You (Chris Young song)

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ReleasedSeptember 12, 2011 (2011-09-12)
Recorded2011
Length2:44
"You"
A black-and-white image of Young strumming a guitar. The artist's name and song title are superimposed in the center, colored yellow and blue respectively.
Single by Chris Young
from the album Neon
ReleasedSeptember 12, 2011 (2011-09-12)
Recorded2011
GenreCountry
Length2:44
LabelRCA Nashville
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)James Stroud
Chris Young singles chronology
"Tomorrow"
(2011)
"You"
(2011)
"Neon"
(2012)

"You" is a song co-written and recorded by American country music artist Chris Young. It was released in September 2011 as the second single from his third studio album Neon. Co-written with Luke Laird, the song is about a lover being told that her charm is the only thing that affects him the most. It received mixed reviews from critics who were critical of its lackluster hook and content similar to Blake Shelton's "Honey Bee" and Jason Aldean's "Big Green Tractor". "You" was Young's fifth consecutive number-one hit on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart. It also became his third Top 40 hit on the Hot 100, peaking at number 34. "You" was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), denoting sales of over one million units in the United States. It also garnered chart prominence in Canada, reaching number 66 on the Canadian Hot 100. The accompanying music video for the song, directed by Chris Hicky, was shot in black-and-white and shows Young as a gas station attendant attracting the attention of three different women in various colored clothing.

In this song, the narrator sings to his lover that no one else affects him the way she does. Young told Country Weekly that when meeting songwriter Luke Laird for the first time, Laird said, "let's just get a groove going and see what comes out." When they were finished, Young decided to call the song "You". Young decided to add lines about how the narrator's life "got a whole new direction" to make it more serious in tone. Both of them also called the song "simple and straightforward".[1]

The main chord pattern on the song is A-Fm7-Bm7-Bm7/E, which is performed three times on both verses followed by a Cm7-Cm7-Bm7-Bm7/E pattern at the end of each verse. The chorus also uses the original pattern four times before ending on an A chord.[1]

Critical reception

The song received mixed reviews from music critics. Billy Dukes of Taste of Country described the song as "more sensual than sexy", and stated that the chorus was the most memorable part of the song.[2] Kyle Ward of Roughstock gave the song a three-out-of-five star rating, stating that the song "does an OK job, it's clear that Young and co-writer Luke Laird intended [it] to be a charmer in the vein of Blake Shelton's 'Honey Bee' or Jason Aldean's 'Big Green Tractor', but it falls well short of [those] songs, in large part to a clumsy hook."[3] Reviewing the album, Jonathan Keefe of Slant Magazine felt that this song, along with "Old Love Feels New" and "I Can Take It From There", had content too similar to other country songs and lacked a "distinctive point of view."[4] In 2017, Billboard contributor Chuck Dauphin put "You" at number five on his top 10 list of Young's best songs.[5]

Music video

Commercial performance

References

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