Lay Me Down (Sam Smith song)

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"Lay Me Down"
Sam Smith Lay Me Down.png
Single by Sam Smith
from the album In the Lonely Hour
Released15 February 2013
Recorded2012
Genre
Length4:13
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Sam Smith singles chronology
"Latch"
(2012) 		"Lay Me Down"
(2013) 		"La La La"
(2013)
Music video
"Lay Me Down" on YouTube

"Lay Me Down" is a song by English singer Sam Smith and the lead single from their debut studio album In the Lonely Hour (2014). The song was released in the United Kingdom on 15 February 2013. It originally peaked at number 46 on the UK Singles Chart and at number 25 on the US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles in 2014. The song was written by Smith, Jimmy Napes and Elviin and produced by Napes and Steve Fitzmaurice.

The song was re-released in February 2015 as the sixth single from the album, this time reaching number 8 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number 15 on the UK Singles Chart. A third version featuring John Legend recorded for the British charity telethon Comic Relief reached number one in the UK in March 2015.

Musically, the song is written in E major, with a tempo of 118 bpm.[1]

Music video[]

The original music video showed Smith and their friends at a casino. Following the announcement of the re-release, it was removed from YouTube and Vevo.

Track listing[]

Digital download[2]
No.TitleLength
1."Lay Me Down"3:49
2."Lay Me Down" (acoustic version)4:01
3."Lay Me Down" (music video)4:07

Charts[]

Chart (2014) Peak
position
Scotland (OCC)[3] 60
UK Singles (OCC)[4] 46
US Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles (Billboard)[5] 25

Release history[]

Region Date Format Label
United Kingdom[2] 15 February 2013 Digital download

2015 re-release[]

"Lay Me Down"
Sam Smith - Lay Me Down (Alternate).png
Single by Sam Smith
from the album In the Lonely Hour
Released22 February 2015
Recorded2014
Genre
Length3:39
Label
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Sam Smith singles chronology
"Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas"
(2014) 		"Lay Me Down"
(2015) 		"Lay Me Down (Red Nose Day 2015)"
(2015)

It was announced on 30 January 2015 that Smith would re-release "Lay Me Down" as the sixth single from their album In the Lonely Hour following commercial success with their previous singles. Smith recorded a new version of the song for its re-release with the track's original producers.[6]

Music video[]

The music video for the re-release, which replaced the original, was recorded in St Margaret's Church, Lee, South East London, with the permission of the Rector the Revd. Dr. Alan Race. It was shot in one sequence. It depicts Smith at a funeral in the church standing in front of the deceased's coffin, then a flashback reveals that Smith actually married the man in question in the same church. The video then returns to the present day, some time after the funeral, with Smith mourning the loss of their husband in the empty church.[7] Critics have pointed out the similarities between this and Guns N' Roses's music video to "November Rain".

Track listing[]

Digital download – single
No.TitleLength
1."Lay Me Down"3:39
Digital download – EP
No.TitleLength
1."Lay Me Down" (Pomo Remix)3:45
2."Lay Me Down" (Paul Woolford Remix)6:45
3."Lay Me Down" (Maya Jane Coles Remix)5:18
4."Lay Me Down" (Todd Edwards Dub)6:29
5."Lay Me Down" (Tiësto Remix)4:18
6."Lay Me Down" (Flume Remix - Single)4:30

Charts and certifications[]

Release history[]

Region Date Format Label Ref.
United States 3 February 2015 Mainstream radio
[50]
23 February 2015 Adult album alternative radio [51]
Australia 20 February 2015 Digital download [52]
Ireland [53]
New Zealand [54]
United Kingdom 22 February 2015 [55]

Red Nose Day 2015 release[]

"Lay Me Down (Red Nose Day 2015)"
Sam Smith - Lay Me Down (Red Nose Day 2015) (feat. John Legend).png
Single by Sam Smith featuring John Legend
from the album In the Lonely Hour (Drowning Shadows Edition)
Released9 March 2015
Recorded2015
Genre
Length3:39
LabelCapitol
Songwriter(s)
  • Sam Smith
  • James Napier
  • Elvin Smith
Producer(s)
  • Steve Fitzmaurice
  • James Napier
Sam Smith singles chronology
"Lay Me Down"
(2015) 		"Lay Me Down (Red Nose Day 2015)"
(2015) 		"Moments"
(2015)
John Legend singles chronology
"Glory"
(2014) 		"Lay Me Down (Red Nose Day 2015)"
(2015) 		"One Man Can Change the World"
(2015)

On 9 March 2015, it was announced that Smith and John Legend had joined forces for a third version of "Lay Me Down" to be used as the official Red Nose Day charity single. This version was released the same day and all proceeds from the track's sales benefit the charity.[56]

Smith sings the opening verse and first chorus with Legend on the piano, then Legend joins in with the second verse. Some later parts are a duet by the two artists.

Music video[]

Smith and Legend also appear in a new video for the charity. It was posted by Smith on their official Vevo account. The music video is also broadcast nationally on BBC One. The video features Smith and Legend recording the song in a recording studio.[57]

Live performances[]

On 13 March 2015, Smith and Legend performed "Lay Me Down" together for the first and only time together during Comic Relief – Face the Funny, a major event broadcast live on BBC One from the London Palladium.[58]

Charts[]

Weekly charts[]

Chart (2015) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[59] 8
Belgium Urban (Ultratop Flanders)[60] 8
Euro Digital Songs (Billboard)[14] 1
Iceland (RÚV)[61] 9
Ireland (IRMA)[62] 4
Netherlands (Tipparade)[63] 18
Scotland (OCC)[64] 1
UK Singles (OCC)[65] 1

Year-end charts[]

Chart (2015) Position
UK Singles (Official Charts Company)[38] 96

Certifications[]

Region Certification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI)[67] Platinum 421,000[66]

Release history[]

Region Date Format Label
United Kingdom[68] 9 March 2015 Digital download Capitol

Cover versions[]

Connie Talbot released a single of her cover version of "Lay Me Down" in 2014.

References[]

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  4. ^ "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 10 April 2015.
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  6. ^ Corner, Lewis (30 January 2015). "Sam Smith re-records 'Lay Me Down' for single release". Digital Spy. Retrieved 30 January 2015.
  7. ^ Sam Smith - Lay Me Down. YouTube. 5 February 2015.
  8. ^ "Sam Smith – Lay Me Down". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved 21 March 2015.
  9. ^ "Sam Smith Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved 19 March 2015.
  10. ^ "Sam Smith Chart History (Canada AC)". Billboard. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
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  12. ^ "Sam Smith Chart History (Canada Hot AC)". Billboard. Retrieved 18 April 2015.
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  24. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
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  36. ^ "Canadian Hot 100 Year End 2015". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 9 December 2015.
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  44. ^ "Italian single certifications – Sam Smith – Lay Me Down" (in Italian). Federazione Industria Musicale Italiana. Retrieved 4 December 2017. Select "2017" in the "Anno" drop-down menu. Select "Lay Me Down" in the "Filtra" field. Select "Singoli" under "Sezione".
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  57. ^ Sam Smith - Lay Me Down (Red Nose Day 2015) ft. John Legend. YouTube. 9 March 2015.
  58. ^ Corner, Natalie (13 March 2015). "Sam Smith and John Legend sound a bit croaky as they perform new Comic Relief single". mirror.
  59. ^ "Sam Smith feat. John Legend – Lay Me Down" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
  60. ^ "Sam Smith feat. John Legend – Lay Me Down" (in Dutch). Ultratop Urban. Retrieved 13 March 2015.
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  64. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 27 September 2017.
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