Call Me When You're Sober
Encyclopedia
"Call Me When You're Sober" is a song by American rock
band Evanescence
. The song was written by Amy Lee
and Terry Balsamo
and produced by Dave Fortman
and it was included on their second studio album The Open Door
. On July 30, 2006 several radio stations played the track before its official physical release as a CD single
. Later, on August, 15 the song was available for digital download
and it was officially released as the first single from the album on September 25, 2006 through their record label Wind-up Records
.
Lee confirmed that the song talks about her ex-boyfriend Shaun Morgan
, the lead singer of the band Seether
. "Call Me When You're Sober" is a moderately fast song which delivers genres from rock music to alternative metal
, post-grunge
and gothic metal
. The song receivedmixed to positive reviews from music critics who generally praised the instrumentation, the rock sound and Lee's vocals in the song which were described as "strong". However, several critics were negative towards Lee's songwriting and the loud sound of the song.
"Call Me When You're Sober" has become the band's third most successful single, peaking at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100
, number 4 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart, and within the top 20 of several more charts internationally. The song received a Gold certification by the Australian Recording Industry Association
(ARIA) in 2006. It was also certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America
(RIAA) in 2009, selling more than 1 million copies. The song was nominated in the category for Favorite Rock Song at the 2006 People's Choice Awards
.
The accompanying music video
directed by Marc Webb
and filmed in Hollywood, Los Angeles
was based on the fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood
. It portrays Lee and her ex-lover, played by the British actor Oliver Goodwill
. Segments of the band performing the song and Lee singing with wolves are also shown during the video. It was nominated in the category for Best International Video by a Group at the 2007 MuchMusic Video Awards
. "Call Me When You're Sober" was part of the setlist during Evanescence's second worldwide tour, The Open Door Tour.
. It was one of the last songs recorded for The Open Door
. Lee's sisters, Carrie and Lori, perform backing vocals during the line "Make up your mind." The song was recorded at Record Plant Studios
and mixed at Ocean Way Studios, both in Los Angeles
. In an interview with MTV News
, Lee said that the song was inspired by her ex-boyfriend Shaun Morgan from the band Seether
. She added that it was also inspired by other things that happened in her life, "it was also about the people I was working with that were kind of holding me down and manipulating me and betraying me. I had to put my foot down and walk out the door." Lee further explained the song:
During a 2011 interview with Spin
Lee said, "It's mostly a chick anthem: 'You only want me when you're drunk. You only want me because I'm not there.' I definitely get a lot of girls who are like, 'That's my song. I assigned that ringtone to my ex-boyfriend.'" The track was leaked onto radio on July 30, 2006, causing several radio stations to play the track early and without being released as a CD single. It became available for digital download
on September 4, and was officially announced and released as a single on September 25, 2006. Rumors began to surface that Wind-up
chose to release the track as a single themselves, which was stated as incorrect by Lee on Evboards.com: "Wind up didn't choose this single- I did, and I had to fight for it. I love this song. Also, they didn't change anything about it. This is the way we made it. We fought over the guitar part but eventually just got the mix right."
When asked about is there an inspiration between his relationship with Lee on Seether's song "Breakdown
" from their album Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces
, (2007) Morgan stated, "It isn't an aggressive song, and it isn't even an angry song — I would prefer to refer to it as a lament rather than an angry backlash. You couldn't tell that the song was about one person. It's probably more universal. I prefer to be a little more vague and respectful. There are some things I could have said and done too — there are always two sides to every story. And if anything, the song says, 'Fine. Go ahead and say those things.' But what's the point of telling my side? That's what the bloodthirsty want, and I don't care what the bloodthirsty want." He explained people's expectations to find a song on the album influenced by Lee "These songs are turning out to be somewhat more introspective, which is weird — you'd assume I'd be more pissed off and have more things to say. I don't know how much I want to say and what I want to say. It's tough, because I know what the expectations are for this album and that people will be looking for that Amy Lee reference, and I am trying desperately not to have any. I just ended another truly, truly horrible relationship with somebody, so if there's anything about somebody on the record, it would be about her, not Amy."
, post-grunge
, and gothic metal
song written in the key of E minor
. It is set in common time and performed in a moderately fast tempo of 96 beats per minute. Lee's vocal range in the song spans from the musical note of G3
to Eb5
. Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times
said that "Call Me When You're Sober" uses different genres such as piano ballad
ry, nu-metal, symphonic rock
and electronic pop. It starts as a "piano ballad
, swerves into hard rock
, then builds to a grandiose pop-orchestral refrain
, and later on a glorious, glimmering bridge." During an interview with MTV News, Lee revealed the inspiration behind the song saying, "It's very obvious who it's about. I know that people would read between the lines and think it's about my ex-boyfriend Shaun Morgan [of Seether], but I wanted to be completely clear. I needed so bad to say exactly what I was feeling for so long. Music is therapy for me. It's my outlet for every negative thing I've ever been through. It lets me turn something bad into something beautiful."
With no effort to hide her still-raw emotions, Lee accuses her lover, "Don't cry to me/ If you loved me/ You would be here with me/ Don't lie to me/ Just get your things/ I've made up your mind." "Call Me When You're Sober" uses the lyrics "You never call me when you're sober/ You only want it cause it's over," which is directed towards her ex-boyfriend. According to a writer from the website Contactmusic.com
, she wrote the song to "vent her frustration" and a writer of The Daily Princetonian
concluded that it was aimed towards her ex-boyfriend. The Guardian
s Caroline Sullivan concluded that the song was written for Evanescence's former guitarist, Ben Moody
. In the song, Lee further explains why the relationship won't work "or hoping that he'll crash and burn and finally learn a lesson." She further sings the lines "Don't cry to me … If you loved me, you would be here with me / … How could I have burned paradise? How could I … you were never mine" during the bridge
of the song.
gave the song four out of five stars stating, "It is great to hear rock power chords that radio will play". He described the song: "There's a bit more zip in tempo than some of the past Evanescence favorites, but otherwise little has changed. Amy Lee's throaty voice soars over crunchy power chords that give way to quiet, contemplative moments." In his review of The Open Door he put the song in the list of Top Tracks on The Open Door alongside "Sweet Sacrifice
", "Your Star", "Good Enough
" and "Lacrymosa
". R.J. Carter from the website The Trades said that "Call Me When You're Sober" has a perfect intro that shows Lee's vocal ability and added that the song is "the album's standout performance". The Boston Globe
called the song a "hard - charging opening salvo". Brendan Butler from Cinema Blend
called "Call Me When You're Sober" the "most-friendly radio song" along with "Sweet Sacrifice
". He noted that those are the only two songs that "don't excruciatingly wane after a minute". The New York Times
Kelefa Sanneh praised Lee's voice in the song, adding that she sounds terrific which "crashes through different styles while remaining diabolically hummable." She added that the song is a classical Evanescence song, which according to her was a "bombastic, meticulously produced ([Ms.] Lee's vocals are doubled for the second stanza), unreasonably addictive". While reviewing The Open Door, Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone called "Call Me When You're Sober" a "suit breakup song." Later while reviewing their third self-titled studio album Evanescence
(2011) Nick Catucci of the same publication noted that there was "nothing as saucy as the last album's hit, 'Call Me When You’re Sober.'"
