"Because You Loved Me" is a song recorded by Canadian singer Celine Dion for her fourth English-language studio album, Falling into You (1996). It was released on 20 February 1996, as the first single in North America, South America and Asia. It was released as the second single from the album in Australia, on 29 April 1996, and in May 1996 in Europe. "Because You Loved Me" was written by Diane Warren and produced by David Foster, and served as the theme song from the 1996 film Up Close & Personal, starring Robert Redford and Michelle Pfeiffer.
"Because You Loved Me" was written by Diane Warren and produced by David Foster. Both Warren and Foster worked with Dion on her previous English-language albums. The song is a downtempopopballad, and its lyrics revolve around the protagonist thanking a loyal loved one for guiding, encouraging, and protecting her throughout her life, and making her who she is today. Warren said that the song was a tribute to her father. "Because You Loved Me" served as the theme song from the 1996 film Up Close & Personal, starring Robert Redford and Michelle Pfeiffer. However, the song was not included on the film's soundtrack. "Because You Loved Me" was released as the first single from Falling into You in North America, South America and Asia in February 1996. It was issued as the second single in Australia (April 1996) and Europe (May 1996), after "Falling into You."
The song is written in the key of D♭ major with a slow tempo of 60 beats per minute. Dion's vocals span from A♭3 to E♭5 in the song. The final chorus is set in E♭ major.[1]
Critical reception
"Because You Loved Me" received positive reviews from music critics. Larry Flick from Billboard wrote that "Because You Loved Me" is "rife with grand romance, larger-than-life production, and a climax that is best described as the musical equivalent to 4th of July fireworks."[2] Another Billboard editor, Paul Verna also highlighted the chart-topping "Because You Loved Me."[3]Stephen Holden of The New York Times praised it calling it this year's "Wind Beneath My Wings."[4] Positive review also came from senior editor of AllMusic, Stephen Thomas Erlewine who praised ballads like "Because You Loved Me" on Falling into You.[5]
Commercial performance
In the United States, "Because You Loved Me" became Dion's second number one single, after "The Power of Love" in 1994. It topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart for six consecutive weeks and ended the reign at the top of "One Sweet Day" by Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men. "Because You Loved Me" also topped the Adult Contemporary Singles for nineteen weeks and set a record for most weeks at number one on this chart. In the following years, only five songs spent more time at the top, including Dion's own "A New Day Has Come" in 2002 (twenty-one weeks). "Because You Loved Me" also reached number one on other US charts, including Hot 100 Airplay for fourteen weeks, Adult Top 40 for twelve weeks, Hot Singles Sales for six weeks and Mainstream Top 40 for five weeks. In April 1996, it was certified Platinum by the RIAA for selling one million copies in the US. As of April 2012, "Because You Loved Me" has sold 1,343,000 physical copies and 704,000 digital units, for a total of 2,047,000 copies. According to Billboard, "Because You Loved Me" is Dion's biggest Billboard Hot 100 hit, followed by "It's All Coming Back to Me Now," also from Falling into You.
In Canada, "Because You Loved Me" topped the The Record Singles Chart for one week in May 1996 and also spent ten weeks at number one on the RPM Adult Contemporary Chart. It became the number-one song on the RPM Adult Contemporary 1996 Year-end Chart. "Because You Loved Me" also topped the chart in Australia for three weeks and reached number two in Ireland, number three in New Zealand and Switzerland, number four in the Netherlands, number five in the United Kingdom and Belgium Flanders, and number eight in Denmark. It was certified 2× Platinum in Australia, Platinum in New Zealand, Gold in the United Kingdom and Germany, and is eligible for Silver in France. As one of Dion's biggest hits, "Because You Loved Me" was included on her both greatest hits compilations: All the Way... A Decade of Song (1999) and My Love: Essential Collection (2008).
A music video was created for the song and showed Dion singing interspersed with clips from the film Up Close & Personal. It was directed by Kevin Bray in January 1996 and released in March 1996.
Background vocals – Sue Ann Carwell, Carl Carwell, Kofi, Terry Bradford, Alex Brown, Philip Ingram, Maxann Lewis, Will Heaton, Bridgette Bryant-Fiddmont, Alanna Capps
^"Les 45 T. / Singles" (in French). InfoDisc. Archived from the original on 27 September 2015. Retrieved 28 September 2014. {{cite web}}: Unknown parameter |deadurl= ignored (|url-status= suggested) (help)