"Call Me When You're Sober" is a song by American rock band Evanescence from their second studio album, The Open Door. It was released as the album's lead single on September 4, 2006. The track was written by Amy Lee and guitarist Terry Balsamo, and produced by Dave Fortman. A musical fusion of alternative metal, symphonic rock, and electropop, the song was inspired by the end of Lee's relationship with singer Shaun Morgan as well as Lee's other experiences at the time.
"Call Me When You're Sober" peaked at number ten on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number four on the Alternative Songs chart, and entered the top ten of several Billboard component charts. It also peaked within the top ten on multiple international charts, including the UK, Australia, Italy, Canada, and New Zealand. It was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America and gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The song received generally positive reception from music critics. Its music video was directed by Marc Webb, and depicts a metaphorical visual, drawing inspiration from the fairy tale "Little Red Riding Hood".
Background and composition "Call Me When You're Sober" was written by Amy Lee and Terry Balsamo, with production by Dave Fortman. Lee and Balsamo started working on the song during their writing session in Florida; Lee played the music she was working on for the song in her room and Balsamo was working on a very different "heavy riff". Upon hearing his guitar, Lee proposed that they mix both pieces together which led to the conception of "Call Me When You're Sober".
When Lee began writing the song's melody she initially thought that the song wasn't for Evanescence, but she expressed what she wanted to say, felt it was "fresh" for her and Balsamo wrote a "badass" riff to it. She said that when writing the lyrics, she tried to "be completely clear". With it, she felt the need to "say exactly what I was feeling for so long", describing her process of creating music as a form of a therapy that gives her a medium to express the negative things that happened in her life and allows her to "turn something bad into something beautiful".
When the song was first released, it was speculated by the media that it referenced Lee's ex-boyfriend, Seether's singer Shaun Morgan. Initially reluctant to reveal the song's inspiration, Lee later confirmed it in an August 2006 interview after Morgan's announcement that he was being admitted to rehabilitation center to undergo treatment for "combination of substances". She stated: "I think it's impossible to hide how obvious it is. The day that our single hit the airwaves, my ex-boyfriend said he was going into rehab and canceled their tour. ... [The difficulties and breakup] happened sort of after I was out of the spotlight for a while and writing."
Writing the song helped Lee in the process of healing from a "painful ending to a relationship". She explained,
Lee added that she felt "brave" writing the straight-forward lyrics as she was "sick of hiding behind metaphors" in everything she had written before, and "so much of the record was about the turmoil I was going through". She was letting herself "be run down", and in the end, "had to choose happiness and health" for herself. She noted that the song was about "more than the most obvious thing", deeming it "empowering" for herself as it represents "leaving a whole world behind that was really hurting me", and "getting to the place with yourself where you're finally willing to stand up for yourself." "Sober" was also inspired by other events in her life, including people who she was working with that were "holding me down and manipulating me and betraying me", eventually leading her to make the decision to "put my foot down and walk out the door". She described the song as being "about someone in particular, but at the same time, when I was writing it, it applied to a bunch of people in my life that I was sort of severing ties with."
In 2007, after finishing his rehabilitation, Morgan said the song had "haunted" him around and negatively affected his reputation, adding that it was not pleasant to hear a song describing him as a "bad guy" that "millions of people have heard", he doesn't think it's "right to say and do those things when people break up, and she obviously felt the need to go out there and make me sound like a complete a--hole". At the time, Seether's album Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces was to be released soon and it was speculated that it would contain an answer song to "Call Me When You're Sober", with "Breakdown" initially considered one. Morgan clarified that that song was not an "angry backlash" and it was "more universal" as he was trying to be "more vague and respectful". He added that the album did not contain answer songs aimed at Lee, as "I know what the expectations are for this album and that people will be looking for that Amy Lee reference, and I am trying desperately not to have any", further noting how any references would be instead about another relationship of his that had recently ended.
In an October 2006 interview, Lee had expressed "no intention of hurting [Morgan]" when writing the song, and said that once the song came out without any metaphors, she wanted to keep it. She said she supports Morgan in his rehabilitation and is "really happy for him." In 2011, Lee described "Call Me When You're Sober" as "mostly a chick anthem", and deemed it empowering for female listeners of their fandom based on the response she had received from them. In retrospect, Lee mentioned in 2016, "I love this song because it has this fun spirit that was new for us as a band. You can still be heavy with a smile on your face."
