Falling into You (song)

Background

Rick Nowels initially offered the song to Belinda Carlisle for her album A Woman & a Man (1996). Although Carlisle recorded a demo, the track was rejected by her then‑manager Miles Copeland III. Nowels later played Carlisle's demo for Dion, which led to the song being considered for her album.^[2]

In her authorized biography Celine Dion: For Keeps, Dion recalled that she was initially dissatisfied with the first recording of "Falling into You". She felt that the arrangement was too forceful and that her vocal delivery did not reflect the subtlety she believed the song required. Although the production team and those around her were content with the result, Dion expressed her concerns to René Angélil, who encouraged her to articulate the changes she envisioned. After discussing her ideas with the director and engineer, the song was re-recorded with a gentler approach that aligned more closely with her interpretation. Dion later described the experience as an important moment in her artistic development, noting that the song worked well on the album but was not suited to large live performances because of its delicate character.^[3]

Critical reception

AllMusic senior editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine named "Falling into You" as one of the standouts on the album.^[4] Caroline Sullivan from The Guardian wrote that "only the autumnal 'Falling into You' and the hint-of-reggae (really) 'Make You Happy' diverge from the mainstream".^[5] Pan-European magazine Music & Media described the track as "a slow lullaby of a ballad, punctuated in the intro and outtro by Spanish guitars, martial sounding drum rolls and a 'Careless Whisper' type sax riff".^[6] A reviewer from Music Week awarded it five out of five, calling it "a restrained, angelically sung ballad, quite possibly Dion's most beautiful yet".^[7] In a retrospective review, Pip Ellwood-Hughes from Entertainment Focus described it as "gorgeous".^[8] Christopher Smith from TalkAboutPopMusic wrote that it is "sultry and schmoozy with only a hint of saxophone in the latter stages that add to the mood and sexiness of this down-tempo pop-ballad".^[9]

Music video

The music video for the song was directed by British director Nigel Dick and filmed between 18–19 January 1996 in Gorbio, France. It premiered in February 1996. The narrative is set in a small village, where Dion portrays a woman who is part of a group of circus performers. She receives flowers delivered by a young boy, evidently sent by a man, with a card reading "Bonne chance (Good luck)". Holding the bouquet, she begins to sing before sitting at a dressing table, where a clown helps her put on a long-haired wig. In the evening, the circus performs before a crowd. Various acts appear while Dion stands against a stone wall, singing with a visibly somber expression. A fire artist then takes the stage, and Dion assists him by handing him torches during his act. In one moment, she offers him a torch, but he chooses another instead. Dion later runs off into the night and drives away. The video concludes with her driving along a winding mountainside road in daylight, where she meets a motorcyclist who appears to be waiting for her. They embrace before the video ends. It was uploaded to YouTube in 2011 and had more than 11,700,000 views by August 2020.^[10] In March 2021, the video was remastered in HD to mark the 25th anniversary of the album's release.

Formats and track listing

• European CD and UK cassette single

1. "Falling into You" – 4:18
2. "I Don't Know" – 4:38

• French CD single

1. "Falling into You" – 4:18
2. "Le ballet" – 4:23

• Australian cassette and CD single; European 12-inch and CD single; UK CD single #1

1. "Falling into You" – 4:18
2. "I Don't Know" – 4:38
3. "Le ballet" – 4:23

• UK CD single #2

1. "Falling into You" – 4:17
2. "If That's What It Takes" – 4:09
3. "The Colour of My Love" – 3:23

Personnel

• Celine Dion – vocals
• Rick Nowels – composer, producer, gut string guitar, keyboards
• Billy Steinberg – composer, producer
• Marie-Claire D'Ubaldo – composer, backing vocals
• David Boruff – saxophone
• Sheila E. – percussion
• Steve MacMillan – mixing
• Jamie Muhoberac – keyboards
• Steve Farris – cavaquinho
• Pete Lorimer – drum programming
• Chris Garcia – drum programming
• Charlie Clouser – drum programming
• Curt Bisquera – drums
• Paul Bushnell – bass
• Maria Vidal – backing vocals
• Paul Buckmaster – conductor, arrangements

Charts

Certifications

Release history