Wake Up Lovin' You

"Wake Up Lovin' You"
A black-and-white cover of a man playing a guitar. The artist's name and song title appear on the top right and bottom parts of the cover, colored in white respectively.
Single by Craig Morgan
from the album The Journey (Livin' Hits)
ReleasedJuly 8, 2013 (2013-07-08)
GenreCountry
Length3:18
LabelBlack River
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
  • Craig Morgan
  • Phil O'Donnell[1]
Craig Morgan singles chronology
"More Trucks Than Cars"
(2012) 		"Wake Up Lovin' You"
(2013) 		"We'll Come Back Around"
(2014)

"Wake Up Lovin' You" is a song written by Josh Osborne, Matthew Ramsey and Trevor Rosen, and sung by American country music singer Craig Morgan. It was released in July 2013 as the first single from his second compilation album The Journey (Livin' Hits) (2013). The track is a midtempo ballad about a man unable to forget his former lover despite his actions. The song received positive reviews from critics. "Wake Up Lovin' You" peaked at numbers 14 and 20 on both the Billboard Country Airplay and Hot Country Songs charts respectively. It also reached number 99 on the Hot 100 for two non-consecutive weeks. The song also charted in Canada, peaking at number 40 on the Country chart. A music video for the single was directed by Kristin Barlowe.

Content

"Wake Up Lovin' You" is a midtempo ballad about a man who, despite being parted from his lover, is unable to forget her despite his actions.[2]

Morgan told The Boot that "I really believe that this will be the song of my career, because it’s a turning point."[3]

Critical reception

Giving it a "B+", Joseph Hudak of Country Weekly compared the song's theme favorably to "Sunday Mornin' Comin' Down" by Kris Kristofferson, and said that the song was "dark stuff" for Morgan.[2] It received 4 out of 5 stars from Billy Dukes of Taste of Country, who wrote that "The strength of the vocals rub against the vulnerability of the lyrics and story. The production plays a role in creating this big sturdy ballad, as well."[4]

Commercial performance

"Wake Up Lovin' You" received sufficient airplay to enter the Billboard Country Airplay chart at number 57 for the chart dated July 27, 2013.[5] It also debuted on the Hot Country Songs chart at number 50 on the week of November 9.[6] The song reached number 20 on the Hot Country Songs chart for the week of April 26, 2014, staying there for 27 weeks.[7][8] It also peaked at number 14 on the Country Airplay chart dated May 10, and spent a total of 45 weeks on the chart.[9][10] On the Billboard Hot 100, the single debuted and peaked at number 99 for the week of May 10, 2014, but left the next week.[11] It reappeared in the same position on the week of May 31, before leaving the chart completely.[12] The song has sold 243,000 copies in the U.S. as of May 2014.[13]

In Canada, the track debuted at number 49 on the Canada Country chart for the week of March 22, 2014, and peaked at number 40 the week of April 26, staying on the chart for 12 weeks.[14][15]

Music video

Kristin Barlowe directed the song's music video.[16]

Chart performance

Chart (2013–2014) Peak
position
Canada Country (Billboard)[15] 40
US Billboard Hot 100[17] 99
US Country Airplay (Billboard)[10] 14
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[8] 20

Year-end charts

Chart (2014) Position
US Country Airplay (Billboard)[18] 63
US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[19] 73

Covers

Two of the original songwriters, Matthew Ramsey and Trevor Rosen, are members of the band Old Dominion, who perform the song regularly at concerts and has recorded their own cover.

References

  1. ^ "Craig Morgan Digitally Releases Acclaimed New Single "Wake Up Lovin' You" From Upcoming Album". Craig Morgan. Archived from the original on October 5, 2013. Retrieved October 4, 2013.
  2. ^ a b Hudak, Joseph (July 22, 2013). "Reviews: 'Wake Up Lovin' You'". Country Weekly. 20 (29): 50. ISSN 1074-3235.
  3. ^ Whitaker, Sterling (September 4, 2013). "Craig Morgan Interview: Singer Talks New Album, Career Single". The Boot. Archived from the original on October 5, 2013. Retrieved October 4, 2013.
  4. ^ Dukes, Billy (June 24, 2013). "Craig Morgan, 'Wake Up Loving You' – Song Review". Taste of Country. Archived from the original on October 5, 2013. Retrieved October 4, 2013.
  5. ^ "Country Airplay: July 27, 2013". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 13, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  6. ^ "Country Songs: November 9, 2013". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 13, 2018. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  7. ^ "Country Songs: April 26, 2014". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 20, 2021. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  8. ^ a b "Craig Morgan Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved April 17, 2014.
  9. ^ "Country Airplay: May 10, 2014". Billboard. Archived from the original on November 29, 2021. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  10. ^ a b "Craig Morgan Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard. Retrieved April 29, 2014.
  11. ^ "The Hot 100: May 10, 2014". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 1, 2022. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  12. ^ "The Hot 100: May 31, 2014". Billboard. Archived from the original on October 17, 2023. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  13. ^ Bjorke, Matt (May 21, 2014). "Country Chart News: The Top 30 Digital Singles For May 21, 2014". Roughstock. Archived from the original on May 22, 2014. Retrieved May 24, 2014.
  14. ^ "Canada Country: March 22, 2014". Billboard. Archived from the original on January 15, 2020. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  15. ^ a b "Craig Morgan Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard. Retrieved April 16, 2014.
  16. ^ "Craig Morgan Releases Music Video for 'Wake Up Lovin' You'". Sounds Like Nashville. August 21, 2013. Archived from the original on January 6, 2024. Retrieved January 6, 2024.
  17. ^ "Craig Morgan Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved May 1, 2014.
  18. ^ "Billboard Country Update for December 15, 2014" (PDF). Billboard. December 15, 2014. p. 17. Retrieved December 15, 2014.
  19. ^ "Best of 2014: Hot Country Songs". Billboard. Archived from the original on December 27, 2014. Retrieved December 9, 2014.