Just Like Anyone (song)

"Just Like Anyone"
Single by Soul Asylum
from the album Let Your Dim Light Shine
B-side
  • "Fearless Leader"
  • "You'll Live For Now"
Released1995 (1995)
Length2:47
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Dave Pirner
Producer(s)
Soul Asylum singles chronology
"Misery"
(1995) 		"Just Like Anyone"
(1995) 		"Promises Broken"
(1996)

"Just Like Anyone" is a 1995 song by American alternative rock band Soul Asylum from its seventh album, Let Your Dim Light Shine. Written by the lead singer, Dave Pirner, and produced by the band with Butch Vig, the song was the second single released as the album. It entered the singles charts in Canada and the United Kingdom and reached number 19 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart. The song was included on the band's 2000 greatest hits album, Black Gold: The Best of Soul Asylum,[1] and a live version appears on the band's 2004 After the Flood: Live from the Grand Forks Prom, June 28, 1997 album.[2]

Reception

"Just Like Anyone" peaked at number 52 in the United Kingdom and number 55 in Canada, where it also reached number 12 on the Alternative chart.[3][4][5] In the United States, the song was not released as a commercial single, but it received enough radio airplay to peak at number 11 on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart and number 19 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.[6][7]

The New York Times music critic, Jon Pareles, said the song's lyrics "could have been written for the insecure high school students in the television drama My So-Called Life," in which Danes also starred.[8]

Music video

A music video for the song was filmed in Los Angeles during summer 1995. Directed by P.J. Hogan and produced by Michelle Alexander, the video features the actress Claire Danes, who plays a high school student who is rejected and taunted by other students because she has two noticeable bumps on her back. Hidden beneath the bumps are angel wings, which are revealed later as she takes flight during a school dance.[9] The video was shown on MTV and MuchMusic, reaching the most-played charts on both networks.[10]

Track listings

CD1

  1. "Just Like Anyone"
  2. "Get On Out" (live at Paradise Rock Club, June 4, 1995)
  3. "Do Anything You Wanna Do"

CD2

  1. "Just Like Anyone"
  2. "Fearless Leader"
  3. "You'll Leave For Now"

Charts

Chart (1995) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[11] 114
Canada Top Singles (RPM)[4] 54
Canada Rock/Alternative (RPM)[5] 12
Scotland (OCC)[12] 52
UK Singles (OCC)[3] 52
UK Rock & Metal (OCC)[13] 2
US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)[6] 19
US Mainstream Rock (Billboard)[7] 11

Release history

Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States 1995 Radio Columbia
United Kingdom November 20, 1995
  • CD
  • cassette
 [14]

References

  1. ^ "Black Gold: The Best of Soul Asylum - Overview". AllMusic. Retrieved December 5, 2009.
  2. ^ "After the Flood: Live from the Grand Forks Prom, June 28, 1997 - Overview". Allmusic. Rovi Corporation. Retrieved December 5, 2009.
  3. ^ a b "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
  4. ^ a b "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2794." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
  5. ^ a b "Top RPM Rock/Alternative Tracks: Issue 9098." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
  6. ^ a b "Soul Asylum Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
  7. ^ a b "Soul Asylum Chart History (Mainstream Rock)". Billboard. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
  8. ^ Pareles, Jon (June 4, 1995). "Growing Up Means Keeping It Down a Bit". The New York Times. The New York Times Company. Retrieved December 5, 2009.
  9. ^ "The Eye: Asylum For So Called Star". Billboard. 107 (36). Nielsen Business Media, Inc.: 119 September 9, 1995. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved December 5, 2009 – via Google Books.
  10. ^ "Billboard Video Monitor". Billboard. 107 (36). Nielsen Business Media, Inc.: 120 September 9, 1995. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved December 5, 2009 – via Google Books.
    - "Billboard Video Monitor". Billboard. 107 (41). Nielsen Business Media, Inc.: 83 October 14, 1995. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved December 5, 2009 – via Google Books.
  11. ^ "Soul Asylum ARIA Chart history (singles)". ARIA. Retrieved July 26, 2024 – via Imgur.com. N.B. The High Point number in the NAT column represents the release's peak on the national chart.
  12. ^ "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
  13. ^ "Official Rock & Metal Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved December 28, 2021.
  14. ^ "New Releases: Singles". Music Week. November 18, 1995. p. 39.