Thank U

This article is about the Alanis Morissette song. For other uses, see Thank You (disambiguation).

"Thank U"
Single by Alanis Morissette
from the album Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie
B-side	"Pollyanna Flower"
Released	October 13, 1998
Recorded	1998
Genre	Pop, experimental rock, synthpop
Length	4:19
Label	Maverick
Writer(s)	Alanis Morissette, Glen Ballard
Producer	Alanis Morissette, Glen Ballard
Alanis Morissette singles chronology
"Uninvited" (1998) "Thank U" (1998) "Joining You" (1999)

"Thank U" is a song by Canadian recording artist and songwriter Alanis Morissette, for her fourth studio album Supposed Former Infatuation Junkie (1998). The song was written by Alanis Morissette and Glen Ballard, who produced her previous album. Morissette wrote the song after she came back from India.

"Thank U" is an experimental rock song, which features instrumentals like guitars and synthesizers. It also features very small portions of synthpop music. The song received generally positive reviews from music critics. The song also received acclaim in the record charts, peaking in the top ten in different countries. An accompanying music video was released for the single, featuring Morissette nude in different streets in New York City. It received generally positive reviews from music critics, but received mild controversy, due to nudity in the video. It was nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 2000 Grammy Awards.

Background and writing

Morissette wrote "Thank U" after returning from a trip to India in 1997. The song expresses the heartfelt gratitude which she felt at the time. The lyrics, such as "thank you terror" and "thank you frailty", lend the song a sense lyrical reflection on cynicism, despair, personal triumph and hope.

"Thank U" is a pop rock song composed in the key of C major. It is written in common time and moves at a moderate tempo of 80 beats per minute. The song uses a simple chord progression alternating between a tonic C major chord, dominant G major chord, and the subdominant F major chord.

Chart performance

The excitement generated sent the single to number two on the U.S. Hot 100 Airplay chart almost immediately and helped the song peak at number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100; this was strong, but not as successful as the multiple hits from Jagged Little Pill (1995), Morissette's previous album. (The eligibility rules for the Hot 100 were changed midway through the single's chart run.)

"Thank U" is Morissette's most commercially successful post-Jagged Little Pill single. In the Oceania region, the song had peaked at number two in New Zealand becoming Morissette's highest number in that country, and number fifteen in Australia. It also had success in the European side, peaking at number three in Norway and number eight in the Netherlands. It had international succes, peaking in the top twenty in Australia, New Zealand, Canada, United Kingdom, Austria and Switzerland. The song, however was less successful in Sweden, peaking at number forty-nine there.

The single was nominated for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at the 2000 Grammy Awards.

Music video

A stranger places his hand on Morissette as she stands in the middle of the street.

The music video was directed by Stéphane Sednaoui and premiered on October 12, 1998.

It featured a nude Morissette, with long hair shrouding her breasts and her vulva blurred out, walking around and being embraced by strangers in a variety of public locations, such as in the street, at a supermarket, and on a subway car In Los Angeles.

Slight modifications to the video were made before broadcasting by MTV in India and certain other Asian countries. Subsequent replays, however, aired the video in its original format. In May 2001, the video was voted #66 on VH1's 100 Greatest Videos.

Cover versions and parodies

"Thank U" was covered by British musician Steven Wilson, of Porcupine Tree fame (who jokingly changed the line "How about them transparent dangling carrots" to "How about changing a line 'cause it don't make sense"). Blackfield, one of Steven Wilson's bands, has regularly played the song on tour.

On an episode of Saturday Night Live, Jimmy Fallon appeared on the "Weekend Update" segment in which he sang various parody songs about Halloween. One such song was a parody of "Thank U", in which he thanks all of the candy he had received Trick-or-Treating.

On MadTV there was a parody, "Wash Me", starring Mo Collins which takes place in a laundromat.

On French & Saunders, Jennifer Saunders parodied Morissette with a song called "Bless U", a tribute to thesaurus, dictionaries, spell check and other word referencing methods. The clip showed Saunders as a singer called Aimless Morris Minor, dressed in a flesh-coloured body-suit to make it appear as if she were naked. At the end of the sketch Dawn French stuck the pubic hair of the suit onto Saunders's face. This clip was shown as a sketch on French and Saunders 1999 Bank Holiday Special.

"Weird Al" Yankovic debuted an unreleased spoof of "Thank U" entitled "Fast Food" on his 1999 Running with Scissors tour.

Track listing

1. "Thank U" (album version) – 4:19
2. "Pollyanna Flower" (unreleased bonus track) – 4:07
3. "Uninvited" (demo) – 3:04

Chart (1998)	Peak position
Australia (ARIA)	15
Austria (Ö3 Austria Top 75)	10
Canada (Canadian Hot 100)	1
Netherlands (Mega Single Top 100)	8
New Zealand (RIANZ)	2
Norway (VG-lista)	3
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)	49
Switzerland (Schweizer Hitparade)	18
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	17
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks	12
U.S. Billboard Adult Top 40	1
U.S. Billboard Top 40 Mainstream	2
UK Singles Chart	5