"(You Drive Me) Crazy" was a commercial success and peaked inside the top ten on the singles charts of seventeen countries. In the United Kingdom, it became Spears's third consecutive single to peak inside the top five, while it reached number ten in the United States'sBillboard Hot 100 and peaked at number one in Belgium (Wallonia) and Iceland. An accompanying music video, directed byNigel Dick, portrays Spears as a waitress of a dance club and she performs a highly choreographed dance routine with the other waitresses. The video premiered on an episodeMTV'sMaking the Video. It featurescameo appearances by actorsMelissa Joan Hart andAdrian Grenier, who star in the movieDrive Me Crazy, which is named for the song. As part of promotion for the song, Spears performed the song at the1999 MTV Europe Music Awards and1999Billboard Music Awards. It has also been included on five of her concert tours.
Before recording her debut album...Baby One More Time, Britney Spears had originally envisioned it in style of "Sheryl Crow music, but younger [and] moreadult contemporary".[3] However, the singer agreed with her label's appointment of producers, who had the objective to target a teenage audience at the time.[3] She flew toCheiron Studios inStockholm, Sweden, where half of the album was recorded in May 1998,[1] with producersMax Martin,Denniz Pop andRami Yacoub, among others.[3]
"(You Drive Me) Crazy" was written byJörgen Elofsson, while song production and additional songwriting was done by Martin,Per Magnusson andDavid Kreuger.[2] Spears recorded the vocals for the song in March 1998, at Cheiron Studios in Stockholm, Sweden.[2] It was also mixed at Cheiron Studios by Martin.[2] Esbjörn Öhrwall and Johan Carlberg played the guitar, whilebass guitar was done by Thomas Lindberg.[2] Keyboards andprogramming was done by Kreuger, and additional keyboards by Magnusson.[2] Background vocals were provided by Jeanette Söderholm, Martin, Yacoub and THE FANCHOIR, formed by Chatrin Nyström, Jeanette Stenhammar, Johanna Stenhammar, Charlotte Björkman and Therese Ancker.[2]
In May 1999, Martin and Spears went to the Battery Studios inNew York City, New York, to re-record the vocals of the track,[4] due to the fact that a remixed version called "The Stop Remix!" (named for a part in which Spears shouts "Stop!") was going to be included on the original motion picture soundtrack of the filmDrive Me Crazy (1999).[5] "(You Drive Me) Crazy" was released as a remix package as the third single from...Baby One More Time on August 23, 1999.[6]
"(You Drive Me) Crazy" is apop song.[7] The song's composition follows a simple formula and infuses drums, guitar, and edgy synthesized instruments, including a recurringcowbell,[7][8] and having a roughly similar sound to Spears's debut single "...Baby One More Time" (1999).[9] According to the sheet music published at Musicnotes.com by Universal Music Publishing Group, "(You Drive Me) Crazy" is composed in the key ofC minor and runs through amoderately slowdancebeat infused metronome of 101beats per minute. Spears's vocals were deemed as heavily processed when compared to the ones of her previous single, "Sometimes".[10] Her vocal range spans over an octave, from the low-key of G3 to the high-note of D♭5.[11] The song's primarychord progression is Cm–A♭-G (i-bVI-V), with a few deviations.[11]
The song garnered positive reviews frommusic critics. Kyle Anderson forMTV considered "(You Drive Me) Crazy" as "a similar-sounding anthem [to '...Baby One More Time'] with some streamlinedrock guitar taking center stage (there's even a solo). It's catchy enough".[12] Spence D. ofIGN considered "(You Drive Me) Crazy" a "[Max] Martin's glossy grown-up pop" song,[13] while Caryn Ganz ofRolling Stone called "(You Drive Me) Crazy" a "further hit" from...Baby One More Time, along with "From the Bottom of My Broken Heart" and "Sometimes".[14] Music critic Walt Mueller wrote "When Spears starts to sing on this one, she sounds a lot likeJanet Jackson".[15] Christy Lemire of theAssociated Press noted that the song and "Stronger" are "so lamely feel-good" tracks that they "could have been the theme song to aKarate Kid sequel".[16] Evan Sawdey ofPopMatters called it a "lightly dorky" song,[17] andStephen Thomas Erlewine ofAllMusic deemed it as a "fluffydance-pop at its best".[18] In a list compiled by Sara Anderson ofAOL Radio, "(You Drive Me) Crazy" was ranked ninth in a list of Spears's best songs.[19] During the 2001BMI Pop Awards, "(You Drive Me) Crazy" was honored with the award of Most Performed BMI Song.[20]