Simon Cosyn from The Sun said that the song is a great put-down and "It charts her [Lee's] personal break-up with Shaun Morgan of metal band Seether and his problems with booze." The Courier-Mail
s Jason Nahrung, noted that the song was remiscent to her work with Moody stating that the song uses "heavy bass and drums, spotless and lavish production and Lee's unmistakable vocals." A writer of Canada.com concluded that the band showed their power on the "biting single 'Call Me When You're Sober'". Allmusics Stephen Thomas Erlewine
higlighted the song saying that it had structure, hooks and momentum. Nicholas Fonseca of Entertainment Weekly called "Call Me When You're Sober" an "angry-goth anthem". Ed Thompson of IGN put the song on his list "Definitely Download" adding that the song was "familiar to anyone who has listened to the radio at any point in the past two months."
In more negative reviews, Michael Endelman from Entertainment Weekly
gave the song a C stating, "The sound of a woman scorned? Very mild, guessing from unmemorable kiss-off, 'Call Me When You're Sober.' Evanescence frontwoman Amy Lee's latest pop-metal melodrama never lives up to the great title, as the melody hovers in a holding pattern." Alex Nunn from musicOMH
showed incredulity that the "angelic-vocalled woman" who wrote "My Immortal" could "churn out such dross as Call Me When You're Sober" and added, "musically it's power chords and big riffs-ahoy, generic, mundane, boring stuff." In his review for their second single, "Lithium", he said that "Call Me When You're Sober" hints that "Evanescence are a mere shadow of the band they used to be." Jenni Cole of the same publication concluded that there was nothing to recommend on the song and added that it was a "disappointing return" for the band.
Bill Lamb of About.com put the song at number 3 on his list of "Top 10 Most Annoying Pop Songs of 2006" saying, "It was good to hear the voice of Amy Lee from Evanescence back on the radio this fall...for the first 3 or 4 times. After play 12 or 13 it all just sounds like unnecessary histrionics. Let's dig down deep for something new in the Evanescence repertoire." However, he later put the song at number 72 on his list of Top 100 Pop Songs of 2006 adding that the song "sounds a bit too much like we've heard it before." "Call Me When You're Sober" was placed at number 10 on VH1
's list of "Top 40 of 2006". The song was nominated in the category for Favorite Rock Song at the 33rd People's Choice Awards
.
and at number 11 on the Hot Digital Songs
chart. It moved at number 10 the next week, which later became its peak position. It became the band's third top ten single on the chart, and it spent a total of seventeen weeks. "Call Me When You're Sober" ranked at number 77 on the Hot 100 year-end chart, a lower position than that of the band's previous singles, "Bring Me to Life
" and "My Immortal
". It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America
(RIAA) on February 17, 2009, selling more than 1 million copies.
"Call Me When You're Sober" debuted at number 32 on UK Singles Chart
for the week ending September 30, 2006, and the next week it moved at number 4 which later became its peak positions. It spent a total of 8 weeks on the chart and it was last seen at number 69 on November 11, 2006. On the year-end chart in the United Kingdom, the song was placed at number 139. It ranked on number 5 on ARIA
's list of most played songs in 2007.
and filmed in Hollywood, Los Angeles
in July, was released on August 7, 2006. The video and Amy Lee
's theme is based on the fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood
. During an interview with MTV News, Lee described the music video saying, "the song is so literal, the lyrics and everything — I mean, obviously, just by the title — that we felt like the video would have the freedom to go in a less literal direction. So it's [a modern re-imagining of] Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf
and sort of a more cool, superhero, rock and roll
Little Red Riding Hood." According to an interview behind the scenes of the video, the director wanted Lee to straddle
her "ex-lover" in the video, but Lee, opposed to selling sex, refused. Lee jokingly said, "You can't blame a guy for trying." Each of the wolves used in the video had personal trainers. Despite Lee's allergy to the wolves in the video she "pet them and [sang] to them". She further explained the shooting with the wolves:
The video begins with Lee wearing a red satin cape, and singing while sitting on opposite ends of a dining table with her "lover", played by British
actor Oliver Goodwill
. Lee is then shown standing in front of a mirror while her "lover" comes behind her; he starts to massage her shoulders and prepares to kiss her, but Lee refuses, saying that he is "too late". This cuts to Lee and four back-up dancers descending a staircase, where upon reaching the bottom, first Lee then the dancers are lifted into the air. At the end of the song, Lee walks atop the length of the dining table, while chairs and tabletop items are flung aside as she passes. She reaches her "lover" at the end, places her finger on his lips, and sings "I've made up your mind". Shots of the band performing and of Lee sitting with wolves are interspersed amongst the other elements of the video. Initially planned to be filmed at the end of June, the music video was delayed after filming did not begin until the second week of July. It premiered on MTV
, MTV2
, VH1
and Fuse TV
in the United States
; and on MuchOnDemand
in Canada
. It managed to peak at number 1 on MTV
's Total Request Live
(TRL). Corey Moss of MTV News concluded that the video "was an abstract take on somewhat literal lyrics." The music video for "Call Me When You're Sober" was nominated in the category for Best International Video by a Group at the 2007 MuchMusic Video Awards
. It was also nominated in the category for Best Video at the 2007 NRJ Music Awards
.
The song was included on the set list of the band's The Open Door Tour. According to Donnie Moorhouse of The Republican, the song receives a "full band treatment" during the performances. While reviewing a concert by the band, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
s Jon M. Gilbertson said that the title "pushes away from rock's party mood". However, he praised Lee's live performance of the song saying that she "projected so loudly and clearly that she seemed to be trying to reach well beyond the confines of the Eagles Ballroom, and she hit the notes throughout the set. No screaming or growling, in other words." Chris Harris of Rolling Stone
described the performance of the song as having "everyone in the place headbanging along with Lee, whose hair whipped in circles wildly as she belted out the chorus."
