God Bless the Child (Shania Twain song)
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| “God Bless the Child” | |||||
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| Single by Shania Twain from the album The Woman in Me |
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| Released | October 29, 1996 | ||||
| Format | Radio single Maxi single 5" CD single 7" vinyl single |
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| Recorded | 1994 (Album Version) 1996 (Single Version) |
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| Genre | Country | ||||
| Length | 3:49 | ||||
| Label | Mercury Nashville | ||||
| Writer(s) | Robert Lange, Shania Twain |
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| Producer | Robert "Mutt" Lange | ||||
| Shania Twain singles chronology | |||||
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"God Bless the Child" is a song by Canadian singer Shania Twain. It was the eighth and final single released from her 1995 album The Woman in Me. The song was written by Twain and an extended version cowritten by Mutt Lange. The song became Twain's first single off The Woman in Me to not hit the top 40 at country radio. The original album version is more a poem than a song, done completely a cappella. For radio airplay, the song had to be expanded lyrically and musically. It was originally released to radio in October of 1996. "God Bless the Child" was included on Twain's Come on Over Tour usually accompanied by a local choir, but was not included on her 2004 Greatest Hits release. All singles sales from the United States were donated to Second Harvest/Kids Cafe, and from Canada to Breakfast for Learning. Twain performed the song at the 1996 Country Music Awards.
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[edit] Critical reception
Entertainment Weekly gave the song a fairly favorable review, giving it a B grade and saying "while her sentiments are pretty naive, her pipes sound plenty experienced" and that Twain gives "enough passion to make us temporarily forget her pinup looks".[1]
[edit] Music video
The music video for "God Bless the Child" was shot in Nashville, Tennessee and directed by Larry Jordan It was filmed on October 3, 1996 and debuted on October 26, 1996. The video features a choir singing along with Twain in a warehouse. Two versions of the video were released, one with the banjo included in the audio, another without. The video is available on Twain's DVD The Platinum Collection.
[edit] Chart performance
"God Bless the Child" debuted on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart the week of November 30, 1996 at number 74. The song spent 9 weeks on the chart and climbed to a peak position of number 48 on January 11, 1997, where it remained for one week. The single became Twain's second consecutive song from The Woman in Me to miss the top twenty. It did however, top the Country Singles Sales chart for one week. Despite failure at country radio, "God Bless the Child" became Twain's third appearance on the Billboard Hot 100 where it peaked at number 75. In Canada the song hit number-one for eight weeks. It was also her first single to make the Canadian Singles Chart.
[edit] Audio versions
- Album Version (1:30)
- Single Mix (With Banjo) (3:48)
- Single Mix (Without Banjo) / Alternate Version (3:48)
[edit] Charts
| Chart[2] | Peak position |
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| Canadian Singles Chart | 1 |
| Canada RPM Country Singles | 7 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks | 48 |
| U.S. Billboard Country Singles Sales | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 75 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Singles Sales | 50 |
[edit] Notes
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