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Leaving Las Vegas (song)

Summary

"Leaving Las Vegas" is a song co-written by David Baerwald, Bill Bottrell, Sheryl Crow, Kevin Gilbert, Brian MacLeod, and David Ricketts that appears on Crow's debut album, Tuesday Night Music Club (1993).[1] It charted within the top 75 in the United States and the top 30 in Canada. Crow performed the song on her live album Sheryl Crow and Friends: Live from Central Park.

"Leaving Las Vegas"
UK artwork
Single by Sheryl Crow
from the album Tuesday Night Music Club
B-side"The Na-Na Song"
ReleasedApril 4, 1994 (1994-04-04)
Length5:10 (album version)
LabelA&M
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Bill Bottrell
Sheryl Crow singles chronology
"What I Can Do for You"
(1994) 		"Leaving Las Vegas"
(1994) 		"All I Wanna Do"
(1994)
Music video
"Leaving Las Vegas" on YouTube

Title edit

The song's title was based on the semi-autobiographical 1990 novel of the same name by the late John O'Brien, who was a good friend of one of the song's writers, David Baerwald. After a performance on the Late Show with David Letterman, the host asked Crow if the song was autobiographical. She answered "sort of" because she had left Los Angeles.[2] This infuriated Baerwald and the rest of the original Tuesday Night Music Club who helped write most of the album. Though O'Brien's suicide occurred soon after this incident, his family came forward to state there was no connection.[3][4]

Critical reception edit

Larry Flick from Billboard magazine wrote, "It's time for the critically revered Crow to finally get a moment of radio fame. Bright spot on her "Tuesday Night Music Club" album is a kicky blend of acoustic strumming and percussion. Crow's voice is raw and incredibly expressive, which helps the song's cinematic lyrics pack the powerful punch they do."[5] Troy J. Augusto from Cash Box stated, "This slow-rolling number sports nifty acoustic guitar, dramatic lyrics and loads of Crow’s character-filled, rough-and-tumble vocal stylings. Plus she’s cute as a button and is a natural on stage. What more could you want?"[6] Linda Ryan from the Gavin Report noted that the track "has a slow, hypnotic groove that entranced almost as thoroughly as her dusty, whiskey-soaked vocals."[7] Pan-European magazine Music & Media commented, "Miss Crow doesn't believe in Elvis' tribute to the capital of showbizz, and gets out of town on an adventurous funky synth bassline a lot of singer/songwriters would not dare to think of."[8] A reviewer from People Magazine described it as "a disillusioned, neon-dazzled desert tune".[9]

Music video edit

The song was accompanied by Crow's first ever promotional video. It was directed by David Hogan, who also shot her video for "All I Wanna Do". The 1993 video shows Crow performing the song with her guitar in the dark, with only some parts of her face lit up. Other scenes include famous Vegas images such as dancers and Elvis Presley lookalikes walking on a highway, "leaving Las Vegas", and Peter Berg driving with Crow in the passenger seat of his convertible. The video uses an edited version of the song.

Track listings edit

All live tracks except "What I Can Do for You" were recorded on April 15, 1994, at the 328 Club in Nashville, Tennessee. "What I Can Do for You" was recorded live at the Borderline on February 9, 1994.

Charts edit

Chart (1994) Peak
position
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[17] 29
UK Singles (OCC)[18] 66
US Billboard Hot 100[19] 60
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[20] 8
US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)[21] 31

Release history edit

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States April 4, 1994 Top 40 radio A&M [22]
United Kingdom June 6, 1994
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • CD
  • cassette
 [23]

References edit

  1. ^ "Leaving Las Vegas Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  2. ^ "Sheryl Crow's new Showtime documentary 'Sheryl' lets fans get to know the artist behind the hits". WBUR. May 9, 2022. Retrieved March 21, 2023.
  3. ^ Schruers, Fred (November 14, 1996). "Sheryl Crow: She Only Wants to Be With You". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  4. ^ Hussey, Allison (May 6, 2022). "Showtime's New Sheryl Crow Documentary Sells Its Star Short". Pitchfork. Retrieved May 6, 2022.
  5. ^ Flick, Larry (March 26, 1994). "Single Reviews" (PDF). Billboard. p. N55. Retrieved March 17, 2021.
  6. ^ Augusto, Troy J. (April 2, 1994). "Pop Singles — Reviews" (PDF). Cash Box. Retrieved February 27, 2022.
  7. ^ Ryan, Linda (January 7, 1994). "Alternative — New Releases" (PDF). Gavin Report. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
  8. ^ "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. January 22, 1994. p. 9. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
  9. ^ "Picks and Pans Review: Tuesday Night Music Club". People. November 29, 1993. Retrieved October 18, 2021.
  10. ^ Leaving Las Vegas (US cassette single cassette notes). Sheryl Crow. A&M Records. 1993. 31458 0582 4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. ^ Leaving Las Vegas (Canadian CD single liner notes). Sheryl Crow. A&M Records. 1993. 314580616-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  12. ^ Leaving Las Vegas (Australian CD single liner notes). Sheryl Crow. A&M Records. 1993. 580497-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  13. ^ Leaving Las Vegas (UK 7-inch single sleeve). Sheryl Crow. A&M Records. 1994. 580 644-7.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  14. ^ Leaving Las Vegas (UK cassette single sleeve). Sheryl Crow. A&M Records. 1994. 580 644-4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  15. ^ Leaving Las Vegas (UK CD1 liner notes). Sheryl Crow. A&M Records. 1994. 580 645-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  16. ^ Leaving Las Vegas (UK CD2 liner notes). Sheryl Crow. A&M Records. 1994. 580 647-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  17. ^ "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2498." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
  18. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  19. ^ "Sheryl Crow Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  20. ^ "Sheryl Crow Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard.
  21. ^ "Sheryl Crow Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard.
  22. ^ Borzillo, Carrie (April 16, 1994). "Sheryl Crow's 'Music Club' High-Flying Debut for A&M". Billboard. Vol. 106, no. 16. p. 100. The week of April 4, A&M took ['Leaving Las Vegas'] to the next step—top 40.
  23. ^ "Single Releases". Music Week. June 4, 1994. p. 21.

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