"When I'm Gone" is the first single from

Simple Plan Simple Plan is a Canadian rock band from Montreal, Quebec, formed in 1999. The band's lineup consists of Pierre Bouvier (lead vocals, studio bass guitar), Chuck Comeau (drums), Jeff Stinco (lead guitar), and Sébastien Lefebvre (rhythm guita ...

's self-titled third studio album, ''

''. It was released via

iTunes iTunes () is a software program that acts as a media player, media library, mobile device management utility, and the client app for the iTunes Store. Developed by Apple Inc., it is used to purchase, play, download, and organize digital mul ...

and lala.com on October 29, 2007, in conjunction with a live webchat from the band.

History

A 25-second preview of the song was premiered on October 24, 2007 on simpleplan.com. The full song was premiered on simpleplan.com on October 29, 2007. It was done so in conjunction with a

webchat A web chat is a system that allows users to communicate in real-time using easily accessible web interfaces. It is a type of Internet online chat distinguished by its simplicity and accessibility to users who do not wish to take the time to inst ...

with the band members, who answered fan questions during the chat. The song was made available on

the same day and the album was available for preorder on lala.com the following day (with a download of the single immediately available).

Music video

The band flew to Los Angeles on November 8, 2007 and filmed the video. It was filmed on

Sunset Blvd Sunset Boulevard is a boulevard in the central and western part of Los Angeles, California, that stretches from the Pacific Coast Highway in Pacific Palisades east to Figueroa Street in Downtown Los Angeles. It is a major thoroughfare in t ...

and then in a soundstage outside North Hollywood. Perez Hilton filmed a cameo. A 40-second pre-production preview of the video was aired on '' TRL'' and added to Simple Plan's website on November 6, 2007. The video was premiered on MTV.com on December 10, 2007, and

MuchMusic Much (an abbreviation for its full name MuchMusic) is a Canadian English language specialty channel owned by BCE Inc. through its Bell Media subsidiary that airs programming aimed at teenagers and young adults. MuchMusic launched on August 31 ...

on December 11. Frank Borin and the band directed the video. The music video has been available through the band's official channel on YouTube since December 13, 2007 and has since gotten over 17 million views as of December 2013 The music video is about a young woman, played by Zoe Myers, who drives around town to cope with her recent breakup with a former lover, played by Bouvier. She has not got over him, which makes her see him everywhere she goes. In the end, she freaks out and calls Bouvier. Bouvier sees who is calling and ignores the call and continues to enjoy his bottle of beer. Scenes with the band playing against a black backdrop are shown throughout the video.

Reception

The song received a lot of airplay in 2007, making it the most successful single from the album. The song also received positive reviews from critics. '' Rolling Stone'' called it "a seize-the-day anthem with a cathartic refrain". '' Entertainment Weekly'' in their review of the album recommended downloading "When I'm Gone".

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Track listing

References

{{Authority control 2007 singles Simple Plan songs Songs written by Danja (record producer) Song recordings produced by Danja (record producer) Songs written by Pierre Bouvier Songs written by Chuck Comeau Songs written by Arnold Lanni 2007 songs Lava Records singles Atlantic Records singles