"''Some Nights''" is a song by American

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre and form of rock music characterized by a strong commercial appeal, with more emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than standard rock musi ...

band

Fun Fun is defined by the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' as "light-hearted pleasure, enjoyment, or amusement; boisterous joviality or merrymaking; entertainment". Etymology and usage The word ''fun'' is associated with sports, entertaining medi ...

. It was released on June 4, 2012, as the second single from their second studio album of the same name. The song was written by

Jeff Bhasker Jeffrey Nath Bhasker (born March 4, 1974) is an American record producer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist based in Los Angeles. He won the Grammy Award for Producer of the Year in 2016 and was nominated for the award in 2013. Bhasker cam ...

Nate Ruess Nathaniel Joseph Ruess (pronounced ; born February 26, 1982) is an American singer and songwriter. He formed the indie rock band The Format in 2002, and later went on to form the band fun. in 2008. He emerged as a solo act with his guest per ...

Andrew Dost Andrew Paul Dost (born April 10, 1983) is an American musician and singer; he is a member of the indie bossa nova/jazz band Metal Bubble Trio, in which he is the lead singer. He was formerly a member of the indie rock band Anathallo from 2003 t ...

, and

Jack Antonoff Jack Michael Antonoff (born March 31, 1984) is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He is the lead vocalist of the rock band Bleachers, and previously the guitarist and drummer for the pop band Fun and the lead vocalist of t ...

. Musically "Some Nights" is an

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 ...

song with elements of

power pop Power pop (also typeset as powerpop) is a subgenre of rock music and form of pop rock based on the early music of bands such as the Who, the Beatles, the Beach Boys, and the Byrds. It typically incorporates melodic hooks, vocal harmonies, ...

and

progressive pop Progressive pop is pop music that attempts to break with the genre's standard formula, or an offshoot of the progressive rock genre that was commonly heard on AM radio in the 1970s and 1980s. It was originally termed for the early progressive ...

while the lyrics depict the protagonist having an

existential crisis Existential crises are inner conflicts characterized by the impression that life lacks meaning and confusion about one's personal identity. They are accompanied by anxiety and stress, often to such a degree that they disturb one's normal funct ...

. In the United States, "Some Nights" was a

sleeper hit In the entertainment industry, a sleeper hit refers to a film, television series, music release, video game or other entertainment product that was initially unsuccessful on release, but eventually became a surprise success. A sleeper hit may have ...

, spending approximately seven months on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 before reaching a peak of number three for six non-consecutive weeks beginning the week of September 29, 2012. The song became Fun's second single to enter the chart's top ten, as well as their second song to be certified platinum in the U.S., after their previous single, "

We Are Young "We Are Young" is a song recorded by American pop rock band Fun, featuring American singer Janelle Monáe. It is the third track on the group's second studio album, '' Some Nights'' (2012). The song was released on September 20, 2011, as th ...

". "Some Nights" was successful around the world, topping the singles charts of Australia, Israel and New Zealand, and it reached the top 10 in an additional nine countries, including Canada, the United Kingdom and the United States.

Composition and lyrical interpretation

"Some Nights" is written in the key of

C major C major is a major scale based on C, consisting of the pitches C, D, E, F, G, A, and B. C major is one of the most common keys used in music. Its key signature has no flats or sharps. Its relative minor is A minor and its parallel min ...

at a

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 ...

of 108 beats per minute. A line in their lyrics, "this is it, boys; this is war", recalls "99 Red Balloons", the English version of

Nena Gabriele Susanne Kerner (born 24 March 1960), better known by her stage name Nena, is a German singer who rose to international fame in 1983 as the lead vocalist of the band Nena (band), Nena with the Neue Deutsche Welle song "99 Luftballons". I ...

's 1983 hit "

99 Luftballons "99 Luftballons" (, "99 balloons") is a song by the West German band Nena from their 1983 self-titled album. An English-language version titled "99 Red Balloons" (), with lyrics by Kevin McAlea, was also released by Nena on the album '' 99 Lu ...

". Lyrically, the song expresses the existential angst of a young protagonist who is a long way from home. Lead singer Nate Ruess explained to Mesfin Fekadu of the ''

Associated Press The Associated Press (AP) is an American not-for-profit organization, not-for-profit news agency headquartered in New York City. Founded in 1846, it operates as a cooperative, unincorporated association, and produces news reports that are dist ...

'': "I'm always thinking about, 'Who am I and why did I do something like that?' And I think then it harkens back to my family, and I have such a strong tie to them and it's always therapeutic to sing about them." Ruess came up with the song and album title while on tour in

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

; he wrote the song based on the title. Lyrically, the song is about "just being someone different on any given night." There has been some confusion with the fans as the lyric "Some terrible nights" was mistaken for "...lies". Members of Fun. confirmed on November 18, 2012, on their Twitter and Facebook accounts that "it's NIGHTS not LIES." Jeff Giles, writing for Diffuser, compared the song to

Simon and Garfunkel Simon & Garfunkel were an American folk rock duo comprising the singer-songwriter Paul Simon and the singer Art Garfunkel. They were one of the best-selling music acts of the 1960s. Their most famous recordings include three US number-one sing ...

