"Try" is a song by Canadian singer-songwriter Nelly Furtado, taken from her second studio album, Folklore (2003). The song, written by Furtado herself, and Brian West, was released as the second single from the album in February 2004. The song was moderately successful in several European countries, including Italy, the Netherlands, and the United Kingdom, where it reached the top 20. In the United States, it peaked at number 29 on the Billboard Adult Top 40 chart.
Lyrically, Furtado said the song "is about the reality of love. My energy used to just go everywhere, but now I'm more grounded because I've found true love. The idea here is that, yeah, sometimes life sucks. But life is only so long, and somebody can come along who makes you want to be a better person. You just have to roll with the punches. So "Try" is not a happy-go-lucky song. It has a strange arrangement because the chorus happens only twice, and the end is improvisational. It's like one of those epic power ballads." The Los Angeles Times said of "Try", "Her unfettered enthusiasm wins out as she sings of passion for life".
Commercial release Although the single was a success in some European countries, it did not chart in the United States. "Try" was the last single released from Folklore in the US; the subsequent singles were released only in Canada, Europe and Latin America. Two versions of the song exist; the original with the chorus only occurring twice, and a radio edit version in which the improv is taken out at the end and an extra chorus is added. A Spanish version, "Dar", was released in 2007 in the album of Loose (Summer Edition) only available in Latin America.
Music video The music video was directed by Sophie Muller. The music video features Nelly Furtado and the actor Ben Ciaramello in traditional Portuguese dress, around the Settler time period. It shows their various hardships, and in one scene, Furtado is seen tying lover's knots to the underside of the couple's bedsprings, which is assumed to be an infertility cure from folklore. There is an alternate version of the video, that shows Furtado singing the song with a guitar near the sea. The video uses a different mix of the song instead of the Radio Edit version.YouTube
Track listings UK CD maxi-single
European CD single and German mini-CD single
Australian CD maxi-single
European premium CD maxi-single
Credits and personnel Credits are lifted from the Folklore album booklet.
Studios Recorded at 4th Street Recording (Santa Monica, California) Mastered at Bernie Grundman Mastering (Hollywood, California)
Personnel
Nelly Furtado – writing, lead and background vocals, production Brian West – writing, engineering Track & Field – production, programming Field – intro guitar James Bryan – acoustic and electric guitars Mike Elizondo – bass Alex Alessandroni – piano, echo harmonium Joey Waronker – drums Russ Miller – drums Bob Leatherbarrow – vibraphone Lil' Jaz – scratching Brad Haehnel – mixing, engineering Joe Labatto – engineering Neil Couser – engineering assistance Brian "Big Bass" Gardner – mastering
Charts
Weekly charts +Chart (2004)PeakpositionCanada CHR (Nielsen BDS)15Canada CHR/Pop Top 30 (Radio & Records)16Canada Hot AC Top 30 (Radio & Records)7Russia Airplay (TopHit)117
Year-end charts +Chart (2004)PositionNetherlands (Dutch Top 40)55Netherlands (Single Top 100)98US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)94
Certifications
Release history + Region Date Format(s) Label United States February 23, 2004 DreamWorks United Kingdom March 15, 2004 CD Digital download Australia March 29, 2004 CD
References