1993 single by Melissa Etheridge
"Come to My Window" is a song by American singer-songwriter Melissa Etheridge, released in 1993 as the second single from her fourth studio album, Yes I Am (1993). This was the first song to become a hit after Etheridge publicly announced that she was a lesbian. With the driving force of gay rights, the song gained substantial airplay on radio stations, mostly through call-in requests.[citation needed] The song debuted on the Billboard charts after the first week of its release, reaching number 25 on the chart. The song also charted in Canada, reaching number 13 on the RPM Top Singles chart. It was the second song from Etheridge that earned her a Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance. In 2019, Billboard included "Come to My Window" in its list of the "30 Lesbian Love Songs".[1]
Song information
When the song was being promoted, a portion of the song's beginning was omitted. This was to help accommodate some radio stations that wanted an instrumental beginning rather than a vocal one. The song's lyrics describes the intense love that Etheridge has for another person. It describes situations that she is willing to endure and how happy the other person makes her feel. In addition, the song implicitly alludes to the singer's sexual orientation and activism by the lyrics:
- "I don't care what they think.
- I don't care what they say.
- What do they know about this love, anyway?"[citation needed]
Etheridge tells both in her autobiography and during the interview on the bonus DVD of her greatest hits album that out of all songs she has written, "Come to My Window" is the one that surprises her the most, and that she almost did not put it on the album. She states that while she wrote the song, she did not realize what she was actually writing and that it was not before meeting Tammy Lynn Michaels that she understood what this song means to other people. She also says that it has the best musical bridge part of all her songs.
The sound effect at the beginning was created by Mauricio Fritz Lewak who put coins inside of a pair of clash cymbals. This song was also about her girlfriend at the time.[citation needed]
Critical reception
Dave Sholin from the Gavin Report wrote "Singer/songwriter extraordinaire, Melissa Etheridge is never short on provocative imagery in any of her songs. She delivers one of her most powerful yet, which is supported by an equally riveting video."[2] Sam Wood from Philadelphia Inquirer felt "Come to My Window" "features the same annoying strummed tag line that seems to infect too much of what is called women's music. Etheridge may have intended to pay homage to her ghettoized sisters, but flaunting the contrived, amateurish chordal figure does nothing to add to the authenticity of the song. It just sinks it."[3]
Music video
The black-and-white music video for "Come to My Window", directed by Samuel Bayer, cuts between a mental patient (Juliette Lewis) and Etheridge playing her guitar and singing. The video also features "child-like" drawings in certain scenes. According to an episode of VH1's Pop Up Video, these drawings were created by a crew member's five-year-old daughter. Additionally, the video was to have included an appearance by a little girl; the mental patient's "lost childhood". While the appearance was filmed, it got lost during editing.[citation needed]
Track listings
All songs were written by Melissa Etheridge.
- "Come to My Window" – 3:55
- "Ain't It Heavy" (live) – 5:34
- "The Letting Go" (live) – 3:51
- "I'm the Only One" (live) – 5:30
- US and Canadian cassette single[7]
- "Come to My Window" – 3:55
- "Ain't It Heavy" (live) – 5:34
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- European and Australian CD single[8][9]
- "Come to My Window" – 3:55
- "Ain't It Heavy" (live) – 5:34
- "The Letting Go" (live) – 3:51
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Other versions
In 1997, The John Tesh Project featuring Brandon Fields on saxophone, covered the song from their album "Sax All Night."[21]