's "

Cecilia Cecilia is a personal name originating in the name of Saint Cecilia, the patron saint of music. History The name has been popularly used in Europe (particularly the United Kingdom and Italy, where in 2018 it was the 43rd most popular name for g ...

." Ruess commented that Simon's ''

Graceland Graceland is a mansion on a estate in Memphis, Tennessee, United States, once owned by American singer Elvis Presley. Presley is buried there, as are his parents Vernon and Gladys, paternal grandmother Minnie Mae, grandson Benjamin, and daugh ...

'' (1986) was an influence on the song in an interview with ''

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 ...

''.

Critical reception

The Re-View calls "Some Nights" a "bolder, catchier and more striking track than its predecessor "

", upping the stakes when it comes to both style and substance." In closing, he cited the track as one that would "cement unas one of the most intriguing and exciting new bands to emerge from the States in recent years." ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'' writer Dave Simpson compared Ruess's vocals in the song to those of

Freddie Mercury Freddie Mercury (born Farrokh Bulsara; 5 September 1946 – 24 November 1991) was a British singer and songwriter who achieved global fame as the lead vocalist and pianist of the rock band Queen (band), Queen. Regarded as one of the gre ...

and called the lyrics "sincere and oddly moving". Ray Rahman 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, ...

'', while reviewing the whole album, criticized its second half as inferior to the first and also called "Some Nights" the best track on the album, alongside "

". ''

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 ...

'' named the song the 11th best song of 2012.

Chart performance

"Some Nights" has reached number one in Australia, New Zealand, and Israel. The song has also reached the top ten in the United States, Canada, Ireland, Austria, Italy, Belgium, and the United Kingdom, and has so far made the top 30 in the Netherlands, Sweden, and Switzerland; it has also charted in Japan. In the United States, "Some Nights" debuted on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 the same week their album '' Some Nights'' debuted at number 3 on the ''Billboard'' 200. The song remained in the lower region of the chart for approximately four months due to low-level sales and consistent high-level streaming, before finally entering the top 40 in its 18th week. In its 23rd week, it switched places with "

" at number 11 on the chart, where it stayed the week after. In the song's 25th week on the chart, it entered the top ten by jumping to number 8. In its sixth week in the top ten, it reached number 3, which has been its peak position. As of March 2014, the song has sold over 5 million copies in the United States. It also reached number 2 on the

Mainstream Top 40 Pop Airplay (also called Mainstream Top 40, Pop Songs, and Top 40/contemporary hit radio, CHR) is a 40-song music chart published weekly by Billboard (magazine), ''Billboard'' Magazine that ranks the most popular songs of pop music being played o ...

chart, coincidentally behind

Maroon 5 Maroon 5 is an American pop rock band from Los Angeles, California. It consists of lead vocalist and rhythm guitarist Adam Levine, rhythm guitarist and keyboardist Jesse Carmichael, lead guitarist James Valentine (musician), James Valentine, d ...

's " One More Night".

Music video

The music video for "Some Nights" was produced by Poonam Sehrawat and directed by

Anthony Mandler Anthony Mandler is an American film, television, and music video director and photographer. As a music video director, his most notable and frequent collaborator is Rihanna. The two have worked on sixteen music videos together throughout her car ...

, and released on MTV.com on June 4, 2012. The video is of a fictional

American Civil War The American Civil War (April 12, 1861May 26, 1865; also known by Names of the American Civil War, other names) was a civil war in the United States between the Union (American Civil War), Union ("the North") and the Confederate States of A ...

night battle where the band performs on the battlefield. The lead singer, Nate Ruess, also sings as he rallies a Union regiment in preparation for battle. The flag of the Union troops is that of the

20th Maine Infantry Regiment The 20th Maine Infantry Regiment was a volunteer regiment of the United States Army ( Union Army) during the American Civil War (1861–1865), most famous for its defense of Little Round Top at the Battle of Gettysburg in Gettysburg, Pennsylvan ...

