The song was featured on the video game Karaoke Revolution Presents: American Idol as a cover by the company Wavegroup.
Music video
The music video begins with Chad Kroeger, the video's protagonist, walking along a lonely, sparsely populated street, holding up a photograph of himself and Nickelback's producer, Joey Moi (who is referred to in the line "what the hell is on Joey's head-"). As the song progresses to the line "This is where I grew up," he walks to a rusty mailbox, addressed as number 29025. As he speaks of sneaking out, the camera does not show the house itself but does show a view from the inside looking out at him, possibly suggesting someone else lives there now. He continues walking and comes to Hanna High School, announcing, "This is where I went to school." He and his three other band members enter the gym with their gear and put on a seemingly impromptu concert alone. During the chorus, two band members go to an old junkyard and reminisce about a field where the rest of the band and their girlfriends are partying. Another experiences a similar event near an abandoned train yard, seeing his old girlfriend (most likely Kim, who was "the first girl I kissed") run near the tracks and kiss his younger self. The camera then switches to flashbacks of various people ("I miss that town, I miss the faces") As the video ends, the flashback people get in their cars to go home as the band finishes the song.
The video was directed by Nigel Dick.
Track listings
CD single
- "Photograph" [Album Version] - 4:21
- "Photograph" [Edit] - 3:55
- "We Will Rock You" - 4:29
- "Photograph" [Video]
2008 CD single (UK Re-release)
- "Photograph" [Radio Mix] - 3:49
- "We Will Rock You" - 4:29
Charts
HIT40UK 16
References
- ^ "Photograph" UK re-release date
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