While reviewing...Baby One More Time on its 20th anniversary,Billboard's Chuck Arnold felt that "sparkling with theMidas touch of Max Martin, 'Crazy' perfectly captures the crazy giddiness of young love -- the kind that keeps you up all night".[21] The staff fromEntertainment Weekly placed it at number 22 on their ranking of Spears's songs and wrote: "highlighted by her overpronunciation of "you", bell rings, and a backup choir that turns the chorus into a massive singalong. ['(You Drive Me) Crazy'] captures Spears at full force, with a robust vocal performance and an ab-emphasizing choreographed dance, remembered best through its music video".[22]Bustle's Alex Kritelis Reilly preferred the Stop remix over the original album version.[23] Nayer Nissim, fromPink News, deemed it "another perfect bit of late '90s pop. Very nearly as catchy as her debut".[24] Shannon Barbour fromCosmopolitan opined that it was "not her best song, but it's insanely addictive".[25] Nicholas Hautman, fromUs Weekly, deemed it the singer's ninth greatest single and said: "This quasi-dorky dance track can be easily summed up using just three words: pure ear candy".[26] ForDigital Spy's Alim Kheraj, the most notable thing was the song's prominent use of cowbells; "backed up by rock guitars and flawless Max Martin production, Britney sounds confident, her vocals clear and powerful".[27] In 2019, the staff ofBillboard ranked the "Stop Remix!" as the 39th greatest song of 1999; Nolan Feeney said that although it was "hardly unrecognizable", Spears's re-recorded vocals, the song's new intro and "her headline 'Stop!' interjection in the reimagined bridge made it something truly worth losing your mind over".[28]
"(You Drive Me) Crazy" was a commercial success. The song peaked at number two on theEuropean Hot 100 Singles, being held off the top spot byR. Kelly's "If I Could Turn Back the Hands of Time".[29] In the United Kingdom, it was Spears' third consecutive single to reach a top five position.[30] The track debuted and peaked at number five on the chart issue dated October 2, 1999, and stayed on the chart for a total of eleven weeks.[31] It was eventually certified gold by theBritish Phonographic Industry (BPI), for sales and streams of over 400,000 units.[32] According to theOfficial Charts Company, "(You Drive Me) Crazy" is Spears' seventh best-selling single in the United Kingdom, with sales over 275,000 physical units.[33] The song peaked at number two in France and number four in Germany, being certified gold in both countries for shipping over 250,000 units.[34][35] It also peaked at number one in Belgium (Wallonia), finishing the year of 1999 as the 17th best-selling single.[34][36] "(You Drive Me) Crazy" was also able to peak inside the top five in Belgium (Flanders), Finland, Ireland, Netherlands, Norway, Sweden, and Switzerland, while reaching top ten positions in Denmark and Italy.[34] Later in 2012, the song managed to peak at number 65 in Czech Republic due to high airplay.[37]
In the United States, "(You Drive Me) Crazy" peaked at number ten onBillboard Hot 100 on the chart issue dated November 13, 1999, and became Spears' second single to peak inside the top ten in the country.[38] On the same week, it peaked at number four on thePop Songs component chart.[38] On the chart compiled byRPM magazine, the song peaked at number three in Canada.[39] However, on theCanadian Singles Chart compiled byNielsen Soundscan, it peaked at number 13.[38] The latter revealed that "(You Drive Me) Crazy" was the 44th best-selling single of 1999 in the country.[40] The track peaked at number five in New Zealand, but failed to reach the top ten in Australia, where it peaked at number 12 on the chart issue dated November 12, 1999.[34] However, the single was later certified platinum by theAustralian Recording Industry Association (ARIA),[41] and was one of the best-selling singles of 2000 in the country.[42] "(You Drive Me) Crazy" performed poorly in Japan, where it peaked at number 80, and stayed on the chart for two weeks only. Despite the low sales, it is Spears' 12th best-selling CD release in the country.[43]
Spears dressed as awaitress of a dance club in the music video for "(You Drive Me) Crazy".
