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| "Falling Slowly" | |
|---|---|
| Single byGlen Hansard andMarkéta Irglová | |
| from the albumOnce soundtrack | |
| Released | 21 April 2006 (The Swell Season) 4 September 2006 (Beauty in Trouble soundtrack)[1] 22 September 2006 (The Cost) 22 May 2007 (Once soundtrack) February 2008 (radio single) |
| Genre | |
| Length | 4:50 (album Version) 4:04 (soundtrack version) 4:35 (The Frames version) |
| Label | Overcoat Recordings |
| Songwriters | |
| Producer | Glen Hansard |
"Falling Slowly" is anindie folk/indie rock song written, composed and performed byGlen Hansard andMarkéta Irglová. It was featured on the soundtrack of the 2007 Irishmusical romance filmOnce, which starred Hansard and Irglová, and for which it won theAcademy Award for Best Original Song at the80th Academy Awards.[2] The song was also recorded by Hansard's bandThe Frames.
The song was written and composed whileOnce was in production. The film's director and screenwriter,John Carney, developed the script around songs which Hansard and Irglová had provided to him.[3] In the movie, the duo play the song in the Waltons Music shop across from theGeorge's Street Arcade in Dublin,[4] with Hansard on guitar and Irglová on piano. The couple performed it at gigs in various European venues over the next two years.[5] Versions appeared in 2006 on two albums:The Cost, which Hansard's bandThe Frames recorded and released, andThe Swell Season, an album on which Hansard and Irglová collaborated.[6]
According to the "First Showing" article:
After almost getting her acceptance speech skipped and almost not getting to say a word for her acceptance at the 2008 ceremony after their Oscar win, Irglova made a speech about the song in which at the end of the speech she says, "This song was written from a perspective of hope, and hope at the end of the day connects us all, no matter how different we are..."[7]
The song charted at #16 in theIrish Singles Chart when The Frames first released it. The Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová version charted at #28 in December 2007, before peaking at #2 in March 2008, following the song's Oscar win. It sold 944,000 digital downloads in the United States.[8]
| Chart (2008) | Peak position[9] |
|---|---|
| Irish Singles Chart | 2 |
| Canadian Hot 100 | 8 |
| USBillboard Hot 100 | 61 |
"Falling Slowly" was nominated for a2008 Grammy, forBest Song Written For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media; it lost to "Love You I Do" fromDreamgirls.[10]
The song won theAcademy Award for Best Original Song on 24 February 2008, beating out the choralgospel song "Raise It Up" fromAugust Rush and three songs from theDisney musicalEnchanted.[6][11] The win marked the fourth consecutive year that the Oscar-winning song was not nominated for theGolden Globe Award for Best Original Song.
The song's Oscar eligibility had been disputed because it was performed and recorded prior to the release ofOnce[6] and it was even the title song of the movieBeauty in Trouble released in 2006.[12][13] TheAcademy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences ruled, however, that because the song had been written and composed for the movie, and because any public exposure during the long movie development had been minimal, it remained eligible.[a][5]
"Falling Slowly" appears on theoriginal cast album of thestage adaptation ofOnce, performed bySteve Kazee andCristin Milioti; this album won theGrammy Award for Best Musical Theater Album.[14]
It has been covered by synthpop groupJoy Electric on their 2009 covers album,Favorites at Play.[15]
In Season 1 of "The Voice" duoElenowen sang Falling Slowly for their Blind Audition
In season 8 ofAmerican Idol,Kris Allen covered the song during a night titled "Songs from the Cinema".
Derek Webb recorded a cover of the song on his democratically selected cover albumDemocracy, Vol. 2.[16]
The song also has been covered by the operatic pop groupIl Divo on their albumWicked Game as a Spanish rendition, as “Falling Slowly (Te Prometo)”.[17]
It is covered it onCeltic Thunder'sVoyage album in 2012.[18]
Josh Groban covered it on his 2013 albumAll That Echoes, and sang withIdina Menzel in 2018.[19]
Louise Dearman andShayne Ward released a version on 17 February 2014.[20]
AustraliansKate Ceberano andDavid Campbell released a version on 17 December 2014.[21]
English boy bandCollabro covered the song on the special edition of theirStars album on 15 August 2014.[22]
Welsh singerJohn Owen-Jones featured the song on his most recent album,Rise, released in March 2015.[23]
In April 2015, as a one-time promotional event for the Toronto stage production ofOnce,Mirvish Productions invited local guitarists to perform the song with the cast. Producers predicted about a hundred participants; ultimately 926 guitarists performed in the event.[24]
The song was covered by husband and wife duo, actorsNathan West (who performs under the name East of Eli) andChyler Leigh, who released the song, under the name "Westleigh", to their production studio, Modern Machine's SoundCloud.[25][26]
It has also been covered by member of K-pop groupExo,Park Chanyeol, on his Instagram account a couple of times.
In season 13 ofThe Voice, the song is covered byAddison Agen andAdam Levine.
DuringThe Yogscast 2017 Christmas charity live streams, husband and wife duo Alex and Briony Turner covered the song.[27]
The song is covered in Season 2, Episode 6 ofGood Trouble, "Twenty-Fine", by cast members Emma Hunton and Josh Pence.
Jung Yonghwa fromCNBLUE covered the song several times, on the reality showWe Got Married with his virtual wifeSeohyun fromSNSD, the KBS2 variety show Win Win, MBCRadio Star,SBS Strong Heart,KBS Star Golden Bell, the Beautiful Morning with KCW Radio program, and on CNBLUE'sOne More Time arena tour in Hiroshima in 2013. Yonghwa stated that it is one of his favorite songs.Lea Michele andDarren Criss played the song multiple times as part of their setlist on their LMDC tour in 2018.
The song was covered as a duet by Minnesota artists Joe Vitullo and Adrianne Prettyman on the album "Got It Covered" released in 2022.[28]
Response to "Falling Slowly" was generally positive. Glen Hansard's and Marketa Irglova's performances of "Falling Slowly" on screen and on stage amazed so many people thatBob Dylan wanted them to be his opening act on his World Tour.[29]
Adam Levine and Addison Agen, the 2017 finalist on thethirteenth season of the U.S.The Voice performed the song as a duet in the 2017 Top 4 finalist stage of the performances.
The song was featured prominently on the Fox show,Last Man on Earth sung byJason Sudeikis andWill Forte.