According to the sheet music published by Alfred Publishing on the website Musicnotes.com, "Call Me When You're Sober" was written in the key of E minor. Lee's vocal range in the song spans from the low note of G3 to the high note of Eb5. Music journalists identified various genres in "Call Me When You're Sober", including symphonic rock, soul, electropop, piano balladry, nu metal, hard rock, and R&B. The New York Times said the song starts off as a "piano ballad, swerves into hard rock, then builds to a grandiose pop-orchestral refrain, and later on a glorious, glimmering bridge." Blabbermouth.net described it as a "fusion of crunching guitars and wistful piano breaks". Los Angeles Times suggested that the song had influence from singer Erykah Badu, one of Lee's female artist inspirations.
Lyrically, "Call Me When You're Sober" depicts the difficult situation of a female protagonist dealing with the behavior of a lover with substance addiction; she eventually decides to move away from this dysfunctional relationship. Andree Farias from Christianity Today said the song was "self-explanatory". Blender characterized it as a "sassy, almost flirtatious kiss-off to a manipulative lover." St. Louis Post-Dispatch called it a "scathing missive" in which Lee doesn't "hide her still-raw emotions". The Courier-Mails Jason Nahrung felt that the song was the album's most radio-friendly track, featuring "heavy bass and drums, spotless and lavish production and Lee's unmistakable vocals". Kerrang! described it as "an unusually transparent, autobiographical dissection of [Lee's] abortive relationship" and a "tough-love song insistent that she won't be brought down by anyone else's addictions". Hartford Courants Eric Danton said that Lee asserts that "she will not be pushed around anymore". The line "make up your mind" repeated in the song's chorus is replaced with "I've made up your mind" at the end, indicating that the protagonist has moved on, realizing her worth.
Release The song had a limited radio release as the album's first single on July 31, 2006, which was followed by a wider release the following week. Wind-up Records serviced the song to radio in August 2006. It was made available for digital download on September 4, 2006, and a physical release as a single followed on September 25.
Critical reception The song received generally positive reviews from contemporary music critics. Ed Thompson of IGN picked the song as one of the album's highlights. A writer from The Boston Globe deemed the song the album's "hard-charging opening salvo". AllMusics Stephen Thomas Erlewine regarded it as one of the album's three highlights, saying that it has structure, hooks and momentum. In his review of The Open Door for the Hartford Courant, Eric R. Danton observed that Lee was more certain and in charge of the whole album, which he found to be exemplified on the "terse rocker" with an "acerbic message" that is "Call Me When You're Sober". Nicholas Fonseca of Entertainment Weekly called "Call Me When You're Sober" an "angry-goth anthem". Rob Sheffield of Rolling Stone said Lee's "big bodice-ripping voice" is over the top on the song, which suits it. A Billboard writer deemed the song an "anthemic grinder" in which "Lee's vocal is other-worldly and the song's overall impact is strong, however, there's really nothing new going on".
Metal Edge wrote of the track, "fans might be surprised by the R&B-flavoured vocal melody and piano chords that introduce [the song]. But it's not really a stretch once those crunchy guitars kick in, and the soulful chorus breaks new ground for the band without straying from its signature style." The New York Times Kelefa Sanneh praised Lee's vocal performance calling it "terrific", adding that the song "crashes through different styles while remaining diabolically hummable". A writer for Canada.com concluded that Evanescence showed their "staying power" on the "biting single". In his review, Don Kaye of Blabbermouth.net called it a "blunt emotional assessment" and a "huge, dramatic, sweeping number, complete with massive hooks and a powerful, fearless performance from Lee". Bryan Reesman of Metal Hammer said the song highlights Lee's songwriting talents. Kerrang!s Sam Law deemed the song a "watershed of confidence and catharsis, with the genre-mashing ... emphasising a talent finally unbound", and complimented the "rich backing vocals to an already-luxuriant mix."
"Call Me When You're Sober" was ranked at number 86 on the annual poll Pazz & Jop collected by The Village Voice in 2006. Conversely, it was included in a list of The Most Annoying Songs of 2006 compiled by ABC News. The track was nominated in the category for Favorite Rock Song at the 33rd People's Choice Awards. In 2011, Loudwire journalist Mary Ouellette, placed the song at number two on her list of 10 Best Evanescence Songs. She called it a "perfectly crafted ode to an ex-boyfriend" with an "undeniably addictive melody", and thematically relatable to "anyone who's ever been in a dicey relationship". In 2016, Brittany Porter from AXS listed it at number four on her list of the band's 10 best songs.
Chart performance