The song's accompanyingmusic video (which uses The Stop Remix!) was directed byNigel Dick and filmed on June 14 and 15, 1999 at the AES Power Station inRedondo Beach, California.[44] Spears conceptualized the video's treatment, and explained during an interview with MTV in 1999 that "it would be cool to be in a club, and we're dorky waitresses, and we break out and start dancing."[44] At the time, Spears expected that the video would take her "to the next level".[44] To promote the filmDrive Me Crazy, actorsAdrian Grenier andMelissa Joan Hart were invited to makecameo appearances in the video, since the song had been included on the film's soundtrack, however, Grenier did not want to participate.[44] Dick commented on the issue, saying, "I was given instructions to ring him up and make sure he appeared in the video. I said, 'You know what, Adrian, I just think it would be great for your career, and Britney's a great girl and she's fun to work with.' Eventually he came around."[44] Dick also revealed that he was impressed by the singer's work ethic, adding that she "came to the set completely rehearsed."[44] The music video premiered on MTV'sMaking the Video special that aired on July 18, 1999.[45] Due to Hart's appearance in the music video, parts of it were featured in the credits of "No Place Like Home", the season 4 premiere ofSabrina the Teenage Witch, an episode that guest starred Spears.
The video opens with Spears as a waitress of a dance club.[44] She then goes with other waitresses to their dressing room, where they finish their makeup and change costumes. Spears, now wearing a sexy, green sequined outfit, goes through the corridor to the dance floor with her friends, and starts to perform a high-profile choreography, including a chair dance sequence referencing Janet Jackson's "Miss You Much" video, which Spears also referenced in live performances of the song on theCrazy 2k Tour.[44] Scenes of Spears singing in front of a shining orange sign with the word "CRAZY" are also seen throughout the video.[44] On August 24, 1999, the music video debuted at number four onTotal Request Live.[46] It is the longest running by a female artist onTRL, staying on the top ten for seventy-three days.[19] The video was nominated on the category ofBest Dance Video on the2000 MTV Video Music Awards; it lost, however, toJennifer Lopez's "Waiting for Tonight" (1999).[47] Alternate footage of the video can be found on the DVD of Spears' first compilation albumGreatest Hits: My Prerogative (2004).[48] Jennifer Vineyard of MTV commented, "the alternate audio gives the feel of Spears singing the song as a round, where the beat is in sync but one layer of her vocals is just slightly ahead of the other."[48] The music video for "(You Drive Me) Crazy" was re-created by Australian actressRebel Wilson, in one of the scenes in theNetflix filmSenior Year (2022).[49][50]
Spears performing "(You Drive Me) Crazy" at her Las Vegas residency show,Britney: Piece of Me, in February 2016
Spears performed the song for the very first time at herL'Oreal Hair Zone Mall Tour in New York City, USA on July 1, 1998. As part of promotion for "(You Drive Me) Crazy"'s release as a single, Spears performed it at the1999 MTV Europe Music Awards[51] and at the1999Billboard Music Awards.[52] It was also performed on five concert tours, the first being the...Baby One More Time Tour (1999). The show began with a dance introduction by Spears' dancers among smoke effects.[53] She appeared shortly after at the top of the staircase wearing a hot pink vinyltube top and white vinyl pants with pink knee patches.[53] During the 2000 leg of the tour, entitled Crazy 2k Tour, Spears changed the opening sequence of the show; the show started with a skit in which the dancers came out oflockers and stayed in the stage until a bell rang. They all sat until a female teacher voice started calling their names. After the teacher called Spears, she emerged at the top of the staircase in a cloud of smoke, wearing a top and white stretch pants, to perform a shortdance mix of "...Baby One More Time".[54] She then entered one of the lockers and appeared in another one on the opposite side of the stage to perform "(You Drive Me) Crazy", which included a chair dance sequence referencing Janet Jackson's "Miss You Much" music video that ended with Spears saying "Is that the end?", quoting Jackson's phrase from the video.[55] The song was once again performed in a dance-oriented form on theOops!... I Did It Again Tour (2000–2001),[56] while on theDream Within a Dream Tour (2001–2002), the performance featured Spears being captured by her dancers.[57] "(You Drive Me) Crazy" was also performed onThe Onyx Hotel Tour (2004). For the tour, the song was remixed with elements oflatin percussion.[58] "Crazy" would not be performed by Spears for another nine years until it was included on the setlist of her Las Vegas residency show,Britney: Piece of Me (2013–2017).[59]
* Sales figures based on certification alone. ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.
^ab"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic.Note: Select 04. týden 2012 in the date selector. Retrieved March 3, 2012.
^"Hot 100 Singles Spotlight".Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 38. September 18, 1999. p. 131.A 12-inch vinyl configuration of 'Crazy' is due at retail Sept. 28...
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