During the Family Values Tour 2007
, Evanescence performed "Call Me When You're Sober" on July 30, 2007 in Mansfield
along with Korn
. They had a 65-minute set during the show and Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe praised their performance saying "'Call Me When You're Sober' was a seething highpoint, with Lee heaving and hurling her bitterness like so much china at a betrayer's head." On the 2006 Jingle Ball, Evanescence performed "Going Under" and "Call Me When You're Sober". Before starting to sing the song, Lee announced: "We're going to do something completely different from everyone else tonight — and rock as hard as we can." During the performance she was "bending over and pumping her fist" as stated by Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times. Later the band performed the song during the 2009 Maquinária Festival in São Paulo
, Brazil. In 2011, the band added the song to the set list of their third worldwide tour in support of their third self-titled studio album Evanescence (2011). They also performed "Call Me When You're Sober" during the 2011 Rock in Rio
festival on October 2, 2011.
, a contestant of the sixth season
of the reality show American Idol
performed the song live. Talking about her cover of the song Lee said, "It's such a surreal thing watching other people perform your songs in the first place, but people that you don't even know on TV doing 'American Idol' and Paula Abdul
commenting on it is just a whole other thing. It was pretty hilarious, just 'cause it's our song, but I don't think she did a bad job." Jim Cantiello of MTV News praised Glocksen's performance saying that she "could kick Amy Lee's butt in a cage match". A writer of Rolling Stone described the cover as "passable enough". "Bring Me to Life", "Call Me When You're Sober" and "Weight of the World" were included in the game Rock Band. D.J Nate, an American disc jockey made a remix of the song.
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band Evanescence
Evanescence
Evanescence is an American rock band founded in Little Rock, Arkansas in 1995 by singer/pianist Amy Lee and guitarist Ben Moody. After recording private albums, the band released their first full-length album, Fallen, on Wind-up Records in 2003. Fallen sold more than 17 million copies worldwide...
. The song was written by Amy Lee
Amy Lee
Amy Lynn Hartzler , best known as Amy Lee, is an American singer-songwriter and classically trained pianist. She is co-founder and lead vocalist of the rock band Evanescence. She cites influences ranging from classical musicians such as Mozart to modern artists Björk, Tori Amos, Danny Elfman and...
and Terry Balsamo
Terry Balsamo
Terry Balsamo , is an American guitarist. He is the former guitarist of the alternative metal band Cold and the current guitarist of Evanescence.-Early projects and Cold:...
and produced by Dave Fortman
Dave Fortman
Dave Fortman is the guitarist for the band Ugly Kid Joe. He currently is an American music producer. He has worked with bands such as Superjoint Ritual, Watership Down, Eyehategod, Mudvayne, Otep, Slipknot on their new fourth studio album titled All Hope Is Gone, and Simple Plan, as well as on both...
and it was included on their second studio album The Open Door
The Open Door
The Open Door is the second studio album by the American rock band Evanescence. It was first released in Poland on September 25, 2006, through Wind-up Records and subsequently in more than 20 other countries worldwide...
. On July 30, 2006 several radio stations played the track before its official physical release as a CD single
CD single
A CD single is a music single in the form of a standard size Compact Disc, not to be confused with the 3-inch CD single, which uses a smaller form factor. The format was introduced in the mid-1980s, but did not gain its place in the market until the early 1990s...
. Later, on August, 15 the song was available for digital download
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...
and it was officially released as the first single from the album on September 25, 2006 through their record label Wind-up Records
Wind-Up Records
Wind-up Entertainment, Inc. is a record label based in New York City. It was formed in 1997 by Alan Meltzer, former owner of CD One Stop, following his 1996 purchase of Grass Records. Wind-up is currently the largest independently-owned record label in the world...
.
Lee confirmed that the song talks about her ex-boyfriend Shaun Morgan
Shaun Morgan
Shaun Morgan Welgemoed is a South African musician known as the lead singer and the lead/rhythm guitarist of the post-grunge rock/alternative metal band Seether.-Early life:...
, the lead singer of the band Seether
Seether
Seether is a post-grunge/alternative metal band from Pretoria, South Africa, formed in 1999. The band is currently signed to Wind-up Records...
. "Call Me When You're Sober" is a moderately fast song which delivers genres from rock music to alternative metal
Alternative metal
Alternative metal is a genre of alternative rock and heavy metal that gained popularity in the early 1990s. Most notably, alternative metal bands are characterized by heavy guitar riffs and experimental approaches to heavy music.-Origins:...
, post-grunge
Post-grunge
Post-grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged in the mid-1990s as a derivative of grunge, using the sounds and aesthetic of grunge, but with a more commercially acceptable tone...
and gothic metal
Gothic metal
Gothic metal or goth metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that combines the aggression of doom metal with the dark melancholy of gothic rock. The music of gothic metal is diverse with bands known to adopt the gothic approach to different styles of heavy metal music...
. The song receivedmixed to positive reviews from music critics who generally praised the instrumentation, the rock sound and Lee's vocals in the song which were described as "strong". However, several critics were negative towards Lee's songwriting and the loud sound of the song.
"Call Me When You're Sober" has become the band's third most successful single, peaking at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, number 4 on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart, and within the top 20 of several more charts internationally. The song received a Gold certification by the Australian Recording Industry Association
Australian Recording Industry Association
The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956...
(ARIA) in 2006. It was also certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
(RIAA) in 2009, selling more than 1 million copies. The song was nominated in the category for Favorite Rock Song at the 2006 People's Choice Awards
33rd People's Choice Awards
The 33rd People's Choice Awards, honoring the best in popular culture for 2006, were held on January 9, 2007 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California...
.
The accompanying music video
Music video
A music video or song video is a short film integrating a song and imagery, produced for promotional or artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a marketing device intended to promote the sale of music recordings...
directed by Marc Webb
Marc Webb
Marc Preston Webb is an American music video, short film and major motion picture director. He directed the 2009 romantic comedy-drama Days of Summer and is currently directing the 2012 Spider-Man reboot The Amazing Spider-Man.-Life and career:Webb was born in Bloomington, Indiana, the son of...
and filmed in Hollywood, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
was based on the fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood
Little Red Riding Hood
Little Red Riding Hood, also known as Little Red Cap, is a French fairy tale about a young girl and a Big Bad Wolf. The story has been changed considerably in its history and subject to numerous modern adaptations and readings....
. It portrays Lee and her ex-lover, played by the British actor Oliver Goodwill
Oliver Goodwill
-External links:...
. Segments of the band performing the song and Lee singing with wolves are also shown during the video. It was nominated in the category for Best International Video by a Group at the 2007 MuchMusic Video Awards
2007 MuchMusic Video Awards
The 2007 MuchMusic Video Awards were held in Toronto, Ontario at MuchMusic's headquarters on June 17, 2007 and featured performances by Fergie, Maroon 5, The Used, Avril Lavigne, Finger Eleven, Hilary Duff, and others. The most nominated artists were Billy Talent and Nickelback with five...
