2003 | #11 (U.K.), #17 (Austria), #20 (Germany)
The song with the ridiculously long title was released as the fourth international single from Up! It performed respectably in some markets, but did not match the success of the previous singles from the project.
It also reaffirmed Twain’s affinity for parentheses, which apparently ranked as her second-favorite punctuation mark behind only the exclamation point.
“Thank You Baby!” retains many of the usual qualities of a great Shania Twain single. Twain’s vocal delivery brings a sense of warmth and genuineness to the lyric, which details a woman’s search for love, as well as the deep satisfaction of finally having found it.
Where it falters is in its lack of an immediately accessible, memorable hook. The arrangement isn’t as crisp or fresh-sounding as usual, and just barely escapes sounding dated. Likewise, the melody doesn’t quite match the sonic stickiness of Twain’s past efforts, which may be one reason
why the song didn’t match the chart impact of its predecessors.
It’s a generally enjoyable effort, but not as satisfying as the delicious pop confections that preceded and succeeded it.
Written by Robert John “Mutt” Lange and Shania Twain
Grade: B
Next: She’s Not Just a Pretty Face
Previous: Forever and For Always
This is actually my favorite single from the album lol, though I still think there was a few more hits left that they could’ve pushed out (I Ain’t Going Down).
Love the strings on the red version. I wish the rest of the song lived up to it.
Up! was just loaded with potential hit singles, it seemed. I would have loved to see “Nah!,” “(Wanna Get to Know You) That Good!” or “In My Car (I’ll Be the Driver)” get a go-round at radio.
Kevin, just out of curiousity, where do you feel the song’s weaknesses primarily lie? In the lyrics? The melody? I’m interested to hear your take.
“It also reaffirmed Twain’s affinity for parentheses, which apparently ranked as her second-favorite punctuation mark behind only the exclamation point.”
Hahaha!
Ben’s comment just hit 3 of the best songs on a limited-appeal album. I always felt this album was a hot mess of overzealous marketing. Maybe it’s because Twain and Lange concentrated so much of their energy on the European market, and that could also explain why the singles performed so poorly on the Country and U.S. charts. I still say it’s because the songs themselves – such as this dewy-eyed nugget – are all forgettable.
I disagree. I think that Up! was her strongest album by far, and that having the songs presented in two different ways made for a fascinating listen.
I wouldn’t undo any of the singles choices they made, necessarily. I wish they’d actively promoted “When You Kiss Me” to country radio, since CMT was playing the video anyway. And I wish they’d gone a few more singles deep. Only eight of nineteen songs, when they’d done eight of twelve and twelve of sixteen in the past, seemed too few. And only five to country radio, despite them being supportive of the project.
I love “Thank You Baby!” because of the strings. I think the chorus needed another line or two. She sings it well, though.
YES, I think you nailed it. It needs a better chorus. I enjoy the song, but generally consider it the weakest single released from Up!, which is still overall my favorite Shania Twain album.
The video is interesting though.
Always had a soft spot for this one; the dreamy sound reminds me of Donkey Kong Country 3.
I think Up! is her most interesting album from a sonic standpoint, but I do consider Come On Over superior. You can listen to Up! start-to-finish without skipping anything (not the case for either of the other two big albums), but it feels all so light to me that none of it really calls me back. The hooks just feel a little less witty and punchy. So I guess I agree with J.R. to an extent, though I do still like the album overall.
Always had a soft spot for this one; the dreamy sound reminds me of Donkey Kong Country 3.
I do think Up! is her most interesting album from a sonic standpoint, and could be her strongest overall. I can listen to it start-to-finish without skipping anything, which I really can’t do with The Woman In Me or Come On Over. On the other hand, Up!‘s high points aren’t nearly as high for me – “Forever and For Always” is the closest I think you get to an “essential” Shania Twain cut, where the other two have at least three apiece. The hooks just feel a little less witty and punchy to me overall, making the whole thing feel like good filler. So I guess I agree with J.R. and Kevin/Ben in different ways.