Falling Slowly
Encyclopedia
"Falling Slowly" is a song written and performed by Glen Hansard
and Markéta Irglová
, as well as by Hansard's band, The Frames
. It appeared in their 2007 film Once
, from which it won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
at the 80th Academy Awards
.
developed the script around songs provided by Hansard and Irglová. In the movie, the duo play the song in Walton's music shop in Dublin, with Hansard on guitar and Irglová on piano. The couple performed it at gigs in various European venues over the next two years. Versions appeared in 2006 on two albums: The Cost
by Hansard's band The Frames
, and The Swell Season
, an album by Hansard and Irglová.
for Best Song Written For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media
; it lost to "Love You I Do
" from Dreamgirls
.
The song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
on 24 February 2008, ahead of the choral gospel
song "Raise It Up
" from August Rush
and three songs from the modern Disney musical Enchanted. The song's win marked the fourth year in a row that the Oscar winner had not been nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song
. For some time, the song's eligibility for an Oscar was in dispute, because it had been performed and recorded prior to the release of Once. The Academy ruled that because the song had been composed for the movie, and the prior public exposure during the long period that the movie took to produce had been minimal, it remained eligible. The Academy had ruled likewise on a similar controversy involving 2004 Best Original Song nominee "In the Deep
".
when it was first released by The Frames. 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.
on their 2009 covers album, Favorites at Play
.
Glen Hansard
Glen Hansard is the Academy Award–winning principal songwriter and vocalist/guitarist for Irish group The Frames and one half of folk rock duo, The Swell Season...
and Markéta Irglová
Markéta Irglová
Markéta Irglová is a Czech songwriter, musician, actress, and singer. As of 2010, she resides in New York City.-Early life:...
, as well as by Hansard's band, The Frames
The Frames
The Frames are an Irish band based in Dublin. Founded in 1990 by Glen Hansard, the band has been influential in the Dublin rock music scene. The group has released six albums...
. It appeared in their 2007 film Once
Once (film)
Once is a 2006 Irish musical film written and directed by John Carney. Set in Dublin, this naturalistic drama stars musicians Glen Hansard and Markéta Irglová as musicians...
, from which it won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . It is presented to the songwriters who have composed the best original song written specifically for a film...
at the 80th Academy Awards
80th Academy Awards
The 80th Academy Awards ceremony honored the best films in 2007 and was broadcast from the Kodak Theatre in Hollywood, California on ABC beginning at 5:30 p.m. PST/8:30 p.m. EST, February 24, 2008 . During the ceremony, the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences presented Academy Awards in 24...
.
History
The song was written while Once was in production. John CarneyJohn Carney (director)
John Carney is an Irish film and TV writer/director who specialises in low-budget indie films. He is best known for his award-winning 2007 movie Once. He is also a co-creator of the Irish TV drama series Bachelors Walk.-Life and career:...
developed the script around songs provided by Hansard and Irglová. In the movie, the duo play the song in Walton's music shop in Dublin, with Hansard on guitar and Irglová on piano. The couple performed it at gigs in various European venues over the next two years. Versions appeared in 2006 on two albums: The Cost
The Cost
The Cost is the sixth studio album by The Frames, released in Ireland on Plateau Records on September 22, 2006. The album was released worldwide on ANTI- on February 20, 2007. The album exhibits a sound more like that of For the Birds than their more recent album Burn the Maps...
by Hansard's band The Frames
The Frames
The Frames are an Irish band based in Dublin. Founded in 1990 by Glen Hansard, the band has been influential in the Dublin rock music scene. The group has released six albums...
, and The Swell Season
The Swell Season (album)
The Swell Season is the self-titled and first album by the duo The Swell Season, , released in 2006."Falling Slowly" went on to be nominated for a grammy and win the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 2008....
, an album by Hansard and Irglová.
Awards
The song was nominated at the 50th Grammy Awards50th Grammy Awards
The 50th Annual Grammy Awards took place at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California, on February 10, 2008. Kanye West received the most nominations, with eight. Amy Winehouse was the big winner, winning a total of five awards. Herbie Hancock's River: The Joni Letters won Album of the Year,...
for Best Song Written For Motion Picture, Television Or Other Visual Media
Grammy Award for Best Song Written for a Motion Picture, Television or Other Visual Media
The Grammy Award for Best Song Written for Visual Media has been awarded since 1988 and is awarded to songs written for films, television, video games or other visual media...
