Released February 7, 2006 Length 3:31 | Genre Country Label Maverick | |
Writer(s) Billy Austin
Jennifer Hanson Producer(s) Michelle Branch
John Shanks | ||
"Leave the Pieces" is a song written by Jennifer Hanson and Billy Austin, and recorded by American country music duo The Wreckers for their debut album Stand Still, Look Pretty for which it served as lead single with a February 7, 2006 release.
Contents
The single entered the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 at number 68,: peaking at number 34 on the Hot 100, "Leave the Pieces" rose as high as number 1 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart, the first track by a first-time charting duo to top the Billboard country music chart since 1991, and the first by a female duo since 1953. (The Wreckers had previously appeared on the Billboard Hot 100 with "I'm Feeling You" a collaborative single with Santana). Branch said of the song's success, "To see our hard work in getting this project off the ground result in my first number-one as an artist could not be more meaningful", while Jessica Harp said "It's an amazing feeling to have our debut single go number one, especially getting to share it with my dear friend. The fact that we've achieved such success is something I can't even comprehend yet. I just know that the stars have aligned, and it feels good to be a Wrecker." ("Leave the Pieces" was not actually the Wreckers' debut single: apart from their Santana collaboration "I'm Feeling You" in 2005 the Wreckers had that year had a single release with "The Good Kind" which had bubbled under the Hot 100 with a number 115 peak.)
"Leave the Pieces" was used in the episode "Homecoming and Coming Home" of Hart of Dixie. On April 3, 2012, Michelle Branch performed "Leave the Pieces" in LA with Kelly Clarkson as part of Clarkson's 'Stronger' tour. The song has sold 1,034,000 copies as of April 2013.
Reception
In December 2006, The Wreckers were nominated for a Grammy Award for "Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal" for "Leave the Pieces."
Music video
A music video was released for the song, directed by Trey Fanjoy. The video features a girl (played by Harp) who is leaving her boyfriend (played by actor Nick Steele), because he is on the fence about their relationship. Harp packs all her clothes and her friend, played by Branch, comes and picks her up. The video includes shots of the women performing on a porch and in/beside an old car, and it topped CMT's Top Twenty Countdown for two consecutive weeks in August 2006.
Formats and track listings
- "Leave the Pieces" (Pop Edit)
- "My, Oh My" (Demo Version)
- "Stand Still, Look Pretty"
Cover versions
Holly Tucker and The Swon Brothers performed the song on The Voice (U.S. season 4) during the elimination episode of the 5th week of the live shows.
Hanna Ashbrook and Summer Schappell covered the song on The Voice (U.S. season 9) during the Battles round. Their coach, Gwen Stefani, eventually chose Schappell to move on to the next round of the competition.
Chart performance
The song debuted on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart at #53 for the week of April 15, 2006.