"Standing Still" is a song by American singer-songwriter Jewel. Recorded in Nashville, Tennessee, the song was included on her fourth studio album, '' This Way'' (2001). Jewel wrote the song sometime after the release of her previous album, '' Spirit'', while she was taking a break from her music career. According to Jewel, the song is about stepping back to avoid stagnation from a busy career and wanting a change of scenery from fame. "Standing Still" was released on September 24, 2001, to positive reviews and commercial success. In the United States, it peaked at number 25 on the ''

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 advertise ...

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in February 2002 and reached the top 10 on the ''Billboard'' Adult Alternative Songs and Adult Top 40 charts. Worldwide, the single reached the top 40 in Australia, the Netherlands, and New Zealand. In New Zealand, it peaked at number seven and was the 40th-most-successful single of 2002.

Background and release

Jewel revealed the meaning behind "Standing Still" backstage at the 2001 My VH1 Music Awards: "It's about the irony of how much a person travels in my job, and how it can really cause your emotional life to stand still. Fame really tolerates a prolonged adolescence, and your fame and career can outgrow your ability to handle it. You can really spoiled, and I wanted to get away from hatand make sure I wasn't standing still". She went on to explain that the song was inspired by her three-year hiatus from the music business following the release of '' Spirit'', during which she found it difficult to stay impassioned about her fame. Chuck Taylor of ''

'' magazine summarized that the song "addresses simple desires ..with an underlying message about taking forward steps in life", as well as "stepping out and embracing life". Jewel recorded the song at three studios in Nashville, Tennessee: Ocean Way Nashville, Emerald Entertainment, and the Sound Kitchen. The song was released to American

hot adult contemporary radio Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quiet sto ...

on September 24, 2001, and was serviced to

contemporary hit radio Contemporary hit radio (also known as CHR, contemporary hits, hit list, current hits, hit music, top 40, or pop radio) is a radio format that is common in many countries that focuses on playing current and recurrent popular music as determined by ...

the following day. In Australia, a CD single was released on October 22, 2001, while in the United Kingdom, a CD single was issued on March 11, 2002.

Composition

"Standing Still" is a folk-pop song. According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes, the song is written in the

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of D major and has a moderately fast tempo of 124 beats per minute, in common time. The album version of the song is four minutes and 30 seconds long.

Critical reception

Taylor called "Standing Still" a "jaunty but sophisticated outing, rich in its evolving textures and guitar-fueled folk-pop base".

Chart performance

"Standing Still" first charted on the US ''Billboard''

on November 17, 2001, debuting at number 71. After 13 weeks, on the issue of February 16, 2002, it reached its peak of number 25, and it spent a total of 20 weeks in the top 100. It charted the highest on the ''Billboard'' Adult Top 40, rising to number three on February 2, 2002, and it peaked inside the top 20 on the ''Billboard'' Adult Alternative Songs and Adult Contemporary listings. In addition, it reached number 22 on the ''Billboard''

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 ...

. At the end of 2002, ''Billboard'' ranked the track at number 87 on their year-end chart. The song also found success internationally. In Australia, it debuted at number 39 on the

ARIA Singles Chart The ARIA Charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling songs and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA became the offici ...

on November 4, 2001. Two weeks later, it peaked at number 32 and spent eight more nonconsecutive weeks in the top 50. On November 18, 2001, "Standing Still" entered the New Zealand Singles Chart at number 40, reaching its peak of number seven on January 20 and February 10, 2002. It stayed on the listing for 22 weeks and went on to become New Zealand's 40th-most-successful hit of 2002. In Europe, the song peaked at number 32 on the

Dutch Top 40 The Dutch Top 40 ( nl, Nederlandse Top 40) is a weekly music chart compiled by ''Stichting Nederlandse Top 40''. It started as a radio program titled "Veronica Top 40", on the offshore station Radio Veronica in 1965. It remained "The Veronica ...

, number 11 on Flanders' Ultratip Bubbling Under chart, and number 83 on the UK Singles Chart.

Track listings

US 7-inch single :A. "Standing Still" – 4:29 :B. "Grey Matter" (live) – 4:35 European and Australian CD single # "Standing Still" – 4:30 # "A Long Slow Slide" (live) – 3:50 # "Stephenville, TX" (live) – 4:07

Credits and personnel

Credits are taken from the European CD single liner notes. Studios * Recorded at Ocean Way Nashville, Emerald Entertainment, and the Sound Kitchen (Nashville, Tennessee) * Mixed at Emerald Entertainment (Nashville, Tennessee) * Mastered at the Mastering Lab (

Hollywood Hollywood usually refers to: * Hollywood, Los Angeles, a neighborhood in California * Hollywood, a metonym for the cinema of the United States Hollywood may also refer to: Places United States * Hollywood District (disambiguation) * Hollywood, ...

, California, US) Personnel * Jewel Kilcher – lyrics, music, vocals, production * Rick Nowels – music * John Willis – acoustic guitar * Dann Huff – electric guitar, production * Jerry McPherson – electric guitar * Jimmie Sloas – bass * Chris McHugh – drums *

Eric Darken Eric A. Darken is an American percussionist, composer, and programmer. Biography Drawing inspiration from his grandfather, a band leader. Darken began playing drums at age 12, and played timpani and mallets in high school. Darken attended ...

– percussion * Tim Akers – keyboards * Jeff Balding – recording and mixing *

Doug Sax Doug Lionel Sax (April 26, 1936 – April 2, 2015) was an American mastering engineer from Los Angeles, California. He mastered three of The Doors' albums, including their 1967 debut; six of Pink Floyd's albums, including ''The Wall''; Ray Charles ...

– mastering * Robert Hadley – mastering * Lenedra Carroll – executive production * Ron Shapiro – executive production * Chad Farmer – art direction and design * Lambesis Agency – art direction and design * Ellen von Unwerth – photography

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2001 singles 2001 songs Atlantic Records singles Jewel (singer) songs Music videos directed by Darren Grant Song recordings produced by Dann Huff Songs written by Jewel (singer) Songs written by Rick Nowels