"Strong Enough" is a song by American singer-songwriter

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, pop, country, folk, and blues. She has released eleven studio albums, five compilations and three ...

from her debut album, ''

Tuesday Night Music Club ''Tuesday Night Music Club'' is the debut album from American singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow, released on August 3, 1993. The first two singles from the album were not particularly successful. However, the album gained attention after the success ...

'' (1993). The song reached number five on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 for three consecutive weeks, number three in Australia, and number one in Canada, becoming her second chart-topper there following " All I Wanna Do". In Australia, the song received a platinum certification for shipments exceeding 70,000 copies. Crow performed the song on her live album '' Sheryl Crow and Friends: Live from Central Park'' alongside the

Dixie Chicks The Chicks (previously known as Dixie Chicks) are an American country music band from Dallas, Texas. Since 1995, the band has consisted of Natalie Maines (lead vocals, guitar) and sisters Martie Maguire (vocals, fiddle, mandolin, guitar) an ...

. The song was later included on Crow's greatest hits album, ''

The Very Best of Sheryl Crow ''The Very Best of Sheryl Crow'' is a greatest hits album by American singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow, released on October 13, 2003, in the United Kingdom and November 4, 2003, in the United States. The album was a commercial success, reaching ...

''.

Background and composition

"Strong Enough" is an acoustic folk-pop song. In live performances, Crow often plays the accordion to it, although this instrument was not featured on the original recording. The song is written in the key of

D major D major (or the key of D) is a major scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B, and C. Its key signature has two sharps. Its relative minor is B minor and its parallel minor is D minor. The D major scale is: : Ch ...

with a moderately slow

tempo In musical terminology, tempo ( Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (ofte ...

of 79 beats per minute in the unusual time signature. It follows a chord progression of D–G5–Bm6–A, and Crow's vocals span from A₃ to B₄. Lyrically, the song finds the narrator in a frustrated relationship, looking for solace from her partner, despite the fact that his commitments may not be as true as her own.

Critical reception

Steve Baltin from ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an onli ...

'' wrote, "On the heels of her good-time up-tempo number " All I Wanna Do”, Crow comes back with a

ballad A ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads derive from the medieval French ''chanson balladée'' or '' ballade'', which were originally "dance songs". Ballads were particularly characteristic of the popular poetry and ...

, which was co-written by

David Baerwald David Francis Baerwald (born July 11, 1960) is an American singer-songwriter, composer, and musician. Career Baerwald first came to prominence in 1986 as one half of the duo David & David, with David Ricketts. David and David's sole album, ' ...

, formerly of David & David, along with five other people. And yet, even with all those helping hands, the song is a very straight-forward love song. Simple in arrangement though somewhat lush in melody, the real point is to showcase Crow’s vocal talents—which she has. Though the song may not be as big a hit as her first two singles, it sets Crow up for the long haul and is likely to be an adult/contemporary monster." Alan Jones from ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' described "Strong Enough" as "another pleasing, though less commercial han "All I Wanna Do" song – a lilting, understated folksy piece. Not a huge single, but it will direct further attention to her album, ''

''."

Music video

A simple black-and-white

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing devic ...

was directed by Martin Bell. It features Crow in a largely empty room alternatively singing the song into a microphone and pacing anxiously through the room.

Track listings

* US and Australian CD single # "Strong Enough" (LP version) – 3:40 # " All I Wanna Do" (live) – 4:12 # "Reach Around Jerk" (live) – 4:22 # "

Leaving Las Vegas ''Leaving Las Vegas'' is a 1995 American drama film written and directed by Mike Figgis, and based on the semi-autobiographical 1990 novel of the same name by John O'Brien. Nicolas Cage stars as a suicidal alcoholic in Los Angeles who, ha ...

" (live) – 5:29 * US 7-inch single :A. "Strong Enough" – 3:10 :B. " Run Baby Run" – 4:53 * US cassette single # "Strong Enough" # "

What I Can Do for You "What I Can Do for You" is a song by American singer-songwriter Sheryl Crow from her debut studio album, ''Tuesday Night Music Club'' (1993), released on A&M Records. It was originally issued in February 1994, and the single includes a faster v ...

" * UK 7-inch single :A. "Strong Enough" :B. "No One Said It Would Be Easy" * UK CD1 # "Strong Enough" # "All by Myself" # "Strong Enough" (live at the Borderline) # "Reach Around Jerk" * UK CD2 # "Strong Enough" # "No One Said It Would Be Easy" # "All I Wanna Do" (live in

Nashville Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the seat of Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the most populous city in the state, 21st most-populous city in the U.S., and th ...

) * European CD single and Australian cassette single # "Strong Enough" (LP version) – 3:10 # "Leaving Las Vegas" (live) – 5:29

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Covers and interpolations

Travis Tritt James Travis Tritt (born February 9, 1963) is an American country music singer and songwriter. He signed to Warner Bros. Records in 1989, releasing seven studio albums and a greatest hits package for the label between then and 1999. In the 20 ...

wrote and released an

answer song An answer song, response song or answer record, is a song (usually a recorded track) made in answer to a previous song, normally by another artist. The concept became widespread in blues and R&B recorded music in the 1930s to the 1950s. Answer so ...

called "Strong Enough to Be Your Man" in 2002.

References

{{Authority control 1993 songs 1994 singles A&M Records singles The Chicks songs RPM Top Singles number-one singles Sheryl Crow songs Song recordings produced by Bill Bottrell Songs written by Bill Bottrell Songs written by Brian MacLeod (U.S. musician) Songs written by David Baerwald Songs written by David Ricketts Songs written by Kevin Gilbert (musician) Songs written by Sheryl Crow