Do I Have to Say the Words?

"Do I Have to Say the Words?"
Single by Bryan Adams
from the album Waking Up the Neighbours
Released July 1992
Format CD single
Genre Pop rock
Length 6:11
Label A&M
Writer(s)
Producer(s)
  • Bryan Adams
  • Robert John "Mutt" Lange
Bryan Adams singles chronology
"All I Want Is You"
(1991)		 "Do I Have to Say the Words?"
(1992)		 "Touch the Hand"
(1992)

"Do I Have to Say the Words?" is a song recorded by Canadian singer and songwriter Bryan Adams for his sixth studio album, Waking Up the Neighbours (1991). It was written and produced by Adams and Robert John "Mutt" Lange, with Jim Vallance serving as co-writer of the track. It was released in July 1992 as the sixth single from the album. "Do I Have to Say the Words?" is a mid-tempo pop rock ballad with guitar riffs and soft synths in its instrumentation, while Adams gives a dramatic vocal delivery.

The song received generally positive reviews from music critics, who praised the track for being a beautiful ballad and Adams for his vocal delivery. Commercially, the song was successful in North America, reaching number two in Canada and number eleven on the US Billboard Hot 100. Elsewhere, it peaked modestly, reaching the top-forty in three other countries. The acommpanying music video for the song was directed by Anton Corbijn and was shot in Turkey and Iceland.

Composition and reception

"Do I Have to Say the Words?" was written and produced by Bryan Adams and Robert John "Mutt" Lange, with Jim Vallance serving as a co-writer. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Universal Music Publishing Group, it is written in the key of G major with a rock ballad tempo of 72 beats per minute in common time.[1] The mid-tempo ballad features guitar riffs and "cushiony" synths as its instrumentation, while Adams delivers a dramatic vocal.[2] In a part of the chorus, he "whines", "Do I have to tell the truth?."[3]

Larry Flick of Billboard called it a "charming rock ballad", where Adams "returns to the pensive, romantic tone of his record-breaking hit '(Everything I Do) I Do It for You'." Flick noted that the singer "excels at laying agile [instrumentation] for his gravelly, dramatic vocal delivery."[2] David Hiltbrand and Craig Tomashoff of People named it the best of the ballads on the album.[4] James Hunter of Rolling Stone named it a moodier "eloquent mall ballad,"[5] while Jan DeKnock of Chicago Tribune noted that "he really does shine brightest on [the] beautifully bittersweet [ballad]."[6]

Music video

The music video was directed by Anton Corbijn and was mainly shot in Istanbul, Turkey on July 28, 1992. The video marked the first outdoor stadium show in Istanbul history, with over 20,000 concertgoers in BJK İnönü Stadium. Part of the video was filmed in Iceland with the female character.

Track listings

  1. "Do I Have To Say The Words?" - 4:20
  2. "Summer of '69" (live) - 4:14
  3. "Kids Wanna Rock" (live) - 3:25
  4. "Can't Stop This Thing We Started" (live) - 4:58
  1. Do I Have To Say The Words? (Edit) - 4:17
  2. Summer Of '69 (Live) - 3:54
  • Promo Single[9]
  1. Do I Have To Say The Words? (Edit) - 4:17
  2. Do I Have To Say The Words? (LP Version) - 6:11
  1. Do I Have To Say The Words? (Edit) - 4:18
  2. Cuts Like A Knife (Live) - 5:36

Charts

Chart (1992-1993) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[11] 61
Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[12] 30
Canada Top Singles (RPM) 2
Germany (Official German Charts)[13] 75
Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[14] 34
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)[15] 30
US Billboard Hot 100[16] 11
US Billboard Adult Contemporary Chart[16] 5
US Billboard Rock Tracks[16] 3
US Top 40 Mainstream[16] 3

References

  1. ↑ "Bryan Adams - "Do I Have to Say the Words?" - Digital Sheet Music". Musicnotes.com. Universal Music Publishing Group. MN0019431. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  2. 1 2 Flick, Larry (July 25, 1992). "Single Reviews". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 104 (30): 66. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  3. ↑ Arnold, Gina (September 27, 1991). "Waking Up the Neighbours | EW.com". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  4. ↑ Hiltbrand, David; Tomashoff, Craig (October 21, 1991). "Picks and Pans Review: Waking Up the Neighbours". People. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  5. ↑ Hunter, James (October 17, 1991). "Waking Up the Neighbours : Bryan Adams Review : Rolling Stone". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 29, 2007. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  6. ↑ DeKnock, Jan (October 10, 1991). "Bryan Adams Waking Up the Neighbours (A&M)". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  7. ↑ "Bryan Adams – Do I Have To Say The Words? [CD single]". Discogs. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  8. ↑ "Bryan Adams – Do I Have To Say The Words? [Vinyl]". Discogs. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  9. ↑ "Bryan Adams – Do I Have To Say The Words? [Promo]". Discogs. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  10. ↑ "Bryan Adams – Do I Have To Say The Words? [Cassette]". Discogs. Retrieved July 6, 2016.
  11. ↑ "Australian-charts.com – Bryan Adams – Do I Have to Say the Words?". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
  12. ↑ "Ultratop.be – Bryan Adams – Do I Have to Say the Words?" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50.
  13. ↑ "Musicline.de – Bryan Adams Single-Chartverfolgung" (in German). Media Control Charts. PhonoNet GmbH.
  14. ↑ "Nederlandse Top 40 – Bryan Adams search results" (in Dutch) Dutch Top 40.
  15. ↑ UK Singles Chart [ Chartstats.com] (Retrieved October 23, 2009)
  16. 1 2 3 4 "Artist Chart History (singles) - Bryan Adams". Allmusic. Archived from the original on December 6, 2011. Retrieved 2008-10-19.
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