Ordinary People (John Legend song)

"Ordinary People" is a song by American recording artist John Legend. It was written and produced by Legend and will.i.am for his debut album Get Lifted (2004). It was released as the album's second single and later certified gold by the RIAA. Critics were positive towards the song, praising it for its raw emotion and simplicity. At the 48th Annual Grammy Awards "Ordinary People" received three nominations for Song of the Year, Best R&B Song and Best Male R&B Vocal Performance, ultimately winning the latter. The song appears on Now 19.

"Ordinary People"
Single by John Legend
from the album Get Lifted
ReleasedApril 7, 2005
Recorded2004
Genre
Length4:41
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
John Legend singles chronology
"Used to Love U"
(2004)		 "Ordinary People"
(2005)		 "Number One"
(2005)
Music video
"Ordinary People" on YouTube

Music video

The music video for "Ordinary People", directed by Chris Milk and Legend's then-label boss Kanye West, features Legend playing a grand piano in an all-white space, while couples and families fight and reconcile around and in front of the piano. For the final minute of the video, Legend is joined by a string section and a harmonica (played offscreen). Legend walks to and from the piano with a glass of water, as a short bookending to the video proper.

Composition

The main chord progression is derived from the introduction to Stevie Wonder's "My Cherie Amour", transposed to the key of F Major. This is punctuated in the music video version, when the string section and harmonica are brought in at the last chorus of the song.

The song's lyrical themes include contrast, contradiction, guilt, doubt and fear.

Legend sings about how people make errors of judgment in relationships ("I know I misbehaved/And you've made your mistakes/And we both still got room left to grow."), and that fighting and making up in the end is a regular obstacle: "And though love sometimes hurts/I still put you first/And we'll make this thing work/But I think we should take it slow." The lyrics include parallel structure to address the common ups-and-downs of maintaining a relationship: "Maybe we'll live and learn/Maybe we'll crash and burn/Maybe you'll stay/Maybe you'll leave/Maybe you'll return/Maybe another fight/Maybe we won't survive/Maybe we'll grow, we never know." The song's title itself is taken from its chorus, "We're just ordinary people/We don't know which way to go/'Cause we're ordinary people/Maybe we should take it slow."

Legend explained the song's lyrical content in the book Chicken Soup For the Soul: The Story Behind The Song: "The idea for the song is that relationships are difficult and the outcome uncertain. If a relationship is going to work, it will require compromise and, even then, it is not always going to end the way you want it to. No specific experience in my life led me to the lyrics for this song, although my parents were married twice to each other and divorced twice from each other. Their relationship is, of course, one of my reference points, but I didn't write this to be autobiographical or biographical. It is just a statement about relationships and my view on them."[1]

Reception

Critics were overwhelmingly positive towards "Ordinary People", many of whom complimented the song's juxtaposition of simple stark piano and John Legend's vocal range. Entertainment Weekly noted "Ordinary People" as being both "the simplest" and "perhaps the most perfectly realized song" of the Get Lifted album, describing it as "an exquisite ballad" that is "both immediately familiar and intensely exotic."[2] A review from The Guardian called the song "a real gem", and lauded further: "[I]t's not only sonically arresting but lyrically reflective. Refusing to tie up loose ends, Legend is ambivalent about the relationship described in the song, admitting that there's 'no fairy-tale conclusion'. Good for him."[3] PopMatters was favorable towards the single, stating it "is representative of true talent."[4] Jonathan Forgang, reviewing for Stylus magazine, stated: "'Ordinary People,' the first of the piano and voice ballads, is a bit more derivative than the earlier tracks but expertly performed. Legend's voice has a naked quality to it, warm and full without any of the drawbacks of virtuosity."[5] The Times thought the song was full of "remorseful reflection" and said that "the album as a whole is a stunning advertisement for the less-is-more, from-the-soul approach, and Legend’s extraordinary voice (alternately angelic keen and cracked rasp) and piano-playing are equalled in quality by the depth of his songs."[6]

On 14 April 2012, the song was performed on BBC's The Voice UK by semi-finalist Jaz Ellington as a second song (requested by Jessie J), resulting in some members of the UK public buying the track on iTunes. The song re-entered the Official UK Top 40 at number 27 on 15 April,[7] and the following week climbed to number 4.[8]

Cover versions

Personnel
  • Produced by John Legend
  • Engineered by Anthony Kilhoffer, Andy Manganello and Michael Peters
  • Assistant engineers: Mike Eleopoulos, Pablo Arraya and Val Brathwaite
  • Mixed by Manny Marroquin at Larrabee Studios, LA
  • Assistant mix engineer: Jared Robbins
  • Vocals and piano by John Legend

Recorded at Record Plant, LA and Sony Music Studios

Track listing

Charts and certifications

Release history
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States November 29, 2004 (2004-11-29) Urban contemporary radio Columbia [30]

References
  1. "Ordinary People by John Legend Songfacts". songfacts.com.
  2. "Get Lifted - EW.com". ew.com.
  3. Caroline Sullivan (10 December 2004). "CD: John Legend, Get Lifted". the Guardian.
  4. "Music Reviews, Features, Essays, News, Columns, Blogs, MP3s and Videos - PopMatters". PopMatters.
  5. "John Legend - Get Lifted - Review - Stylus Magazine". stylusmagazine.com.
  6. Cairns, Dan (2 January 2005). "John Legend: Get Lifted" – via www.thetimes.co.uk.
  7. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  8. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  9. Amazon.co.uk (6 June 2005). "Ordinary People: John Legend: Amazon.co.uk: Music". Amazon. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
  10. Juno Records (6 June 2005). "Ordinary People (CD): John Legend: Juno Records". Juno.co.uk. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
  11. Juno Records (6 June 2005). "Ordinary People (12"): John Legend: Juno Records". Juno.co.uk. Retrieved 22 April 2012.
  12. "The ARIA Report: Issue 811 (Week Commencing 12 September 2005)" ARIA Top 100 Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  13. "Issue 814" ARIA Top 40 Urban Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved March 5, 2022.
  14. "Nederlandse Top 40 – John Legend" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
  15. "John Legend – Ordinary People" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved 2020-05-18.
  16. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  17. "John Legend Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
  18. "John Legend Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved 2013-11-30.
  19. "Chart Track: Week 16, 2012". Irish Singles Chart.
  20. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  21. "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
  22. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
  23. "The Official UK Singles Chart 2005" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  24. "Billboard Top 100 – 2005". billboardtop100of.com. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  25. "Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs – Year-End 2005". Billboard. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  26. "End of Year 2012" (PDF). UKChartsPlus. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  27. "ARIA Charts – Accreditations – 2023 Singles" (PDF). Australian Recording Industry Association. Retrieved May 5, 2023.
  28. "British single certifications – John Legend – Ordinary People". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved April 10, 2022.
  29. "American single certifications – John Legend – Ordinary People". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
  30. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1583. November 26, 2004. p. 21. Retrieved July 9, 2022.
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