"Down" is a song by the American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wale ...

band

Blink-182 Blink-182 is an American Rock music, rock band formed in Poway, California, in 1992. Its current and best-known line-up consists of bassist and vocalist Mark Hoppus, guitarist and vocalist Tom DeLonge, and drummer Travis Barker. Though its so ...

, released to radio on May 10, 2004, as the third single from the group's 2003 untitled album. The song peaked at number 10 on ''

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 ...

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks between 1988 and 2009, and Alternative Songs between 2009 and 2020) is a music chart published in the American magazine ''Billboard'' since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

chart.

Background

The song revolves around longing in a relationship, set to a rain-drenched soundscape. The original version of "Down" ran over six minutes long, and contained a

drum and bass Drum and bass (commonly abbreviated as DnB, D&B, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterised by fast Break (music)#Breakbeat (element of music), breakbeats (typically 165–185 Tempo, beats per minute) with heavy Bass (music) ...

breakdown from drummer Travis Barker. Rumors circulated following the song's release that DeLonge penned the track on experiences with a previous girlfriend.Shooman, 2010. p. 122 It is one of the few Blink-182 songs to feature vocal contributions from Travis Barker, who provides the whispered lines before the choruses.

Release and live performances

"Down" was issued as a single in May 2004, and the band promoted the release with tour dates featuring

Cypress Hill Cypress Hill is an American Hip hop music, hip hop group formed in South Gate, California in 1988. One of the first Latin groups to gain mainstream recognition in hip hop, they have sold over 20 million albums worldwide, and have obtained multi ...

and on a

nationwide tour The Korn Ferry Tour is the developmental tour for the U.S.-based PGA Tour, and features professional golfers who have either not yet reached the PGA Tour, or who have done so but then failed to win enough FedEx Cup points to stay at that level. ...

with

No Doubt No Doubt is an American rock band formed in Anaheim, California in 1986. For most of its career, the band has consisted of vocalist and founding member Gwen Stefani, guitarist Tom Dumont, bassist Tony Kanal and drummer Adrian Young. Keyboar ...

.Shooman, 2010. p. 132 The single was a mixed success, peaking at number 10 on the ''

chart during the week of July 31, 2004, but quickly falling off afterward. The song also peaked at number 24 on the UK Singles Chart. "Down" was one of few Blink-182 songs performed by Tom DeLonge's next band,

Angels & Airwaves Angels & Airwaves (also written as Angels and Airwaves; stylized and abbreviated as ΛVΛ) is an American rock band, comprising lead vocalist/guitarist Tom DeLonge, guitarist David Kennedy, drummer Ilan Rubin, and bassist Matt Rubano. The ban ...

. During an August 2009 concert in Hartford, CT, the band dedicated the song to Adam Goldstein (DJ AM), who had died the night before following a drug overdose.

Music video

The song's

music video A music video is a video that integrates a song or an album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a music marketing device intended to ...

was directed by Mr. Scandalous, and made its premiere on

MTV MTV (an initialism of Music Television) is an American cable television television channel, channel and the flagship property of the MTV Entertainment Group sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on ...

on June 2, 2004. In the clip, Blink-182 are playing a house party when the police arrive and search for a gang member named Trouble, who slips away immediately. The cops, fronted by a lead policeman played by actor

Terry Crews Terry Alan Crews (born July 30, 1968) is an American actor, television host, and former professional American football, football player. He played Julius Rock in the UPN/The CW Television Network, CW sitcom ''Everybody Hates Chris'', which air ...

, unsuccessfully chase Trouble on foot, in cars, and in helicopters throughout

South Central Los Angeles South Los Angeles, also known as South Central Los Angeles or simply South Central, is a region in southwestern Los Angeles County, California, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles, south of Downtown Los Angeles, downtown. It is de ...

, but he evades their capture in the concrete L.A. River. The party scene features over 100 former gang members; these performers were signed to Suspect Entertainment, a company founded to provide a safe, legal alternative to joining such groups.

Track listing

* T.L.A. stands for

Tom Lord-Alge Tom Lord-Alge (born January 17, 1962) is an American music engineer and mixer. He began his career at Unique Recording in New York. Subsequently, he was the resident mixer at what used to be known as "South Beach Studios", located on the ground ...

* Side 2 of the Picture Disc contains artwork and information, not music * The "behind the scenes" video is the same one featured on the "Blink-182" Tour Edition DVD and the "Greatest Hits" Deluxe DVD

Charts

Personnel

Blink-182

Mark Hoppus Mark Allan Hoppus (born March 15, 1972) is an American musician and record producer. He is the co-lead vocalist, co-founder, and bassist for the rock band Blink-182 and the only member to appear on every album. Hoppus became interested in ska ...

bass Bass or Basses may refer to: Fish * Bass (fish), various saltwater and freshwater species Wood * Bass or basswood, the wood of the tilia americana tree Music * Bass (sound), describing low-frequency sound or one of several instruments in th ...

vocals Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define sing ...

* Tom Delonge -

guitar The guitar is a stringed musical instrument that is usually fretted (with Fretless guitar, some exceptions) and typically has six or Twelve-string guitar, twelve strings. It is usually held flat against the player's body and played by strumming ...

, vocals *

Travis Barker Travis Landon Barker (born November 14, 1975) is an American musician, songwriter, and music producer who is the drummer for the rock band Blink-182. He has collaborated with hip hop artists, is a member of the rap rock group Transplants ...

drums The drum is a member of the percussion instrument, percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophones, membranophone. Drums consist of at least one Acoustic membrane, membrane, c ...

backing vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are us ...

Additional musicians

Roger Joseph Manning, Jr. Roger Joseph Manning Jr. (born May 27, 1966) is an American keyboardist, singer, and songwriter who co-founded the bands Jellyfish (band), Jellyfish, the Moog Cookbook, Imperial Drag, and The Lickerish Quartet. He has also spent several years a ...

- keyboards

Release history

References

External links

* {{authority control Blink-182 songs 2004 singles Songs written by Tom DeLonge Songs written by Travis Barker Songs written by Mark Hoppus 2003 songs Geffen Records singles