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Just Like a Pill

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"Just Like a Pill" is a song by American singer Pink. It was written by Pink and Dallas Austin and produced by Austin for the singer's second studio album, Missundaztood. The lyrics of the song deal with getting out of painful relationships with a subtheme about drug abuse.[3]

"Just Like a Pill"
Single by Pink
from the album Missundaztood
B-side"M!ssundaztood"
ReleasedJune 10, 2002 (2002-06-10)
StudioPinetree (Miami Beach, Florida)
GenrePop rock[1][2]
Length3:57
LabelArista
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)Dallas Austin
Pink singles chronology
"Don't Let Me Get Me"
(2002) 		"Just Like a Pill"
(2002) 		"Family Portrait"
(2002)
Music video
"Just like a Pill" on YouTube

The song was released worldwide as the third single from Missundaztood in June 2002 and was a commercial success, peaking at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. It also performed well internationally, reaching number one on the UK Singles Chart and peaking within the top 10 in 12 additional countries.

Background and composition

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"Just like a Pill" was written by Pink and Dallas Austin, who also produced and arranged the song.[4] Pink said in an interview that the song shows "part of who I am", referring to her documented problems with drugs.[5]

"Just like a Pill" is set in the key of A major with a moderate pop-rock tempo in common time.[6] The song follows a chord progression of A5–F♯m–D5–E5, and Pink's vocals span from E3 to C♯5.[6][7]

Reception

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Critical response

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The song was lauded by contemporary music critics. NME called it "the third best track off her killer last album".[8] Drowned In Sound's Robert Luckett commented that it is "a fascinating record...this is a record with a[n] edge, a kind of pot boiling over at any moment, ready to go off at any time vibe." He also wrote "it obeys the pop industry's well-dusted rules for a hit."[9] Stylus Magazine's Todd Burns, in his review of the album, compared "Just like a Pill" to the other singles from the album, "Don't Let Me Get Me" and "Get the Party Started", writing "The guitars... sound much more integrated into the work and the overall song works far better."[10]

The song was shortlisted by Digital Spy as a nominee for the best single of 2002, finishing third in the vote to Red Hot Chili Peppers' "By the Way" and Liberty X's "Just a Little".[11]

Chart performance

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In the UK, the song scored Pink her second number-one single in that country, whilst peaking at number two in Austria, Ireland and New Zealand, and within the top 10 in many countries across the world including Sweden, the Netherlands, Norway and Belgium. It peaked at number eight on the Billboard Hot 100.[12] In Australia, the song was a radio-only single in hopes of rising album sales. Although it was a number-one radio hit, a physical release never eventuated; however, it did appear as the B-side to the Australian release of "Family Portrait".[13]

Music video

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The video for "Just like a Pill" was directed by Francis Lawrence for LaFace Records.[14] The video is considerably different from Pink's previous videos. "Get the Party Started" and "Don't Let Me Get Me" were lighter in nature than the dark atmosphere of "Just like a Pill", which featured Pink wearing black outfits and wearing black hair. Commenting on the different style of video, Pink said: "This one's very dark and artsy, and I have black hair, which is very fun. I loved it. It's another part that I haven't concentrated on before."[15]

In the first scene, Pink lies on the floor. In the chorus she sings in front of her band. She is also featured in another scene with white rabbits around her in a room, and in another scene, she is seen with an elephant. There are also scenes with Pink singing in front of and amongst various people. In the latter half of the video, she runs in a hall whilst lip-synching the song, before disappearing into a bright doorway atop a staircase at the conclusion of the video.[14]

After the elephant scene, Pink decided to stop using animals for her videos. In an interview, she explained: "This poor elephant...a huge elephant, it's so cute, and I could see how painful it was for it to get down on its hands and knees, ... I didn't like it. I won't do that again. [...] No more animals."[15]

Track listings

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Credits and personnel

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Credits are taken from the Missundaztood album booklet.[21]

Studios

Personnel

  • Pink – writing, vocals, background vocals
  • Dallas Austin – writing, production, arrangement
  • Carlton Lynn – recording
  • Doug Harms – recording assistant
  • Kevin "KD" Davis – mixing
  • Rick Sheppard – MIDI and sound design
  • Herb Powers Jr. – mastering

Charts

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Certifications

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Certifications and sales for "Just Like a Pill"
Region Certification Certified units/sales
Australia (ARIA)[71] 2× Platinum 140,000‡
Austria (IFPI Austria)[72] Gold 15,000*
Canada (Music Canada)[73] Platinum 80,000‡
Norway (IFPI Norway)[74] Gold 5,000*
United Kingdom (BPI)[76] Platinum 762,000[75]
United States — 483,000[77]

* Sales figures based on certification alone.
‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

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Release dates and formats for "Just Like a Pill"
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States June 10, 2002 Contemporary hit radio Arista [78]
United Kingdom September 16, 2002
  • CD
  • cassette
[79]
Denmark September 30, 2002 CD [80]
Sweden [81]

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Just like a Pill (song) by Pink review". reviewstream.com. Retrieved March 17, 2015.
  2. ^ "Review of Pink, 'Missundaztood' (2001)". truthaboutnursing.org. Retrieved March 17, 2015.
  3. ^ Sheffield, Rob. "CD Review - M!ssundaztood". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on December 9, 2013. Retrieved June 12, 2009.
  4. ^ Soghomonian, Talia. "Archive of song reviews". all-reviews.com. Retrieved June 14, 2009.
  5. ^ "Interview: Pink". musicOMH. Archived from the original on March 31, 2009. Retrieved June 14, 2009.
  6. ^ a b "Just Like a Pill". Musicnotes.com. June 30, 2009. MN0075141. Retrieved April 9, 2021.
  7. ^ "Just Like a Pill – P!nk – Spot On Track". www.spotontrack.com. Retrieved September 4, 2017.
  8. ^ Wells, Steven (August 22, 2002). "Track reviews - Pink: Just like a Pill". NME. Retrieved June 14, 2009.
  9. ^ Luckett, Robert (September 21, 2002). "Pink: Just like a Pill". Drowned in Sound. Archived from the original on October 3, 2012. Retrieved June 14, 2009.
  10. ^ Burns, Todd (September 1, 2003). "Pink - M!ssundaztood - Review". Stylus Magazine. Archived from the original on February 4, 2010. Retrieved June 14, 2009.
  11. ^ Wilkes, Neil (January 1, 2003). "BBC big winner in DS Awards". Digital Spy. Retrieved June 14, 2009.
  12. ^ a b "Pink Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard.
  13. ^ a b "Issue 1009" ARIA Top 100 Singles. National Library of Australia. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
  14. ^ a b "Pink Just like a Pill Music Video on Yahoo! Music". Yahoo! Music. Retrieved June 14, 2009.
  15. ^ a b Perry, Rachel. "Pink: Party started, pill swallowed, elephant spared". VH1. Archived from the original on June 5, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2009.
  16. ^ Just Like a Pill (US CD single liner notes). Pink. Arista Records. 2002. 07822 15186-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  17. ^ Just Like a Pill (Canadian CD single liner notes). Pink. Arista Records. 2002. 74321-95020-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  18. ^ Just Like a Pill (UK CD single liner notes). Pink. Arista Records. 2002. 74321 95965 2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  19. ^ Just Like a Pill (UK cassette single sleeve). Pink. Arista Records. 2002. 74321 95965 4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  20. ^ Just Like a Pill (European CD single liner notes). Pink. Arista Records. 2002. 74321962062.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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  74. ^ "IFPI Norsk platebransje Trofeer 1993–2011" (in Norwegian). IFPI Norway. Retrieved September 22, 2020.
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