Bartender (Lady Antebellum song)

"Bartender" is a song written and recorded by American country music trio Lady Antebellum. Written by group members Dave Haywood, Charles Kelley, and Hillary Scott along with Rodney Clawson, and co-produced with Nathan Chapman, the song was released to country radio by Capitol Nashville on May 12, 2014, as the lead single from the group's sixth studio album, 747, and it features lead vocals from Scott.[1] It was released to iTunes the following week, on May 19, 2014. In its first week at radio, "Bartender" was the second most-added song of the week (with 72), behind "Small Town Throwdown" by Brantley Gilbert featuring Justin Moore and Thomas Rhett.[2]

"Bartender"
Single by Lady Antebellum
from the album 747
ReleasedMay 19, 2014 (2014-05-19)
Genre
Length3:18
LabelCapitol Nashville
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Lady Antebellum singles chronology
"Compass"
(2013)		 "Bartender"
(2014)		 "Freestyle"
(2014)

Music video

The music video was directed by Shane Drake and premiered on the Today Show on June 19, 2014. It co-stars model Kate Upton and Veep/Arrested Development actor Tony Hale.[3]

Synopsis

The video begins with a woman (Upton) sitting in front of a vanity, receiving a phone call from a friend (Scott). The friend invites her to go out to a bar together with some friends to "forget his name."

At the bar they receive and go through many rounds challenges by the bartender (Hale). They beat the bartender and celebrate. There are cuts to performance scenes of the band during the video.

Live performances

Lady Antebellum debuted the song during the American Idol season thirteen finale on May 21, 2014.[4] Two days later on the 23, they performed the song on Good Morning America. They have also performed "Bartender" on the Late Show with David Letterman and the 2014 CMT Music Awards on June 4, 2014. They performed "Bartender" on CMA Festival: Country's Night on August 5, 2014. On September 30, 2014, the trio performed the song on the Today Show.

Critical reception

Matt Bjorke of Roughstock rated the song four stars out of five and spoke positively of the "fresh, new sound" the group is exploring. "The sing-song-y nature of ['Bartender's bridge and chorus] give the song some bite and make it the kind of song that should've always followed up 'Need You Now'" said Bjorke. "'Bartender' starts a new and exciting chapter in Lady Antebellum's career and gives us something to really look forward to with their follow-up to last year's Golden".[5] Melinda Newman of HitFix placed "Bartender" at number 4 (of 21) on the website's Top Summer Songs of 2014, writing that "the upbeat melody and the time-honored tradition of drinking to forget, not to mention the banjo at the end, make this tune too much fun to be a downer".[6]

Chart performance

"Bartender" debuted at No. 43 on the Billboard Country Airplay chart for the week ending May 31, 2014, soon reaching the top spot. It also debuted at No. 40 on Billboard Adult Pop Songs in November, their first song to manage crossing over to adult contemporary radio since "Just a Kiss" and reaching No. 25 to date. The song was certified Gold by the RIAA on September 11, 2014 and was certified Platinum on September 23, 2014.[7] The song reached its millionth sales mark in the US in November 2014,[8] and as of January 2015, it has sold 1,118,000 downloads.[9] In Canada, the song was also certified Platinum, indicating digital downloads in excess of 80,000 units.[10]

Charts and certifications

Release history
Country Date Format Ref.
United States May 12, 2014 Country radio [1]
Canada May 19, 2014 Digital download [21]
United States [22]
October 13, 2014 Hot adult contemporary [23]

References
  1. "Lady A Releases "Bartender" for 1st Single From Upcoming Album!". Lady Antebellum. Archived from the original on 13 May 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2014.
  2. Canton, Brian. "Brantley Gilbert, Lady Antebellum Erupt at Country Radio". Headline Planet. Cantortainment Company.
  3. "Watch: Lady Antebellum's video for 'Bartender' preimeres on Today". NBC "Today". Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  4. "Lady Antebellum Perform Bartender on American idol Finale". US 99.5. Archived from the original on October 24, 2014. Retrieved June 19, 2014.
  5. Bjorke, Matt. "Single Review: Lady Antebellum - Bartender". Roughstock. Cheri Media. Archived from the original on 20 May 2014. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  6. Newman, Melinda. "HitFix's Summer Music Preview - "Bartender"". HitFix. Retrieved 30 May 2014.
  7. "American single certifications – Lady Antebellum – Bartender". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
  8. Paul Grein (November 13, 2014). "Ariana Grande Nabs Her Fourth Top 10 Hit". Yahoo! Music.
  9. Matt Bjorke (January 21, 2015). "Country Music's Top 30 Digital Singles: Week of January 21, 2015". Roughstock. Sales figures given here
  10. "Canadian single certifications – Lady Antebellum – Bartender". Music Canada. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  11. "Lady Antebellum Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard.
  12. "Lady Antebellum Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard.
  13. "Lady Antebellum Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  14. "Lady Antebellum Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard.
  15. "Lady Antebellum Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
  16. "Lady Antebellum Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard.
  17. "Best of 2014: Canadian Hot 100". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
  18. "Best of 2014: Hot 100 Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
  19. "Best of 2014: Country Airplay". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
  20. "Best of 2014: Hot Country Songs". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2014.
  21. "Bartender - Single by Lady Antebellum". iTunes Store CAN. Apple Inc.
  22. "Bartender - Single by Lady Antebellum". iTunes Store US. Apple Inc. Archived from the original on 2014-07-01.
  23. "Hot/Modern/AC Future Releases". All Access Media Group. Archived from the original on 13 October 2014. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
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