"Blame It on the Rain" is a song written by Diane Warren and recorded by the German dance-pop group Milli Vanilli. It was released as a new track from the group's North American debut album Girl You Know It's True and did not appear on All or Nothing, their debut album in other regions. An extended remix of the song, however, did appear on The U.S.-Remix Album: All or Nothing, which served to release the new tracks included on Girl You Know It's True that did not appear on All or Nothing outside of North America. The song is written in the second person, and the protagonist is advising the listener to "blame it on the rain" and other natural elements after leaving their lover and regretting it. The song topped the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, becoming their third and final single to do so. It also reached the top ten in Canada, Australia, and New Zealand, as well as several European countries. In the U.K., the song did not reach the top 40, only peaking at #52.
The verses are in the key of B♭ major and modulate up one step to B major for the main chorus and modulate once more to C major during the final repetition of the chorus. It is originally 98 beats per minute and features a sparse bass line and heavy handclaps. The music video version of the song differs in a few ways, most noticeably in the longer length and brass synth introduction absent in the album and single variations.
Chart performance[]
"Blame It on the Rain" debuted on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 on October 7, 1989, at number sixty-five.[1] Seven weeks later, for the week ending November 25, 1989, it reached number one, and occupied the spot for two weeks. It also spent a total of twenty-three weeks on the Hot 100. The song became Milli Vanilli's third number one single on the Hot 100 after "Baby Don't Forget My Number" and "Girl I'm Gonna Miss You"."Blame It On the Rain" was preceded at number one on the Hot 100 by Bad English's "When I See You Smile" (also penned by Warren) and succeeded by Billy Joel's "We Didn't Start the Fire".
The song was ranked at number 21 on Billboard's Year-End Singles list for 1989, and number forty-six for 1990.
Track listings[]
CD maxi
"Blame It on the Rain" (club mix) — 7:02
"Baby Don't Forget My Number" (European mix) — 4:55
^Pennanen, Timo (2006). Sisältää hitin - levyt ja esittäjät Suomen musiikkilistoilla vuodesta 1972 (in Finnish) (1st ed.). Helsinki: Tammi. ISBN978-951-1-21053-5.