, volunteer soldiers that were commanded by

Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain (born Lawrence Joshua Chamberlain, September 8, 1828February 24, 1914) was an American college professor and politician from Maine who volunteered during the American Civil War to join the Union Army. He became a highl ...

starting in 1863. The video features two soldiers, one from each side of the conflict. The Confederate soldier is a middle-aged farmer clearly in love with his life, land and animals. The Union soldier is a young man, presumably from Maine, who has left his love to fight as a volunteer. In battle, the two sides first form lines and engage in a shooting battle. The Confederates charge the Union line (though they do so without appearing to mount bayonets). The Union troops engage in hand-to-hand combat in which the young Union soldier grits his teeth with determination and bayonets the Confederate soldier-farmer, brutally killing him. The Union regiment is victorious and the band follows the Union troops as it marches confidently and with apparent conviction towards its next battle, the young soldier exemplifying fulfilment in answering the song's central question, "What do I stand for?". He writes his love a letter which she cherishes. The music video has been viewed over 260 million times.

Credits and personnel

*Lead vocals –

*Piano, bass guitar, keyboards, background vocals –

*Guitar, drums, background vocals –

*Keyboards, programming, background vocals –

*Additional programming – Pat Reynolds *Additional guest vocals – Joi Starr *Producers – Jeff Bhasker *

Lyrics Lyrics are words that make up a song, usually consisting of verses and choruses. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist. The words to an extended musical composition such as an opera are, however, usually known as a "libretto" and their writer, ...

– Jeff Bhasker, Nate Ruess, Andrew Dost, Jack Antonoff *Label: Fueled by Ramen

In popular culture

"Some Nights" appeared in the series finale of ''

Harry's Law ''Harry's Law'' is an American legal comedy drama series created by David E. Kelley, and starring Kathy Bates, which ran for two seasons on NBC from January 17, 2011, to May 27, 2012. On May 11, 2012, NBC announced that ''Harry's Law'' would ...

'', and has been used in television spots for the

ABC ABC are the first three letters of the Latin script. ABC or abc may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Broadcasting * Aliw Broadcasting Corporation, Philippine broadcast company * American Broadcasting Company, a commercial American ...

program ''

Secret Millionaire Secrecy is the practice of hiding information from certain individuals or groups who do not have the "need to know", perhaps while sharing it with other individuals. That which is kept hidden is known as the secret. Secrecy is often controver ...

''. The song was also used in promos for the

2012 MTV Movie Awards The 2012 MTV Movie Awards were held on June 3, 2012 at the Universal Amphitheatre, Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, California, hosted by Russell Brand. The nominees were announced on May 1, and the winners were chosen by fans and a panel ...

and the

2013 BCS National Championship Game The 2013 BCS National Championship Game (branded as the 2013 Discover Card, Discover BCS National Championship Game for sponsorship reasons) was a postseason college football bowl game that took place on Monday, January 7, 2013, at Sun Life Sta ...

. Fun performed the song on ''

The Colbert Report ''The Colbert Report'' ( ) is an American late night television, late-night Late-night talk show, talk and news satire television program hosted by Stephen Colbert that aired four days a week on Comedy Central from October 17, 2005, to December ...

'', ''

Late Night with Jimmy Fallon ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of the '' Late Night'' franchise. Hosted by Jimmy Fallon,

'', ''

Sunrise Sunrise (or sunup) is the moment when the upper rim of the Sun appears on the horizon in the morning, at the start of the Sun path. The term can also refer to the entire process of the solar disk crossing the horizon. Terminology Although the S ...

'', ''

The Jonathan Ross Show ''The Jonathan Ross Show'' is a British comedy chat show presented by Jonathan Ross. It was first broadcast on ITV on 3 September 2011 and airs on Saturday evenings following the conclusion of Ross' BBC One chat show, ''Friday Night with Jona ...

'', and ''

Saturday Night Live ''Saturday Night Live'' (''SNL'') is an American Late night television in the United States, late-night live television, live sketch comedy variety show created by Lorne Michaels and developed by Michaels and Dick Ebersol that airs on NBC. The ...

''. It also was used in trailers and advertisements promoting the Disney animated film ''

Wreck-It Ralph ''Wreck-It Ralph'' is a 2012 American animated comedy film produced by Walt Disney Animation Studios. It was directed by Rich Moore and produced by Clark Spencer, from a screenplay by Phil Johnston (filmmaker), Phil Johnston and Jennifer Lee ( ...

''. The

Chicago Blackhawks The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (N ...

use the song as a backing track in several promotional montages.

Southwest Airlines Southwest Airlines Co., or simply Southwest, is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States that formerly operated on a low-cost carrier model. It is headquartered in the Love Field, Dallas, Love Field neighborhood ...

used the song in the first TV spot for their "Welcome Aboard" ad campaign, which was also their first campaign by TBWA/Chiat/Day. ''On Air With Ryan Seacrest'' reviews a collaborative video version of ''Some Nights'' performed by nine "YouTube stars". Produced by Jake Coco and

W. G. Snuffy Walden William Garrett Walden, known as W. G. Snuffy Walden (born February 13, 1950), is an American musician and composer of film and television soundtracks. Walden is an Primetime Emmy Award, Emmy Award winner for the theme music to ''The West Wing'' ...