. "Call Me When You're Sober" was part of the setlist during Evanescence's second worldwide tour, The Open Door Tour.
Background and release
"Call Me When You're Sober" is written by Amy Lee and Terry Balsamo, and produced by Dave FortmanDave Fortman
Dave Fortman is the guitarist for the band Ugly Kid Joe. He currently is an American music producer. He has worked with bands such as Superjoint Ritual, Watership Down, Eyehategod, Mudvayne, Otep, Slipknot on their new fourth studio album titled All Hope Is Gone, and Simple Plan, as well as on both...
. It was one of the last songs recorded for The Open Door
The Open Door
The Open Door is the second studio album by the American rock band Evanescence. It was first released in Poland on September 25, 2006, through Wind-up Records and subsequently in more than 20 other countries worldwide...
. Lee's sisters, Carrie and Lori, perform backing vocals during the line "Make up your mind." The song was recorded at Record Plant Studios
Record Plant Studios
The Record Plant was a series of three famous recording studios which were founded by Gary Kellgren and Chris Stone, beginning in New York City in 1968. The next year, Kellgren and Stone opened a second studio in Los Angeles. In 1972, the company expanded again with a third location in Sausalito,...
and mixed at Ocean Way Studios, both in Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
. In an interview with MTV News
MTV News
MTV News is the news division of MTV, one of the first and most popular music television network in the U.S., as well as some of MTV's related channels around the world. MTV News began in the late 1980s with the program The Week In Rock, hosted by Kurt Loder, the first official MTV News correspondent...
, Lee said that the song was inspired by her ex-boyfriend Shaun Morgan from the band Seether
Seether
Seether is a post-grunge/alternative metal band from Pretoria, South Africa, formed in 1999. The band is currently signed to Wind-up Records...
. She added that it was also inspired by other things that happened in her life, "it was also about the people I was working with that were kind of holding me down and manipulating me and betraying me. I had to put my foot down and walk out the door." Lee further explained the song:
"I think it's impossible to hide how obvious it is. The day that our single hit the airwaves, my ex-boyfriend said he was going into rehab and canceled their tour. I haven't ever said right out who it was about, but it's about the big relationship I was in, and the whole breakup, which was really long. The breaking up and the hard stuff in our relationship happened sort of after I was out of the spotlight for a while and writing. It wasn't in any way public. I was trying to be kind of discreet about it, and then he totally came out and said he was going to rehab. It was shocking to me. It kind of made for a more interesting story."
During a 2011 interview with Spin
Spin (magazine)
Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
Lee said, "It's mostly a chick anthem: 'You only want me when you're drunk. You only want me because I'm not there.' I definitely get a lot of girls who are like, 'That's my song. I assigned that ringtone to my ex-boyfriend.'" The track was leaked onto radio on July 30, 2006, causing several radio stations to play the track early and without being released as a CD single. It became available for digital download
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...
on September 4, and was officially announced and released as a single on September 25, 2006. Rumors began to surface that Wind-up
Wind-Up Records
Wind-up Entertainment, Inc. is a record label based in New York City. It was formed in 1997 by Alan Meltzer, former owner of CD One Stop, following his 1996 purchase of Grass Records. Wind-up is currently the largest independently-owned record label in the world...
chose to release the track as a single themselves, which was stated as incorrect by Lee on Evboards.com: "Wind up didn't choose this single- I did, and I had to fight for it. I love this song. Also, they didn't change anything about it. This is the way we made it. We fought over the guitar part but eventually just got the mix right."
Shaun Morgan's reaction
The same day when the song was released to the radio stations in the United States, Shaun Morgan was sent into rehab for treatment of "a combination of substances." During an interview with MTV News, Morgan revealed that he wasn't thrilled by the song because it followed and it "haunted" him around. He further stated "People would say to me, 'Yeah, man, I know what you're going through,' and I was like, 'No, I don't think you do. 'Your ex-girlfriend didn't write a song about you, that millions of people have heard, saying you're a bad guy. As soon as that happens, buddy, come up and tell me you know what I'm going through.'" Saying that he didn't want to "lower" himself to Lee's level, Morgan further explained his reaction towards the song: "There isn't necessarily a response as there's a lament. I was bummed out. I was really upset that she would say and do those things. In any relationship, I don't think it's right to say and do those things when people break up, and she obviously felt the need to go out there and make me sound like a complete a--hole. What can I do? I just refuse to lower myself to that level. But it was a painful thing and it got me down — people coming up to me on the street and referring to that song. But I didn't feel the need to write back and be mean."When asked about is there an inspiration between his relationship with Lee on Seether's song "Breakdown
Breakdown (Seether song)
"Breakdown" is the third track and the third single from Seether's third album, Finding Beauty In Negative Spaces. Shaun Morgan has stated that the song is about his former girlfriend Amy Lee, but other sources reference a more recent relationship...
" from their album Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces
Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces
Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces is the fourth studio album by South African post-grunge/alternative metal band Seether. The album was released in South Africa and Switzerland on October 19, 2007, and released worldwide on October 23, 2007....
, (2007) Morgan stated, "It isn't an aggressive song, and it isn't even an angry song — I would prefer to refer to it as a lament rather than an angry backlash. You couldn't tell that the song was about one person. It's probably more universal. I prefer to be a little more vague and respectful. There are some things I could have said and done too — there are always two sides to every story. And if anything, the song says, 'Fine. Go ahead and say those things.' But what's the point of telling my side? That's what the bloodthirsty want, and I don't care what the bloodthirsty want." He explained people's expectations to find a song on the album influenced by Lee "These songs are turning out to be somewhat more introspective, which is weird — you'd assume I'd be more pissed off and have more things to say. I don't know how much I want to say and what I want to say. It's tough, because I know what the expectations are for this album and that people will be looking for that Amy Lee reference, and I am trying desperately not to have any. I just ended another truly, truly horrible relationship with somebody, so if there's anything about somebody on the record, it would be about her, not Amy."
Composition
According to the sheet music published by Alfred Publishing on the website Musicnotes.com, "Call Me When You're Sober" is a rock, alternative metalAlternative metal
Alternative metal is a genre of alternative rock and heavy metal that gained popularity in the early 1990s. Most notably, alternative metal bands are characterized by heavy guitar riffs and experimental approaches to heavy music.-Origins:...
, post-grunge
Post-grunge
Post-grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged in the mid-1990s as a derivative of grunge, using the sounds and aesthetic of grunge, but with a more commercially acceptable tone...
