Harman Patil (Editor)

Dare You to Move

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Released
  
March 2, 2004

Format
  
CD

Recorded
  
2000 (original), 2002 (single version)

Genre
  
Alternative rock, post-grunge, Christian rock

Length
  
4:07 (2000 Album Version) 4:09 (2003 Album Version) 4:05 (Alternative Rock Radio Edit)

Label
  
Columbia/re:think/Sparrow/Sony BMG/EMI CMG

"Dare You to Move" is a single by the alternative rock band Switchfoot from the band's fourth studio album, The Beautiful Letdown. The song was originally called "I Dare You to Move", and was on the album Learning to Breathe, but the band decided to remix it and put it on The Beautiful Letdown. The song received considerable radio airplay, and its accompanying music videos saw play on MTV, VH1, FUSE TV, and other mainstream channels. "Dare You to Move" was released to radio on March 2, 2004. It peaked at number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Switchfoot's second top twenty single, surpassing the success of their breakthrough single, "Meant to Live" although it was more successful internationally.

Contents

The song, which appears as the fifth track on The Beautiful Letdown was a long-lasting hit and was eventually certified gold in April 2005. The song received positive reviews from critics, and was ranked #73 on Rhapsody's list of the Top 100 Tracks of the Decade. "Dare You to Move" was co-produced by Charlie Peacock—who discovered Switchfoot and signed the band to its first record deal—and John Fields.

Song history

This song, written by Switchfoot singer/songwriter Jon Foreman, was originally produced solely by Charlie Peacock and recorded as the opening track for Switchfoot's 2000 album Learning to Breathe, and also appeared on the A Walk to Remember soundtrack, which featured several other Switchfoot songs. The song can be heard in season 1, episode 8 and in season 2, episode 5 of One Tree Hill as well as the documentary Warren Miller's Higher Ground.

Bassist Tim Foreman (Jon Foreman's brother) remarked that upon finishing the song, all the bandmembers knew that they had really created something powerful. Jon Foreman (primary songwriter) said that "sometimes it still can move him to tears, and that he's glad it got a second chance, (on The Beautiful Letdown)." The reason the band gave the song a rewrite was "that song hadn't lived its shelf life yet." In addition, "after having played it a couple years live, I feel like we've got a better grip of how we want it to be on a record," he said.

Foreman has called it "a defining song" for the band. "It's me talking to myself and I think a lot of times I feel stagnant and stuck in the same place," says Jon. "And 'Dare You to Move' is kind of a song for myself to get me up and get me moving and tackling a new part of life."

Musical Structure

The song is played in the key of E major, beginning with a jangling strummed guitar riff and a driving rocky chorus. The song has a basic structure consisting of an intro, verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus. Multiple versions of the song were released, varying slightly in dynamics and instrumental structure.

Music videos

There are two official music videos for this song. One depicts a man running against a large crowd of people. The other features a surfer who is being resuscitated on the beach while different parts of his life are shown. The second version of the video peaked at No. 2 on Vh1's Top 20 Countdown.

Track listings

UK CD Single
  1. "Dare You to Move"
  2. "Monday Comes Around"
  3. "Meant to Live" (Live)
UK 2-Cd Single
  • CD 1
    1. "Dare You to Move"
    2. "The Beautiful Letdown" (Live)
  • CD 2
    1. "Dare You to Move" (Album Version)
    2. "On Fire" (Live)
    3. "Gone" (Live)
    4. "Dare You to Move" — CD-ROM Video

    • Awards

    On 2005, the song won two Dove Awards: Rock/Contemporary Recorded Song of the Year and Short Form Music Video of the Year, at the 36th GMA Dove Awards. It was also nominated for Song of the Year.

    Song versions

    The song has five recorded versions that have appeared on soundtracks, CDs, and singles:

  • The Learning to Breathe version, which was released in 2000. It is characterized by quieter, less driven instrumentation. It also appears on the A Walk to Remember soundtrack single.
  • The Beautiful Letdown album version, which was released in 2003. It featured a brand new mix of the song (heavier electric guitars) and stronger vocals from Jon Foreman, ultimately resulting in a more complete and emphatic ending. Also, the title was changed to "Dare You to Move", dropping the "I" from the original title.
  • A finalized radio-edit remix done in 2004, which slightly tweaked the Beautiful Letdown album version to allow for heavier drum and electric guitar accompaniment throughout the entire song. This is the version which has been featured on most alternative rock music stations while the original The Beautiful Letdown album version was featured on Top 40 and Hot AC music stations. It is also the same version that is heard in the first version music video for this song. In 2007, it was made available for purchase on the iTunes-exclusive deluxe edition of The Beautiful Letdown.
  • There is also a live version of the song on the exclusive iTunes EP - Live EP, which was recorded in San Diego.
  • The Japanese version of the album Nothing Is Sound has an alternate version of "Dare You to Move" which is longer than the original, and features different instrumentation and arrangements from the previous versions.

    • References

    Dare You to Move Wikipedia
    (Text) CC BY-SA