; it lost to "Love You I Do
Love You I Do
"Love You I Do" is a song performed by American R&B singer Jennifer Hudson in the 2006 film Dreamgirls. The music for the song was written by Henry Krieger, composer of the original Broadway play, with lyrics by Siedah Garrett. It is one of the four songs featured in the film that are not present...
" from Dreamgirls
Dreamgirls (film)
Dreamgirls is a 2006 musical drama film, directed by Bill Condon and jointly produced and released by DreamWorks and Paramount Pictures. The film debuted in three special road show engagements beginning December 15, 2006 before its nationwide release on December 25, 2006...
.
The song won the Academy Award for Best Original Song
Academy Award for Best Original Song
The Academy Award for Best Original Song is one of the awards given annually to people working in the motion picture industry by the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences . It is presented to the songwriters who have composed the best original song written specifically for a film...
on 24 February 2008, ahead of the choral gospel
Gospel
A gospel is an account, often written, that describes the life of Jesus of Nazareth. In a more general sense the term "gospel" may refer to the good news message of the New Testament. It is primarily used in reference to the four canonical gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John...
song "Raise It Up
Raise It Up (August Rush song)
"Raise It Up" is a 2007 song written by Jamal Joseph, Charles Mack and Tevin Thomas for the motion picture August Rush. "Raise It Up" is performed in the film by Jamia Simone Nash and Impact Repertory Theatre, an African-American youth theatre group based in Harlem...
" from August Rush
August Rush
August Rush is a 2007 drama film directed by Kirsten Sheridan and written by Paul Castro, Nick Castle, and James V. Hart, and produced by Richard Barton Lewis.-Plot:...
and three songs from the modern Disney musical Enchanted. The song's win marked the fourth year in a row that the Oscar winner had not been nominated for the Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song
Golden Globe Award for Best Original Song was awarded for the first time in 1962 and has been awarded annually since 1965 by the Hollywood Foreign Press Association.-1960s:...
. For some time, the song's eligibility for an Oscar was in dispute, because it had been performed and recorded prior to the release of Once. The Academy ruled that because the song had been composed for the movie, and the prior public exposure during the long period that the movie took to produce had been minimal, it remained eligible. The Academy had ruled likewise on a similar controversy involving 2004 Best Original Song nominee "In the Deep
In the Deep
"In the Deep" is a 2003 song written and performed by actress-singer Kathleen York, credited to her performing name Bird York. The song gained fame from its use in the critically acclaimed film Crash; it also appeared on her album The Velvet Hour. In 2006, the song was nominated for an Academy...
".
Charts
The song charted at #16 in the Irish Singles ChartIrish Singles Chart
The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured...
when it was first released by The Frames. 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.
| Chart (2008) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured... |
2 |
| Canadian Hot 100 Canadian Hot 100 The Canadian Hot 100 is a music singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine which ranks songs in Canada. The chart debuted in the Billboard issue dated June 16, 2007 and was made available for the first time via their online services on June 7, 2007... |
8 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday... |
61 |
Covers
"Falling Slowly" has been covered by synthpop group Joy ElectricJoy Electric
Joy Electric is the brand label for a series of electropop/synth pop productions by Ronnie Martin. Martin began producing music under the Joy Electric name in 1994, after the demise of Dance House Children, a band Ronnie was in with his brother Jason Martin of Starflyer 59. Starflyer 59 bass player...
on their 2009 covers album, Favorites at Play
Favorites at Play
Favorites at Play is an album by Joy Electric. The album consists solely of covers of songs from nine different artists. It is the first such album from Joy Electric.-Track listing:In parenthesis is the artist who originally performed the song....
.
External links
- "Falling Slowly" video on Fox Searchlight's YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is a video-sharing website, created by three former PayPal employees in February 2005, on which users can upload, view and share videos....
channel. - Fox Searchlight's website for Once includes material relating to the song.
- "Falling Slowly" guitar chords and lyrics from The Frames site.