, and gothic metal
Gothic metal
Gothic metal or goth metal is a subgenre of heavy metal music that combines the aggression of doom metal with the dark melancholy of gothic rock. The music of gothic metal is diverse with bands known to adopt the gothic approach to different styles of heavy metal music...
song written in the key of E minor
E minor
E minor is a minor scale based on the note E. The E natural minor scale consists of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. The E harmonic minor scale contains the natural 7, D, rather than the flatted 7, D – to align with the major dominant chord, B7 .Its key signature has one sharp, F .Its...
. It is set in common time and performed in a moderately fast tempo of 96 beats per minute. Lee's vocal range in the song spans from the musical note of G3
G (musical note)
Sol, So, or G is the fifth note of the solfège starting on C. As such it is the dominant, a perfect fifth above C.When calculated in equal temperament with a reference of A above middle C as 440 Hz, the frequency of Middle G note is approximately 391.995 Hz...
to Eb5
E (musical note)
E or mi is the third note of the solfège.When calculated in equal temperament with a reference of A above middle C as 440 Hz, the frequency of Middle E is approximately 329.628 Hz. See pitch for a discussion of historical variations in frequency.-Designation by octave:...
. Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
said that "Call Me When You're Sober" uses different genres such as piano ballad
Piano ballad
Piano ballad is a term often used to refer to a piece for solo piano in the 19th century, during the romantic era. It was a term used to refer to a piece written in a "narrative" style, and was often lyrical in nature. This type of work made its premiere with Chopin's first romantic ballad, the...
ry, nu-metal, symphonic rock
Symphonic rock
Symphonic rock is a sub-genre of progressive rock. Since early in progressive rock's history, the term has been used sometimes to distinguish more classically influenced progressive rock from the more psychedelic and experimental forms of progressive rock....
and electronic pop. It starts as a "piano ballad
Piano ballad
Piano ballad is a term often used to refer to a piece for solo piano in the 19th century, during the romantic era. It was a term used to refer to a piece written in a "narrative" style, and was often lyrical in nature. This type of work made its premiere with Chopin's first romantic ballad, the...
, swerves into hard rock
Hard rock
Hard rock is a loosely defined genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage rock, blues rock and psychedelic rock...
, then builds to a grandiose pop-orchestral refrain
Refrain
A refrain is the line or lines that are repeated in music or in verse; the "chorus" of a song...
, and later on a glorious, glimmering bridge." During an interview with MTV News, Lee revealed the inspiration behind the song saying, "It's very obvious who it's about. I know that people would read between the lines and think it's about my ex-boyfriend Shaun Morgan [of Seether], but I wanted to be completely clear. I needed so bad to say exactly what I was feeling for so long. Music is therapy for me. It's my outlet for every negative thing I've ever been through. It lets me turn something bad into something beautiful."
With no effort to hide her still-raw emotions, Lee accuses her lover, "Don't cry to me/ If you loved me/ You would be here with me/ Don't lie to me/ Just get your things/ I've made up your mind." "Call Me When You're Sober" uses the lyrics "You never call me when you're sober/ You only want it cause it's over," which is directed towards her ex-boyfriend. According to a writer from the website Contactmusic.com
Contactmusic.com
Contactmusic.com is a Leeds UK based entertainment magazine/webzine. The site was launched in April 2000 by a small team and has now expanded to 12 fulltime staff and many freelance contributors from across the globe...
, she wrote the song to "vent her frustration" and a writer of The Daily Princetonian
The Daily Princetonian
The Daily Princetonian is the daily independent student newspaper of Princeton University. It is published five days a week from September to May and three days a week during the University's Reading Period in January and May.- Finances :...
concluded that it was aimed towards her ex-boyfriend. The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
s Caroline Sullivan concluded that the song was written for Evanescence's former guitarist, Ben Moody
Ben Moody
Benjamin Robert Moody is a singer-songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, record producer, and actor. He is best known as co-founder, lead guitarist, and songwriter of Grammy Award-winning rock band Evanescence from 1995 to October 2003...
. In the song, Lee further explains why the relationship won't work "or hoping that he'll crash and burn and finally learn a lesson." She further sings the lines "Don't cry to me … If you loved me, you would be here with me / … How could I have burned paradise? How could I … you were never mine" during the bridge
Bridge (music)
In music, especially western popular music, a bridge is a contrasting section which also prepares for the return of the original material section...
of the song.
Critical reception
Bill Lamb of the website About.comAbout.com
About.com is an online source for original information and advice. It is written in English, and is aimed primarily at North Americans. It is owned by The New York Times Company....
gave the song four out of five stars stating, "It is great to hear rock power chords that radio will play". He described the song: "There's a bit more zip in tempo than some of the past Evanescence favorites, but otherwise little has changed. Amy Lee's throaty voice soars over crunchy power chords that give way to quiet, contemplative moments." In his review of The Open Door he put the song in the list of Top Tracks on The Open Door alongside "Sweet Sacrifice
Sweet Sacrifice
"Sweet Sacrifice" is a song by American rock band Evanescence. It was released on May 25, 2007, as the third single from their second studio album, The Open Door. It was written by Amy Lee and Terry Balsamo while the production was handled by Dave Fortman. "All That I'm Living For" was initially...
", "Your Star", "Good Enough
Good Enough (Evanescence song)
"Good Enough" is a song by American rock band Evanescence. It was released in 2007 as the fourth single from their second studio album, The Open Door. The song was written by lead vocalist Amy Lee and produced by Dave Fortman. According to Lee it was written for her long-time friend and husband,...
" and "Lacrymosa
Lacrymosa (song)
"Lacrymosa" is a song recorded by American rock band Evanescence for their second studio album, The Open Door . The song was composed by Amy Lee and Terry Balsamo and produced by Dave Fortman. "Lacrymosa" incorporates the Lacrimosa sequence from Mozart's Requiem throughout the song and Lee said...
". R.J. Carter from the website The Trades said that "Call Me When You're Sober" has a perfect intro that shows Lee's vocal ability and added that the song is "the album's standout performance". The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe
The Boston Globe is an American daily newspaper based in Boston, Massachusetts. The Boston Globe has been owned by The New York Times Company since 1993...
called the song a "hard - charging opening salvo". Brendan Butler from Cinema Blend
Cinema Blend
Cinema Blend is a website founded and run by Josh Tyler dedicated to news and reviews of upcoming and currently playing films, movie projects, Television Shows, and a newly founded Music section which covers album reviews, band interviews and daily news from the industry. It combines gossip from...
called "Call Me When You're Sober" the "most-friendly radio song" along with "Sweet Sacrifice
Sweet Sacrifice
"Sweet Sacrifice" is a song by American rock band Evanescence. It was released on May 25, 2007, as the third single from their second studio album, The Open Door. It was written by Amy Lee and Terry Balsamo while the production was handled by Dave Fortman. "All That I'm Living For" was initially...
