As unpopular an opinion it may be, it has to be said.  Good intentions do not automatically result in good music.

Such occurred in 1997, when one of the most popular songs of the year was Puff Daddy’s “I’ll Be Missing You,” a song intended to pay tribute to The Notorious B.I.G. after he was assassinated earlier in the year, only to instead make me think, “Isn’t this just ‘Every Breath You Take’ sampled and put in another key?”  Last year, a host of songs were made to raise money and spirits during the horrible COVID-19 pandemic.  Coming to mind on the pop side was Ariana Grande and Justin Bieber’s “Stuck With U,” which raised $3.5 million for children’s charities, but as a song was just ignorant of the heavy stress hundreds of millions faced being stuck in their homes.  On the rock side of the spectrum, Shinedown raised over $300,000 for pandemic relief with their single “Atlas Falls,” which unfortunately didn’t take away that it was a bland, boring track.  And soon, when I cover 1985 in a few months, I’ll be subject to “We Are The World.”  Pray for me, people.

It’s good that these songs tried to help people, but unfortunately a song still comes down to its music and lyrics.  Learning that “MacArthur Park” singlehandedly ended a famine in Africa will not take away its legacy as one of the worst songs of all time.  And that brings us to this song about a tragedy.  Now that it’s time to reveal this song, let me go hide in my bunker to avoid the inevitable backlash…

“Tears In Heaven” – Eric Clapton

Pop
#2 peak (March 28-April 18, 1992)
#6 year-end, 26 weeks on chart

Mainstream Rock
#9 peak (February 8, 1992)
#48 year-end, 18 weeks on chart

UK
#5 peak (March 21-28, 1992)
#9 year-end, 12 weeks on chart

Ok.  Now that I’m in my secret bunker, I can go into detail as to why a song about the tragic death of a four year old is not good.  And it isn’t just that I’m about to bash on a song about tragedy, it’s also quite popular.  It is Clapton’s best selling single in the United States, beating out “Sunshine Of Your Love,” “Layla,” “I Shot The Sheriff,” and “Wonderful Tonight” among others.  At one point it was on Rolling Stone’s list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, and most people who have covered 1992 consider the song to be good and a touching tribute.  Unfortunately, as we’re about to find out, poor production and misplaced music does not safeguard you from criticism.

A quick recap of the tragedy as to why this song is paved with good intentions.  Eric Clapton wrote the song as a tribute to his son Conor, who tragically died in 1990 when he fell out of a 53rd floor window in New York City.  That is a terrible event that I do not wish upon anyone.  Lyrically, it discusses how Clapton wishes that Conor would be able to recognize him in heaven, and how he has to let go of his tragedy since his time to die has not yet come.  On paper, this reads like a touching tribute.  Clapton is reaching out to his son one last time before he has to move on without him.  Honestly, going over the song, there’s nothing wrong with the lyrics.  The sentiment of sadness is there.  So we have our lyrics set.  There’s just one little, teensy, weensy problem with this song…

The production is terrible. It’s just… awful.

Guys, I’m not exaggerating.  Other than for a song coming in the top three of this list, this may be the worst-produced rock song of the year.  It’s easily the song with the worst mixing.  Producer Russ Titelman and whoever mixed this track (you know who you are) crushed this song’s message under a bevy of horrendously mixed instruments and baffling instrumentation choices.

Let’s go over Music Production 101.  What is the most important instrument in nearly every single song that is released, regardless of genre?  The singer.  As in, the vocals.  I know we’re discussing rock music, the genre where music is emphasized over the lyrics.  But you still need to highlight the guy (or gal) up front.  On this song, Eric Clapton’s acoustic guitar and dobro, as well as JayDee Maness’s pedal steel guitar, are way too loud and easily cover up Clapton’s vocals.  And this should not have been a tough task, considering that the guitar is delicately played while the dobro and pedal steel are more of a supplement than the lead instruments.  But the instruments are so much louder than the vocals that Clapton is barely audible.  It’s to the point where I have to listen to “Tears In Heaven” really hard just to tell what Clapton is singing.  I can’t think of another song I’ve discussed on this channel that has done a worse job emphasizing the vocals.  Because the vocals are relegated to a side hustle on this song, the message about Conor’s death has become secondary.  What.  A.  Butchering.

And the problems with the music don’t end there.  Beginning in the second verse, a horn pattern begins playing.  But for some reason, they chose to play it off a synthesizer.  As with the production of the guitar, the synth is too loud and quickly becomes distracting.  I thought this song was about a child’s tragic death, not a stupid synth farting all over the song!  And that brings me to quite possibly the biggest problem I have overall.  Because the music is so distracting and Clapton’s vocals on “Tears In Heaven” are such a non-presence, the message is lost.  And the actual music isn’t really that pretty.  You could call it somber, sure, but it’s so flavorless, and it quickly becomes repetitive as the chorus is played four times in the song, with the guitar solo repeating the same chord progression.  A song about tragedy has become a song with all the energy and emotion of a coma patient.

Look, it is truly tragic that Eric Clapton’s son died in the way that he did, and it is also tragic that he died before he truly got to experience a life he could remember. However, a song still comes down to music and lyrics. When you write a song, how the message is presented is far more important than the actual message.  Just like how there have been great songs about having extramarital affairs (“Norweigan Wood” and “Another Girl” by The Beatles, as well as “Yeah!” by Usher) as well as great songs about reprehensible stereotypes of real problems (“Bodies” by the Sex Pistols), there have been bad songs about people trying to pay homage or help others.  And “Tears In Heaven” is a perfect example of this.  The message of honoring a deceased son does not take away from the atrocious production or the monotonous music.  Bottom line: I would rather listen to Stevie T’s parody of “Tears In Heaven” interspersed with lyrics from “Mangled” by Cannibal Corpse than listen to “Tears In Heaven” again.  It’s funny.  And it’s mixed and produced much better.  Just saying.

UP NEXT: After a pick that probably made you all angry, let’s get into something less controversial at #7: Dated hair metal.

SOURCES

Mamo, Heran. “Ariana Grande & Justin Bieber’s ‘Stuck With U’ Raised $3.5M for First Responders Children’s Foundation.” Billboard 4 August 2021. Web. 13 August 2022 https://www.billboard.com/music/pop/ariana-grande-justin-bieber-stuck-with-u-raised-3-5-million-first-responders-childrens-foundation-9610237/.

Johnson, Josh. “Shinedown Premieres Video For ‘Atlas Falls’ Charity Single.” ABC News 2020. Web. 13 August 2022 http://abcnewsradioonline.com/music-news/2020/5/22/shinedown-premieres-video-for-atlas-falls-charity-single.html.

IMAGE SOURCES

Single cover from Story Of Song