"Almost Lover" is a song written and recorded by

A Fine Frenzy Alison Sudol (born December 23, 1984) is an American actress and singer-songwriter. She is formerly known as the singer A Fine Frenzy, and for her role as Queenie Goldstein in '' Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'' (2016), as well as its s ...

, the stage name of American singer-songwriter

Alison Sudol Alison Sudol (born December 23, 1984) is an American actress and singer-songwriter. She is formerly known as the singer A Fine Frenzy, and for her role as Queenie Goldstein in '' Fantastic Beasts and Where to Find Them'' (2016), as well as its s ...

. It was released May 22, 2007 through

Virgin Records Virgin Records is a British record label owned by Universal Music Group. They were originally founded as a British independent record label in 1972 by entrepreneurs Richard Branson, Simon Draper, Nik Powell, and musician Tom Newman (musician), ...

as the second single from her debut studio album, '' One Cell in the Sea'' (2007). The single failed to enter the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, but experienced success in Europe, reaching the top 10 in the singles charts of Austria, Germany, and Switzerland.

Composition

"Almost Lover" is a piano-driven

pop Pop or POP may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Pop music, a musical genre Artists * POP, a Japanese idol group now known as Gang Parade * Pop! (British group), a UK pop group * Pop! featuring Angie Hart, an Australian band Album ...

ballad with elements of

alternative rock Alternative rock (also known as alternative music, alt-rock or simply alternative) is a category of rock music that evolved from the independent music underground of the 1970s. Alternative rock acts achieved mainstream success in the 1990s w ...

written and composed by

. According to the digital sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Alfred Publishing Co., Inc., the song was originally composed in the key of

A minor A minor is a minor scale based on A, B, C, D, E, F, and G. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative major is C major and its parallel major is A major. The A natural minor scale is: Changes needed for the melodic ...

and set in common time to a slow tempo of 63 BPM, with a vocal range spanning from G through C.

Critical reception

Susan Visakowitz of ''

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 ...

'' wrote that, although Sudol "tackles a well-worn subject" on the song, "she does so with poetic turns of phrase and a lovely, unassuming vocal" that result in "Almost Lover" creating a "lasting first impression." In a review of ''One Cell in the Sea'', Shirley Halperin of ''

Entertainment Weekly ''Entertainment Weekly'' (sometimes abbreviated as ''EW'') is an American online magazine, digital-only entertainment magazine based in New York City, published by Dotdash Meredith, that covers film, television, music, Broadway theatre, books, ...

'' wrote that "attention to the dramatic works wonders" on "Almost Lover" by showcasing Sudol's vocals.

Formats and track listings

Versions

1. "Almost Lover" (Album version)
2. "Almost Lover" (2nd Version)
3. "Almost Lover" (Radio Edit)
4. "Almost Lover" (Radio Mix)
5. "Almost Lover" (Video Mix)
6. "Almost Lover" (Instrumental)
7. "Almost Lover" (Eric Ivan Rosse Remix)

Music video

There are two music videos made for the single. The first one was directed by Laurent Briet, and sees A Fine Frenzy playing a piano in the forest, sitting in the middle of a stream. Suddenly rocks start to fly up to the sky. Later, it can be seen that parts of the piano start to detach from each other. The second video was directed by the Nee Brothers. In this version, A Fine Frenzy is behind glass doors. She plays a dirty piano as she recalls her almost lover from the past. Flashbacks can be seen of the pair on the beach. The video was later edited to feature a revised "domestic remix" of the song.

Chloe Lukasiak Chloe (; ), also spelled Chloë, Chlöe, or Chloé, is a feminine name meaning "blooming" or "fertility" in Greek. The name ultimately derives, through Greek, from the Proto-Indo-European root , which relates to the colors yellow and green. Th ...

, a 13-year-old dancer from the television show

Dance Moms ''Dance Moms'' is an American reality television series that premiered on Lifetime (TV network), Lifetime on July 13, 2011. Created by Collins Avenue Productions, the show followed the training and careers of children in dance and show business ...

, filmed a solo dance video to ''Almost Lover,'' using a cover version recorded by

Jasmine Thompson Jasmine Ying Thompson (born 8 November 2000) is a British singer and songwriter. She began her career at the age of ten by filming herself singing and uploading the videos to YouTube. In 2014, she was featured on German deep house producer Robi ...

in 2013. The video was directed by Director Brazil and choreographed by Brittany Pent, and it has over 3 million views (as of 2017).

Usage in popular culture

"Almost Lover" was featured on a

season three A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and polar ...

episode of American

reality television Reality television is a genre of television programming that documents purportedly unscripted real-life situations, often starring ordinary people rather than professional actors. Reality television emerged as a distinct genre in the early 1990s ...

series, '' The Hills'' titled, "A Night at the Opera" and a season four episode of American

legal Law is a set of rules that are created and are law enforcement, enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a Socia ...

comedy-drama Comedy drama (also known by the portmanteau dramedy) is a hybrid genre of works that combine elements of comedy and Drama (film and television), drama. In film, as well as scripted television series, serious dramatic subjects (such as death, il ...

, '' Suits'' titled, "Fork in the Road". ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. The magazine was first known fo ...

'' listed the ''Hills'' feature as one of the series' 15 best musical moments. The song was also used as the backing music for a performance by Courtney Galiano on season four of American reality competition program, ''

So You Think You Can Dance ''So You Think You Can Dance'' is a franchise of reality television shows in which contestants compete in dance. The first series of the franchise, created by '' Idols'' producers Simon Fuller and Nigel Lythgoe, premiered in July 2005 and has ...

'', and for performances by Lisa Auguste and Corynne Barron on the

first First most commonly refers to: * First, the ordinal form of the number 1 First or 1st may also refer to: Acronyms * Faint Images of the Radio Sky at Twenty-Centimeters, an astronomical survey carried out by the Very Large Array * Far Infrared a ...

and

second The second (symbol: s) is a unit of time derived from the division of the day first into 24 hours, then to 60 minutes, and finally to 60 seconds each (24 × 60 × 60 = 86400). The current and formal definition in the International System of U ...

seasons, respectively, of the Canadian counterpart, ''

So You Think You Can Dance Canada ''So You Think You Can Dance Canada'' is a dance competition and reality show that aired on CTV. Based on the original American TV show ''So You Think You Can Dance'', the Canadian series showcased the best in Canadian dancing talent. Each sea ...

''.

Charts and certifications

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

Release history

References

{{authority control 2007 singles Virgin Records singles 2007 songs Pop ballads 2000s ballads