"Breathe (2 AM)" is the debut single of American singer-songwriter

Anna Nalick Anna Christine Nalick ( ; born March 30, 1984) is an American singer-songwriter. Her debut album, ''Wreck of the Day'', featuring her first radio hit, "Breathe (2 AM)", was released on April 19, 2005. Nalick left her label under Sony in 2009 a ...

. The song was first released in 2004 and re-released in 2005, when it charted at number 45 on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and number four on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul ...

chart. In New Zealand, it peaked at number 37. "Breathe (2 AM)" has been certified Gold by the

Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) is a trade organization that represents the music recording industry in the United States. Its members consist of record labels and distributors that the RIAA says "create, manufacture, and/o ...

Content

The verses of "Breathe (2 AM)" tell the stories of three characters: a friend of the narrator's who has fallen into an unhappy relationship, an alcoholic soldier at

Fort Bliss Fort Bliss is a United States Army post in New Mexico and Texas, with its headquarters in El Paso, Texas. Established in 1848, the fort was renamed in 1854 to honor William Wallace Smith Bliss, Bvt.Lieut.Colonel William W.S. Bliss (1815–1853 ...

, and the narrator's experience of writing and performing a song. Chuck Taylor describes it as "an introspective yet confessional tale about learning to handle everyday challenges — and remembering to take time to breathe".

Composition

The song is composed in a key of

A major A major is a major scale based on A, with the pitches A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has three sharps. Its relative minor is F-sharp minor and its parallel minor is A minor. The A major scale is: Changes needed for the ...

, the

time signature A time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, and measure signature) is an indication in music notation that specifies how many note values of a particular type fit into each measure ( bar). The time signature indicates th ...

is compound, and the

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian for 'time'; plural 'tempos', or from the Italian plural), measured in beats per minute, is the speed or pace of a given musical composition, composition, and is often also an indication of the composition ...

is "moderately slow, in 2" of 55 bpm, with the vocal range of F3–A4, according to Musicnotes.com.

Release

In the United States, only a promotional disc of "Breathe (2 AM)" was released. In Australia, a proper CD single was issued, backed with acoustic versions of non-album track "Home" and '' Wreck of the Day'' album track "Catalyst".

Credits and personnel

Credits are lifted from the US promo CD liner notes. Studios * Produced and recorded at Studio Wishbone (

North Hollywood North Hollywood is a neighborhood and district in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, California. The neighborhood contains the NoHo Arts District, El Portal Theater, several art galleries, and the Academy of Television Arts & Sciences. Th ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, US) * Mixed at Image Recording Studios (

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood ...

, US) * Mastered at The Lodge (New York City) Personnel *

– words, music, vocals * Christopher Thorn – guitars, production, recording * Brad Smith – bass, production, recording *

Joey Waronker Jon Joseph Waronker (born May 20, 1969) is an American drummer and music producer. He has performed with acts including Beck, R.E.M., Oasis and Roger Waters, and is a member of the experimental rock bands Atoms for Peace and Ultraísta. Back ...

– drums *

Zac Rae Zac Rae is an American musician, best known as the keyboardist, pianist, and multi-instrumentalist of the indie rock band Death Cab for Cutie, with whom he has recorded two studio albums and two EPs. Rae is a former member of Alanis Morissette's ...

– piano * Cameron Stone – cello *

Eric Rosse Eric Ivan Rosse is an American composer, songwriter, record producer, and mixer. Rosse started playing piano at age 8, eventually studying orchestration and arranging with Joe Rotundi, Sr. His style is influenced by soul, rock, art pop, and cl ...

– string arrangement, production, recording *

Chris Lord-Alge Chris Lord-Alge is an American mix engineer. He is the brother of both Tom Lord-Alge and Jeff Lord-Alge, both of whom are also audio engineers. Chris and Tom are known for their abundant use of dynamic range compression for molding mixes that ...

– mixing *

Emily Lazar Emily B. Lazar is an American mastering engineer. She is the founder, president, and chief mastering engineer of The Lodge, an audio mastering facility that has operated in New York City's Greenwich Village since 1997. She won a Grammy Award for ...

– mastering * Sarah Register – mastering assistant

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2004 debut singles 2004 songs 2005 singles Anna Nalick songs Columbia Records singles Pop ballads Rock ballads Songs written by Anna Nalick