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Complicated (Avril Lavigne song)

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"Complicated"
Song
B-side"I Don't Give", "Why" [1][2]

"Complicated" is a song by Avril Lavigne and was her debut single, released in 2002 from her debut album, Let Go. It was written by Lavigne and The Matrix (Scott Spock, Lauren Christy, and Graham Edwards), and produced by The Matrix. The single reached number one in Australia (for six weeks), New Zealand and Mexico (for nine weeks), number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and number three in the United Kingdom. Based on its chart performance, the song is Lavigne's second most successful single (only behind her 2007 single "Girlfriend") and was one of the most successful releases of 2002. Lavigne tied a record set by Natalie Imbruglia's "Torn" when "Complicated" held the number one spot on the contemporary hit radio chart (which tracks air play on the radio) for eleven weeks in a row.[8] "Complicated" was nominated for two Grammy Awards for Song of the Year and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance. The song has been parodied by "Weird Al" Yankovic on his 2003 album Poodle Hat.

Background

"Complicated" is a song about how people can be fake. Lavigne said about the song: "People sometimes bother me how they're not real and they're just, like, putting on a face and being two-faced". Lavigne stated that she experienced this with both boyfriends and female friends.[9]

Music video

The video, directed by The Malloys, starts with Lavigne asking her bandmates if they want to "crash" the mall. They respond with enthusiasm, and skateboard there. The video features Lavigne and the band harassing shoppers and employees, generally causing havoc around the mall; for example, Lavigne watches her band try on humorous clothing which is fittingly shown as Lavigne sings the line "You come over unannounced, dressed up like you're something else".

This is intercut with footage of Lavigne performing the song at a skatepark while playing the guitar, with her band performing with her. People can be seen skateboarding around Lavigne as she and her band perform the song. As the line "You fall and you crawl..." is sung, a skateboarder can be seen falling over.

The video was shot in 2 days and during the shooting the mall remained open.[10]

Reception

Rolling Stone Magazine readers voted "Complicated" as the 8th Top single of the decade.[11] "Complicated" also ranked at #197 in Blender magazine's "The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born".[12] Billboard Magazine ranked it at #83 of the 'Top 100 Singles of the Decade'.[13] In an AOL Radio listener's poll, "Complicated" was voted Lavigne's sixth best song.[14]

David Browne of Entertainment Weekly gave the song a B- and said "Avril Lavigne's not kidding about that title, she's the epitome of the blossoming anti-Britney movement".[15] Christina Saraceno of Allmusic described 'Complicated' as "a gem of a pop/rock tune with a killer chorus" and noted similarities between it and the Pink song Don't Let Me Get Me.[4] Saraceno highlighted the song as a "track pick" in a review of the album, Let Go.[4]

On a more negative note, Sal Cinquemani of Slant magazine described 'Complicated' as "infectious" and "more poser than punk".[16] In a review of Lavigne's second album, Under My Skin, David Browne of Entertainment Weekly noted that "Complicated felt like strung-together bits of Morissette songs".[17]

Awards

The Canadian single of "Complicated" has shipped over 100,000 copies in Canada, where the song has been awarded the gold and platinum single certifications by the CRIA for, respectively, shipments of at least 50,000 and 100,000 singles shipped.[citation needed] The single was certified 2× Platinum in Australia.[6] Lavigne won Best New Artist at the 2002 MTV Video Music Awards for "Complicated".[18] "Complicated" won in the Single of the Year category at the 2003 Juno Awards. In the United States, the song was nominated at the 2003 Grammy Awards for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance and Song of the Year;[19] it lost both awards to Norah Jones's "Don't Know Why". In Brazil hit that was nominated in the category of best VMB video of the year in 2003.[20]

Year Awards ceremony Award Results
2002 MTV Video Music Awards Best New Artist in a Video Won
2003 Grammy Awards[14] Best Female Pop Vocal Performance Nominated
Song Of The Year Nominated
Juno Awards Single Of The Year Won
BMI Awards Best Pop Song Won
ASCAP Film and Television Music Awards Best Pop Song Won
Radio Music Awards Song of the Year (Modern Adult Contemporary Radio) Won
Ivor Novello Awards International Hit Of The Year Won
MTV Video Music Awards Japan Best New Artist in a Video Won
Canadian Radio Music Awards Best New «CHR» Solo Won
Best New Solo «Mainstream AC / Hot AC» Won
Socan Awards Pop Music Award Won
MTV Video Music Brasil Best video clipe international Nominated

Uses in other media

The song was featured on the trailer and on the commercials of the 2003 movie Uptown Girls. It is also featured on the video games Karaoke Revolution and Buzz!: The Music Quiz.

An uptempo remixed eurodance cover version by Nancy And The Boys was recorded in 2002, appearing on Dancemania Speed 10.

The "Pablo La Rossa Vocal mix" of the song was used on the video game FIFA Football 2003.[21]

In 2008, the song was sung by Cpl. Josh Ray Person in the HBO miniseries Generation Kill (Episode 2, "The Cradle of Civilization").

J-pop/J-rock singer Misono covered this song on her album Misono Kaba Album.

Comedy singer "Weird Al" Yankovic created a parody of the song which Lavigne co-wrote.