, vocalists include Jake Coco, Corey Gray, Caitlin Hart, Madilyn Bailey,

Savannah Outen Savannah Paige Outen (born October 14, 1992) is an American singer who gained popularity on YouTube. Outen began posting videos of herself singing on YouTube in March 2007 along with Angelika Vee and Esmée Denters. In 2010 she collaborated wit ...

Jess Moskaluke Jessica Moskaluke (born June 4, 1990) is a Canadian country singer and songwriter. She released her debut studio album, '' Light Up the Night'' in April 2014, which includes the platinum-certified single " Cheap Wine and Cigarettes". She has one n ...

Sara Niemietz Sara Anne Niemietz (; born June 7, 1992) is an American singer-songwriter and actress based in Los Angeles, California. She has performed on Broadway, at Radio City Music Hall, and the Grand Ole Opry. A substantial portion of her YouTube offer ...

, Eppic, and Black Prez. Released on Jake Coco's YouTube channel on August 11, 2012, by October 13, 2012, this cover version received 4,532,233 views in 63 days. In August 2012 Some Nights was covered by Canadian band Walk Off The Earth for their YouTube channel. Ohio based metalcore band

Like Moths To Flames Like Moths to Flames is an American metalcore band from Columbus, Ohio, formed in 2010 by former members of various bands, including Emarosa, Agraceful, the Crimson Armada, TerraFirma, and My Ticket Home. The band has released six studio albums ...

covered the song on the compilation album ''

Punk Goes Pop 5 ''Punk Goes Pop Volume 5'' is the thirteenth compilation album in the '' Punk Goes...'' series created by Fearless Records and the fifth installment in the ''Punk Goes Pop'' series to contain bands covering mainstream pop music. It was released on ...

''.

Ellie Goulding Elena Jane Goulding ( ; born 30 December 1986) is an English singer, songwriter, and activist. Born in Hereford and raised in Lyonshall, Goulding began writing songs at the age of 15. She released her debut single " Under the Sheets" through ...

has covered the song as well in late 2012 on

BBC Radio BBC Radio is an operational business division and service of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a royal charter since 1927. The service provides national radio stations cove ...

in the "Live Lounge". The song was covered by the New Directions glee club in the " Dynamic Duets" episode of ''

Glee Glee may refer to: * Glee (music), a type of English choral music * ''Glee'' (TV series), an American musical comedy-drama TV series, and related media created by Ryan Murphy * ''Glee'' (Bran Van 3000 album) * ''Glee'' (Logan Lynn album) * Gle ...

''. On April 25, 2013, teen actress and musician

Victoria Justice Victoria Justice (born February 19, 1993) is an American actress and singer. She rose to fame on Nickelodeon, playing Lola Martinez on the comedy drama series '' Zoey 101'' (2005–2008) and Tori Vega on the sitcom '' Victorious'' (2010–20 ...

(of

Nickelodeon Nickelodeon (nicknamed Nick) is an American pay television channel and the flagship property of the Nickelodeon Group, a sub-division of the Paramount Media Networks division of Paramount Global. Launched on April 1, 1979, as the first ca ...

's ''

Victorious ''Victorious'' (stylized as ''VICTORiOUS'') is an American sitcom created by Dan Schneider that originally aired on Nickelodeon, debuting on March 27, 2010, and concluding on February 2, 2013 after four seasons. The series revolves around aspi ...

'') posted a softer acoustic rendition of "Some Nights".

A cappella Music performed a cappella ( , , ; ), less commonly spelled acapella in English, is music performed by a singer or a singing group without instrumental accompaniment. The term ''a cappella'' was originally intended to differentiate between Rena ...

group Straight No Chaser released a mashup of this song and "

" for their 2013 album '' Under the Influence''. The song was covered

The Band Perry The Band Perry are an American band composed of siblings Kimberly Perry (lead vocals, guitar), Reid Perry (bass guitar, background vocals), and Neil Perry (mandolin, bouzouki, background vocals). They signed to Republic Nashville in August 2 ...

in concert from

Jackson, Michigan Jackson is a city in Jackson County, Michigan, United States, and its county seat. The population was 31,309 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located along Interstate 94 in Michigan, Interstate 94 and U.S. Route 127 in Michigan, U.S ...

''We Are Pioneers World Tour'' 2013 with mashup "Night Gone Wasted".

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Decade-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

References

External links

* {{Authority control 2012 singles Fun (band) songs Number-one singles in Australia Number-one singles in Israel Number-one singles in New Zealand Music videos directed by Anthony Mandler Song recordings produced by Jeff Bhasker Songs written by Jeff Bhasker Songs written by Jack Antonoff 2012 songs Atlantic Records singles Fueled by Ramen singles Songs written by Nate Ruess Songs written by Andrew Dost Like Moths to Flames songs