Work (Jimmy Eat World song)
| "Work" | |||||||||||
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| Single by Jimmy Eat World | |||||||||||
| from the album Futures | |||||||||||
| Released | January 2005 | ||||||||||
| Format | CD | ||||||||||
| Recorded | 2004 | ||||||||||
| Genre | Alternative rock | ||||||||||
| Length | 3:23 | ||||||||||
| Label | Interscope | ||||||||||
| Writer(s) | Jim Adkins, Rick Burch, Zach Lind, Tom Linton, | ||||||||||
| Producer(s) | Gil Norton | ||||||||||
| Jimmy Eat World singles chronology | |||||||||||
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"Work" is a song by Jimmy Eat World from their 2004 album, Futures. It was the second single released from that album. The song was written by Jim Adkins and features backing vocals by Liz Phair. "Work" was released to radio on December 7, 2004.
"Work" received positive reviews from critics, and it appeared on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart and the UK Singles Chart. A music video was released for the song; it featured interviews with high school students. Since the song's release, Jimmy Eat World have included it in their live performances.
"Work" was written by Jimmy Eat World's frontman, Jim Adkins. According to Adkins, "'Work' is about doing something you know you shouldn't be doing ... It's about walking into an unhealthy situation, on purpose. Which could mean it's about an interoffice romance."
Liz Phair agreed to sing backing vocals on the song after the band played it for her. Adkins later said, "We're all fans of [Phair's album Exile in Guyville], so maybe a bit of a crush thing was happening. She definitely brings the sexiness. An unquantifiable sexiness, sure, but she definitely brings it. She was super cool to work with. 'Work' sounded like something she would sing, so we hunted her down through people we knew in Los Angeles. We showed her the song, she really liked it, so she came down and sang on it."
"Work" received praise from music critics. It has been called a "classic" and has also been described as "a song tailor-made for teenage runaway fantasies." Tim Sendra of Allmusic noted that the song "display[s] the sweetly melodic side of the band." However, The Trades' Tony Pascarella called it "a more emo-geared track that stays shrouded on the dark side of Jimmy Eat World." Carrie Pierce of The Battalion wrote: "The gem of [Futures] is 'Work,' a catchy song featuring backup vocals by Liz Phair. It's too bad that you can barely hear Phair over the guitar riffs. The lyrics make up for this flaw. Though not as deep and brooding as other tracks, 'Work' will replay in your head."
"Work" was the second single from the 2004 album Futures. In the U.S., it stayed on the Billboard Alternative Songs chart for 21 weeks, peaking at number six on March 19, 2005. The song made two appearances on the UK Singles Chart and peaked at number 49 on April 9, 2005.
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