Track listings

UK, Canada, Mexico CD single
  1. "Complicated" 4:03
  2. "I Don't Give" 3:39
  3. "Why" 4:00
  4. "Complicated" (music video)
Australian CD single
  1. "Complicated" 4:03
  2. "I Don't Give" 3:39
  3. "Why" 4:00
Japan, France, Italy, Netherlands CD single
  1. "Complicated" (The Matrix mix) 4:08
  2. "I Don't Give" 3:39
USA CD single
  1. "Complicated" (Tom Lord-Alge Mix) 4:08
  2. "Complicated" (The Matrix Mix) 4:03

Charts and certifications

Release history

Region Date Label Format
United States May 14, 2002 (2002-05-14) Arista Records CD, digital download
Europe July 8, 2002 (2002-07-08) Sony BMG
United Kingdom September 23, 2002 (2002-09-23) Arista Records

See also

A Complicated Song, parody by Weird Al Yancovic

References

  1. ^ "Avril Lavigne - Complicated". Discogs. Retrieved 5 September 2010. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  2. ^ a b "allmusic ((( Complicated > Overview )))". Allmusic. Retrieved 10 September 2010. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  3. ^ "Avril Lavigne on mp3.com". Mp3.com. Retrieved 10 September 2010. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  4. ^ a b c Saraceno, Christina. "Let Go: Avril Lavigne". Allmusic. Retrieved 14 March 2009.
  5. ^ "Avril Lavigne on SortMusic". SortMusic. Retrieved 25 April 2010.
  6. ^ a b "ARIA Charts - Accreditations 2002 Singles". aria.com.au. Retrieved 19 December 2008.
  7. ^ "CERTIFICADOS". ABPD. Retrieved 10 September 2010. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  8. ^ "Avril Lavigne Trivia". tv.com. Retrieved 1 January 2008.
  9. ^ Avril Lavigne (14 October 2008). Avril Lavigne talking about COMPLICATED (Streaming video). YouTube. Event occurs at 0:15. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
  10. ^ "Avril Paradise - Videografia" (in Italian). avril-paradise.com. Retrieved 12 January 2009.
  11. ^ "Rolling Stone Top singles of the decade". Rolling Stone.com. Retrieved 8 December 2009.
  12. ^ "The 500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born: 151-200". Blender.com. Retrieved 8 December 2007.
  13. ^ "Billboard Hot 100 Songs of the decade". Billboard.com. Retrieved 11 December 2009.
  14. ^ a b Cheung, Nadine. "Top 10 Avril Lavigne Songs". AOL Radio. Archived from the original on 15 January 2011. Retrieved 15 January 2011. {{cite web}}: Italic or bold markup not allowed in: |work= (help)
  15. ^ Browne, David (5 August 2002). "Complicated: Avril Lavigne". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  16. ^ Cinquemani, Sal. "Slant Magazine Review". Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  17. ^ Browne, David (24 May 2004). "Under My Skin (2004)". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved 7 August 2010.
  18. ^ "MTV Video Music Awards 2002 - Winner". mtv.com. Retrieved 20 December 2008.
  19. ^ "Grammy Awards: ecco le nominations" (in Italian). delrock.it. Retrieved 20 December 2008.
  20. ^ "MTV divulga lista de indicados ao VMB 2003" (in Portuguese). areavip.com. Retrieved 24 December 2008.
  21. ^ "Dancemania SPEED". Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  22. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Avril Lavigne - Complicated". Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  23. ^ "Danish Chart". Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  24. ^ "Avril Lavigne on Billboard.com". Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  25. ^ "Archívum – Slágerlisták – MAHASZ" (in Hungarian). Rádiós Top 40 játszási lista. Magyar Hanglemezkiadók Szövetsége. Retrieved 2010-12-08.
  26. ^ "UK Album Chart: Complicated". ChartStats.com. Retrieved 28 June 2010.
  27. ^ "Artist Chart History". Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  28. ^ "Billboard Music-(Allmusic.com)". Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  29. ^ "Top 40 Venezuela Record Report". Retrieved 10 September 2010.
  30. ^ "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2002 Singles". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2010-12-28.
  31. ^ "Gold and Platinum Singles – 2002" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. 2002-10-19. Retrieved 2010-12-28.
  32. ^ "Swiss Certifications – Awards 2002". International Federation of the Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2010-12-28.
  33. ^ "ARIA Charts – End Of Year Charts – Top 100 Singles 2002". Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved 2011-01-14.
  34. ^ "Austrian Annual Charts 2002". AustrianCharts.at. Retrieved 2011-01-14.
  35. ^ Recording Industry Association of New Zealand (2002). "New Zealand Annual Chart". rianz.org.nz. Retrieved 2011-01-14.
  36. ^ "Swiss Year-End Charts 2002". Swiss Singles Chart. Retrieved 2011-01-14.
  37. ^ "2002 UK Official Singles Chart" (PDF). Charts Plus. Retrieved 2011-01-14.
Preceded by Australia ARIA Singles Chart number-one single
August 18, 2002 – September 22, 2002 		Succeeded by
Preceded by New Zealand RIANZ Singles Chart number-one single
August 18, 2002 – October 13, 2002 		Succeeded by
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