". He noted that those are the only two songs that "don't excruciatingly wane after a minute". The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
Kelefa Sanneh praised Lee's voice in the song, adding that she sounds terrific which "crashes through different styles while remaining diabolically hummable." She added that the song is a classical Evanescence song, which according to her was a "bombastic, meticulously produced ([Ms.] Lee's vocals are doubled for the second stanza), unreasonably addictive". While reviewing The Open Door, Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone called "Call Me When You're Sober" a "suit breakup song." Later while reviewing their third self-titled studio album Evanescence
Evanescence (Evanescence album)
Evanescence is the self-titled third studio album by American rock band Evanescence. The album was released on October 11, 2011, through Wind-up Records. The band started the writing process for the album in June 2009. The release of the album was changed several times...
(2011) Nick Catucci of the same publication noted that there was "nothing as saucy as the last album's hit, 'Call Me When You’re Sober.'"
Simon Cosyn from The Sun said that the song is a great put-down and "It charts her [Lee's] personal break-up with Shaun Morgan of metal band Seether and his problems with booze." The Courier-Mail
The Courier-Mail
The Courier-Mail is a daily newspaper published in Brisbane, Australia. Owned by News Limited, it is published daily from Monday to Saturday in tabloid format. Its editorial offices are located at Bowen Hills, in Brisbane's inner northern suburbs, and it is printed at Murarrie, in Brisbane's...
s Jason Nahrung, noted that the song was remiscent to her work with Moody stating that the song uses "heavy bass and drums, spotless and lavish production and Lee's unmistakable vocals." A writer of Canada.com concluded that the band showed their power on the "biting single 'Call Me When You're Sober'". Allmusics Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine
Stephen Thomas Erlewine is a senior editor for Allmusic. He is the author of many artist biographies and record reviews for Allmusic, as well as a freelance writer, occasionally contributing liner notes. He is also frontman and guitarist for the Ann Arbor-based band Who Dat?Erlewine is the nephew...
higlighted the song saying that it had structure, hooks and momentum. Nicholas Fonseca of Entertainment Weekly called "Call Me When You're Sober" an "angry-goth anthem". Ed Thompson of IGN put the song on his list "Definitely Download" adding that the song was "familiar to anyone who has listened to the radio at any point in the past two months."
In more negative reviews, Michael Endelman from Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
gave the song a C stating, "The sound of a woman scorned? Very mild, guessing from unmemorable kiss-off, 'Call Me When You're Sober.' Evanescence frontwoman Amy Lee's latest pop-metal melodrama never lives up to the great title, as the melody hovers in a holding pattern." Alex Nunn from musicOMH
MusicOMH
musicOMH is a United Kingdom-based website which publishes independent reviews, featues and interviews from across all musical genres including classical, metal, rock and R&B.-History:...
showed incredulity that the "angelic-vocalled woman" who wrote "My Immortal" could "churn out such dross as Call Me When You're Sober" and added, "musically it's power chords and big riffs-ahoy, generic, mundane, boring stuff." In his review for their second single, "Lithium", he said that "Call Me When You're Sober" hints that "Evanescence are a mere shadow of the band they used to be." Jenni Cole of the same publication concluded that there was nothing to recommend on the song and added that it was a "disappointing return" for the band.
Bill Lamb of About.com put the song at number 3 on his list of "Top 10 Most Annoying Pop Songs of 2006" saying, "It was good to hear the voice of Amy Lee from Evanescence back on the radio this fall...for the first 3 or 4 times. After play 12 or 13 it all just sounds like unnecessary histrionics. Let's dig down deep for something new in the Evanescence repertoire." However, he later put the song at number 72 on his list of Top 100 Pop Songs of 2006 adding that the song "sounds a bit too much like we've heard it before." "Call Me When You're Sober" was placed at number 10 on VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
's list of "Top 40 of 2006". The song was nominated in the category for Favorite Rock Song at the 33rd People's Choice Awards
33rd People's Choice Awards
The 33rd People's Choice Awards, honoring the best in popular culture for 2006, were held on January 9, 2007 at the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, California...
.
Chart performance
For the week ending September 2, 2006, "Call Me When You're Sober" debuted at number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
and at number 11 on the Hot Digital Songs
Hot Digital Songs
The Hot Digital Songs chart ranks the best-selling digital singles in the United States, according to Billboard.Beginning in February 2005, digital sales have been incorporated into many of Billboards music single charts. It was decided to do so mainly because of the dramatic rise in popularity of...
chart. It moved at number 10 the next week, which later became its peak position. It became the band's third top ten single on the chart, and it spent a total of seventeen weeks. "Call Me When You're Sober" ranked at number 77 on the Hot 100 year-end chart, a lower position than that of the band's previous singles, "Bring Me to Life
Bring Me to Life
"Bring Me to Life" is a song by American rock band Evanescence. It was written by Amy Lee, Ben Moody and David Hodges and produced by Dave Fortman. It also features guest vocals from Paul McCoy of the band 12 Stones. Wind-up released "Bring Me to Life" in 2003 as the lead single from Evanescence's...
" and "My Immortal
My Immortal
"My Immortal" is a song by American rock band Evanescence. It was released on December 8, 2003 as the third single from their debut studio album Fallen. The song was entirely written by former guitarist Ben Moody, with the exception of the bridge, which was later added by Amy Lee, and it was...
". It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America
Recording Industry Association of America
The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States...
(RIAA) on February 17, 2009, selling more than 1 million copies.
"Call Me When You're Sober" debuted at number 32 on UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
for the week ending September 30, 2006, and the next week it moved at number 4 which later became its peak positions. It spent a total of 8 weeks on the chart and it was last seen at number 69 on November 11, 2006. On the year-end chart in the United Kingdom, the song was placed at number 139. It ranked on number 5 on ARIA
ARIA Charts
The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June...
's list of most played songs in 2007.
Music video
A music video directed by Marc WebbMarc Webb
Marc Preston Webb is an American music video, short film and major motion picture director. He directed the 2009 romantic comedy-drama Days of Summer and is currently directing the 2012 Spider-Man reboot The Amazing Spider-Man.-Life and career:Webb was born in Bloomington, Indiana, the son of...
and filmed in Hollywood, Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
in July, was released on August 7, 2006. The video and Amy Lee
Amy Lee
Amy Lynn Hartzler , best known as Amy Lee, is an American singer-songwriter and classically trained pianist. She is co-founder and lead vocalist of the rock band Evanescence. She cites influences ranging from classical musicians such as Mozart to modern artists Björk, Tori Amos, Danny Elfman and...
