"Sideways" is a song co-written and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

artist

Dierks Bentley Frederick Dierks Bentley (; born November 20, 1975) is an American country music singer and songwriter. Bentley moved to Nashville in the late 90s to pursue a career in music, leading up to his releasing the self-funded and independent album Do ...

. It was released on March 2, 2009, as the second single from his 2009 album ''

Feel That Fire ''Feel That Fire'' is the fourth studio album by American country music artist Dierks Bentley. It was released on February 3, 2009 by Capitol Records Nashville. The album produced three singles with the title track, "Sideways", and " I Wanna Make ...

'' and as the twelfth single of his career. On the chart week of July 11, 2009, the song became Bentley's seventh Number One hit on the U.S. ''

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 ...

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

chart.

Content

"Sideways" was co-written by Bentley himself, along with

Jim Beavers Jim Beavers is an American country music songwriter. He is also the brother of songwriter Brett Beavers. Early life and education Jim Beavers grew up in Garland and Jacksonville, Texas. His educational background includes a BBA from Baylor U ...

, the brother of Bentley's producer,

Brett Beavers Brett Beavers (born in Waco, Texas) is an American country music songwriter and producer and a co-author of a book, ''Something Worth Leaving Behind''. Education and early career Beavers attended Baylor University in Waco, Texas, where he earne ...

. This song is a up-tempo backed mainly by

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external electric Guitar amplifier, sound amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar. It uses one or more pickup (music technology), pickups ...

and by

banjo The banjo is a stringed instrument with a thin membrane stretched over a frame or cavity to form a resonator. The membrane is typically circular, and in modern forms is usually made of plastic, where early membranes were made of animal skin. ...

. The song is about the male character's attempt to talk to a female in a bar. Despite not being able to hear her name because of the loud noise, he still tries to come on to her, saying that he wants to "get a little sideways" with her. The song's final chorus features the ambient noise of a bar, along with a chanted chorus by backing vocalists.

Music video

The music video was directed by

Michael Salomon Michael Salomon (born in Whitefish Bay, Wisconsin, United States) is an American music video/film director, who has directed many music videos, including many of Toby Keith's music videos. He directed the video for Metallica's "One", which was no ...

, and features Bentley singing in front of a large party crowd. The video was #50 on the GAC's Top 50 Videos of the Year list. It was shot inside the Fuse nightclub, located inside the

Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center, formerly known as Opryland Hotel, is a hotel and convention center located in Nashville, Tennessee. It is owned by Ryman Hospitality Properties (formerly known as Gaylord Entertainment Company), and ...

. A second video, containing live performance footage, was released in August 2009. This is the most commonly used version on TV.

Critical reception

Kevin J. Coyne of ''Country Universe'' gave the song a C rating and thought that Bentley sounded uncomfortable singing the song, making it sound "dull and lifeless" as a result.

Chart and sales performance

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sideways (Song) 2009 singles Dierks Bentley songs Music videos directed by Michael Salomon Songs written by Dierks Bentley Songs written by Jim Beavers Capitol Records Nashville singles Song recordings produced by Brett Beavers 2009 songs