's theme is based on the fairy tale Little Red Riding Hood
Little Red Riding Hood
Little Red Riding Hood, also known as Little Red Cap, is a French fairy tale about a young girl and a Big Bad Wolf. The story has been changed considerably in its history and subject to numerous modern adaptations and readings....
. During an interview with MTV News, Lee described the music video saying, "the song is so literal, the lyrics and everything — I mean, obviously, just by the title — that we felt like the video would have the freedom to go in a less literal direction. So it's [a modern re-imagining of] Little Red Riding Hood and the Big Bad Wolf
Big Bad Wolf
The Big Bad Wolf is a term used to describe a fictional wolf who appears in several precautionary folkloric stories, including some of Aesop's Fables and Grimm's Fairy Tales.-Interpretations:...
and sort of a more cool, superhero, rock and roll
Rock and roll
Rock and roll is a genre of popular music that originated and evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s, primarily from a combination of African American blues, country, jazz, and gospel music...
Little Red Riding Hood." According to an interview behind the scenes of the video, the director wanted Lee to straddle
Straddle
In finance, a straddle is an investment strategy involving the purchase or sale of particular option derivatives that allows the holder to profit based on how much the price of the underlying security moves, regardless of the direction of price movement...
her "ex-lover" in the video, but Lee, opposed to selling sex, refused. Lee jokingly said, "You can't blame a guy for trying." Each of the wolves used in the video had personal trainers. Despite Lee's allergy to the wolves in the video she "pet them and [sang] to them". She further explained the shooting with the wolves:
"These live wolves came in, and they each had trainers and it was really fun.[...] I thought it was really cool, but then when they came in, they were 150 pounds. So I was like, 'Wow, if I got on all fours, I'd be about the same size as this huge animal.' But it was me and the wolves in the room, and it was all cool. It was awesome. My allergies kicked in, but I powered through. And then we shot the scene at the vanity with the Big Bad Wolf coming over my shoulders and trying to seduce me."
The video begins with Lee wearing a red satin cape, and singing while sitting on opposite ends of a dining table with her "lover", played by British
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
actor Oliver Goodwill
Oliver Goodwill
-External links:...
. Lee is then shown standing in front of a mirror while her "lover" comes behind her; he starts to massage her shoulders and prepares to kiss her, but Lee refuses, saying that he is "too late". This cuts to Lee and four back-up dancers descending a staircase, where upon reaching the bottom, first Lee then the dancers are lifted into the air. At the end of the song, Lee walks atop the length of the dining table, while chairs and tabletop items are flung aside as she passes. She reaches her "lover" at the end, places her finger on his lips, and sings "I've made up your mind". Shots of the band performing and of Lee sitting with wolves are interspersed amongst the other elements of the video. Initially planned to be filmed at the end of June, the music video was delayed after filming did not begin until the second week of July. It premiered on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
, MTV2
MTV2
MTV2 is a cable network that is widely available in the United States on digital cable and satellite television, and is progressively being added to analogue cable lineups across the nation...
, VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
and Fuse TV
Fuse TV
Fuse is an American national television network dedicated exclusively to music. It features original series and specials, exclusive interviews, live concerts and video blocks....
in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
; and on MuchOnDemand
MuchOnDemand
MuchOnDemand was an hour-long per broadcast viewer interactive television program aired on MuchMusic, Monday through Friday at 5pm ET. It was broadcast live from the Much broadcasting studio on 299 Queen Street West in Toronto. The Best of MuchOnDemand, aired Sundays at 10am ET, highlighting the...
in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
. It managed to peak at number 1 on MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
's Total Request Live
Total Request Live
Total Request Live is a television series on MTV that featured popular music videos. TRL was MTV's prime outlet for music videos as the network continues to concentrate on reality-based programming. In addition to music videos, TRL featured daily guests...
(TRL). Corey Moss of MTV News concluded that the video "was an abstract take on somewhat literal lyrics." The music video for "Call Me When You're Sober" was nominated in the category for Best International Video by a Group at the 2007 MuchMusic Video Awards
2007 MuchMusic Video Awards
The 2007 MuchMusic Video Awards were held in Toronto, Ontario at MuchMusic's headquarters on June 17, 2007 and featured performances by Fergie, Maroon 5, The Used, Avril Lavigne, Finger Eleven, Hilary Duff, and others. The most nominated artists were Billy Talent and Nickelback with five...
. It was also nominated in the category for Best Video at the 2007 NRJ Music Awards
NRJ Music Awards
The NRJ Music Awards, created in 2000 by the radio station NRJ in partnership with the television network TF1 takes place every year in mid-January at Cannes as the opening of MIDEM...
.
Live performances
Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is a daily morning broadsheet printed in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA. It is the primary newspaper in Milwaukee, the largest newspaper in Wisconsin and is distributed widely throughout the state...
s Jon M. Gilbertson said that the title "pushes away from rock's party mood". However, he praised Lee's live performance of the song saying that she "projected so loudly and clearly that she seemed to be trying to reach well beyond the confines of the Eagles Ballroom, and she hit the notes throughout the set. No screaming or growling, in other words." Chris Harris of Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
described the performance of the song as having "everyone in the place headbanging along with Lee, whose hair whipped in circles wildly as she belted out the chorus."
During the Family Values Tour 2007
Family Values Tour 2007
The Family Values Tour is a rock tour headlined by Korn. Korn founded the Family Values tour in 1998 and headlined the first edition. The next two lineups, in 1999 and 2001, were topped by Limp Bizkit and Stone Temple Pilots, respectively. In 2006 they revived the tour after a 5 year hiatus...
, Evanescence performed "Call Me When You're Sober" on July 30, 2007 in Mansfield
Mansfield
Mansfield is a town in Nottinghamshire, England. It is the main town in the Mansfield local government district. Mansfield is a part of the Mansfield Urban Area....
along with Korn
Korn
Korn is an American nu metal band from Bakersfield, California, formed in 1993. The current band line up includes four members: Jonathan Davis, James "Munky" Shaffer, Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu, and Ray Luzier. The band was formed as an expansion of L.A.P.D.The band released their first demo album,...
. They had a 65-minute set during the show and Sarah Rodman of The Boston Globe praised their performance saying "'Call Me When You're Sober' was a seething highpoint, with Lee heaving and hurling her bitterness like so much china at a betrayer's head." On the 2006 Jingle Ball, Evanescence performed "Going Under" and "Call Me When You're Sober". Before starting to sing the song, Lee announced: "We're going to do something completely different from everyone else tonight — and rock as hard as we can." During the performance she was "bending over and pumping her fist" as stated by Kelefa Sanneh of The New York Times. Later the band performed the song during the 2009 Maquinária Festival in São Paulo
São Paulo
São Paulo is the largest city in Brazil, the largest city in the southern hemisphere and South America, and the world's seventh largest city by population. The metropolis is anchor to the São Paulo metropolitan area, ranked as the second-most populous metropolitan area in the Americas and among...
, Brazil. In 2011, the band added the song to the set list of their third worldwide tour in support of their third self-titled studio album Evanescence (2011). They also performed "Call Me When You're Sober" during the 2011 Rock in Rio
Rock in Rio
Rock in Rio is a series of music festivals held in three cities: Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, Lisbon in Portugal and Madrid in Spain.Four incarnations of the festival were in Rio de Janeiro, in 1985, 1991, 2001 and 2011, four in Lisbon, in 2004, 2006, 2008 and 2010, and two in Madrid in 2008 and 2010....
festival on October 2, 2011.
Covers and usage in media
Gina GlocksenGina Glocksen
Gina Glocksen was the ninth-place finisher on the sixth season of American Idol. She was eliminated on April 4, 2007. She previously appeared in season 5...
, a contestant of the sixth season
American Idol (Season 6)
The sixth season of American Idol premiered on the Fox Broadcasting Company as a two-night, four-hour premiere special on January 16 and January 17, and ran until May 23, 2007. Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson returned to judge once again, and Ryan Seacrest returned as host...
of the reality show American Idol
American Idol
American Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
performed the song live. Talking about her cover of the song Lee said, "It's such a surreal thing watching other people perform your songs in the first place, but people that you don't even know on TV doing 'American Idol' and Paula Abdul
Paula Abdul
Paula Julie Abdul is an American singer-songwriter, dancer, choreographer, actress and television personality.In the 1980s, Abdul rose from cheerleader for the Los Angeles Lakers to highly sought-after choreographer at the height of the music video era before scoring a string of pop music-R&B hits...
commenting on it is just a whole other thing. It was pretty hilarious, just 'cause it's our song, but I don't think she did a bad job." Jim Cantiello of MTV News praised Glocksen's performance saying that she "could kick Amy Lee's butt in a cage match". A writer of Rolling Stone described the cover as "passable enough". "Bring Me to Life", "Call Me When You're Sober" and "Weight of the World" were included in the game Rock Band. D.J Nate, an American disc jockey made a remix of the song.
Credits and personnel
Credits adapted from The Open Door liner notes.- SongwritingSongwriterA songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
– Amy Lee, Terry Balsamo - ProductionRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, mixingAudio mixing (recorded music)In audio recording, audio mixing is the process by which multiple recorded sounds are combined into one or more channels, most commonly two-channel stereo. In the process, the source signals' level, frequency content, dynamics, and panoramic position are manipulated and effects such as reverb may...
– Dave Fortman - InstrumentsInstrumentation (music)In music, instrumentation refers to the particular combination of musical instruments employed in a composition, and to the properties of those instruments individually...
– Amy Lee, Terry Balsamo - Background vocalsBacking vocalistA backing vocalist or backing singer is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists...
– Carrie and Lorrie - ProgrammingProgramming (music)Programming is a form of music production and performance using electronic devices, often sequencers or computer programs, to generate music. Programming is used in nearly all forms of electronic music and in most hip hop music since the 1990s. It is also frequently used in modern pop and rock...
- DJ LethalDJ LethalLeor Dimant , better known as DJ Lethal, is a turntablist and producer and member of the bands Limp Bizkit, House of Pain and La Coka Nostra.-Early life:Leor Dimant was born in Riga, Latvia, when this country was still part of the Soviet Union... - EngineeringAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...
- Jeremy Parker - MasteringAudio masteringMastering, a form of audio post-production, is the process of preparing and transferring recorded audio from a source containing the final mix to a data storage device ; the source from which all copies will be produced...
- Ted Jensen - Additional programming - John LeCompt
- VocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, keyboardsMusical keyboardA musical keyboard is the set of adjacent depressible levers or keys on a musical instrument, particularly the piano. Keyboards typically contain keys for playing the twelve notes of the Western musical scale, with a combination of larger, longer keys and smaller, shorter keys that repeats at the...
– Amy Lee - Lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure...
– Terry Balsamo - Rhythm guitarRhythm guitarRhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
– John LeComptJohn LeComptJohn Charles LeCompt is an American musician who has been part of the Little Rock heavy metal music scene since the mid-1990s. He has been associated with a great number of bands, ranging from the unknown and unsigned to multi-platinum sellers, most notably the alternative metal band Evanescence... - Bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
– Tim McCordTim McCordTimothy McCord was announced as Evanescence's bass player in August 2006. He replaced bassist Will Boyd who left the band in mid-2006... - DrumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
– Rocky GrayRocky GrayWilliam "Rocky" Gray is a drummer and guitarist who has been part of the Arkansas metal scene since the early 1990s. He has an extensive career as a musician and is best known as the lead guitarist for Living Sacrifice and the drummer for We Are the Fallen...
Track listing
-
- CD single (2006 UK 6-track enhanced 2-CD single set) - Released September 2006
- CD one
- "Call Me When You're Sober" (Album version) - 3:34
- "Call Me When You're Sober" (Acoustic version) - 3:37
- CD two
- "Call Me When You're Sober" (Album version) - 3:34
- "Call Me When You're Sober (Acoustic version) - 3:37
- "Making of the Video" (Video clip) - 5:20
- "Call Me When You're Sober" (Music video) - 3:33
-
- Vinyl single (2006 UK limited edition 2-track 7" vinyl single) - Released September 2006
- "Call Me When You're Sober" (Album version) - 3:34
- "Call Me When You're Sober" (Acoustic version) - 3:37
Weekly charts
| Chart (2006) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Top 100 Airplay Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems, better known as BDS, is a service that tracks monitored radio, television and internet airplay of songs based on the number of spins and detections... |
3 |
Year-end charts
| Chart (2006) | Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Singles Chart | 32 |
| Dutch Top 40 | 68 |
| Italian Singles Chart | 32 |
| Swiss Singles Chart | 83 |
| UK Singles Chart | 139 |
| US Billboard Hot 100 | 77 |
| US Hot Digital Songs | 55 |
| US Hot Digital Tracks | 43 |
| US Pop Songs | 61 |
| Chart (2007) | Position |
| US Pop Songs | 90 |
Certifications
| Region (provider) | Certifications |
|---|---|
| Australia (ARIA Australian Recording Industry Association The Australian Recording Industry Association is a trade group representing the Australian recording industry which was established in 1983 by six major record companies, EMI, Festival, CBS, RCA, WEA and Universal replacing the Association of Australian Record Manufacturers which was formed in 1956... ) |
Gold |
| United States (RIAA Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... ) |
Platinum |
External links
- Official music video at YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....