On Bended Knee

"On Bended Knee"
Single by Boyz II Men
from the album  II
B-side	"I'll Make Love to You" (remix – sexy version) "Al Final del Camino"
Released	November 11, 1994
Genre	R&B
Length	5:29
Label	Motown
Songwriter(s)	Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
Producer(s)	Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
Boyz II Men singles chronology
"I'll Make Love to You" (1994) "On Bended Knee" (1994) "Thank You" (1995)
Music video
"On Bended Knee" on YouTube

"On Bended Knee" is a song by American R&B group Boyz II Men for the Motown label. It was written and produced by Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, and released in November 1994 as the second single from the group's second album, II (1994). The song reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart and number two on the Billboard Hot Singles Sales chart on December 3, 1994. It stayed at number one for a total of six non-consecutive weeks. The accompanying music video was directed by Lionel C. Martin.

The single is notable for having replaced the previous Boyz II Men single, "I'll Make Love to You", as the top song on the Billboard Hot 100. This was the first time that an act had replaced itself at number one since the Beatles, when "I Want to Hold Your Hand", "She Loves You", and "Can't Buy Me Love" monopolized the top of the chart for a total of 14 weeks. In the lyrics of the song, the speaker begs "on bended knee" for his ex-lover to come back to him, and apologizes for his wrongdoing.

Composition

Sheet music for "On Bended Knee" shows a slow tempo of 60 beats per minute and the song starts in the key of A-flat major for the intro, then modulates to E-flat major for most of the song, but is also modulated to E major for the third chorus, then to F major for the final chorus, and then again to B-flat major for the outro.^[1]

Critical reception

Gerald Martinez from New Sunday Times wrote that the song, along with its predecessor "I'll Make Love to You", "tries to recapture the magic of "End of the Road", and they come close. Big production numbers with solid hooks, they should be flooding our airwaves for the next few months."^[2] Paul Evans from Rolling Stone declared it as a "lush swoon-and-croon" ballad "of the kind the Boyz' hard-core fans demand."^[3]

Music video

The accompanying music video for "On Bended Knee", directed by Lionel C. Martin, featured the band members and their breakup and eventual reconciliation with four famous actresses: Kim Fields, Renée Jones, Lark Voorhies, and Victoria Rowell. The video was filmed in New Orleans, Louisiana. It includes footage from Audubon Park, a streetcar, and the French Quarter.

The video begins with Wanya's girlfriend (Voorhies) in the car with him, accusing him of looking at another woman at the grocery store, and she gets out of the car, leaving Wanya alone. He eventually finds her sitting on bleachers where they make up. Shawn meets a girl (Rowell) with a dog at the park and falls in love with her after just meeting her. Michael gets into a fight with his girlfriend (Jones) on his birthday and he's shown alone, drawing a picture of her, but then she comes back to him. Nathan is shown concentrating more on writing music than spending time with his girlfriend (Fields), which frustrates her so she writes a breakup note on his mirror and leaves him, but she eventually returns to him. The band appears singing on the subway and in the rain.

Track listings

US maxi-CD single "On Bended Knee" (human rhythm remix) – 5:29 "On Bended Knee" (swingamix) – 5:26 "On Bended Knee" (LP version) – 5:29 "On Bended Knee" (human rhythm remix instrumental) – 5:29 "I'll Make Love to You" (remix – sexy version) – 4:33

German single "On Bended Knee" (radio edit) – 4:33 "End of the Road" (pop edit) – 3:39 Europe maxi-CD single "On Bended Knee" (radio edit) – 4:33 "On Bended Knee" (LP version) – 5:29 "End of the Road" (pop edit) – 3:39 "Al Final del Camino" ("End of the Road" – Spanish version) – 5:50

Charts

Weekly charts Weekly chart performance for "On Bended Knee" Chart (1994–1995) Peak position Australia (ARIA)[4] 7 Belgium (Ultratop 50 Flanders)[5] 20 Canada Top Singles (RPM)[6] 1 Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[7] 8 Canada Retail Singles (The Record)[8] 2 Canada Contemporary Hit Radio (The Record)[8] 1 Europe (European Hot 100)[9] 68 Europe (European AC Radio)[10] 8 France (SNEP)[11] 34 Germany (GfK)[12] 63 Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[13] 25 Ireland (IRMA)[14] 24 Netherlands (Dutch Top 40)[15] 18 Netherlands (Single Top 100)[16] 21 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[17] 4 Panama (UPI)[18] 2 Scotland (OCC)[19] 57 UK Singles (OCC)[20] 20 UK Hip Hop/R&B (OCC)[21] 6 US Billboard Hot 100[22] 1 US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[23] 8 US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs (Billboard)[24] 2 US Pop Airplay (Billboard)[25] 1 US Rhythmic (Billboard)[26] 1

Year-end charts 1995 annual chart performance for "On Bended Knee" Chart (1995) Position Canada Top Singles (RPM)[27] 12 Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)[28] 84 US Billboard Hot 100[29] 5 US Adult Contemporary (Billboard)[30] 23 US Hot R&B Singles (Billboard)[31] 12 US Top 40/Mainstream (Billboard)[32] 8 US Top 40/Rhythm-Crossover (Billboard)[33] 5 Decade-end charts Decade-end chart performance for "On Bended Knee" Chart (1990–1999) Position US Billboard Hot 100[34] 14

Certifications

Certifications for "On Bended Knee"

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[35]	3× Platinum	3,000,000^‡
^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United States	November 1, 1994	7-inch vinyl CD cassette	Motown	^[citation needed]
United Kingdom	November 14, 1994			[36]
Japan	December 1, 1994	Mini-CD		[37]

References

1. "On Bended Knee". Musicnotes. February 21, 2011.
2. Martinez, Gerald (September 18, 1994). "Boyz get older and wiser". New Sunday Times. p. 17. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
3. Evans, Paul (December 29, 1994 – January 12, 1995). "The year in recordings". Rolling Stone. Issue 698/699.
4. "Boyz II Men – On Bended Knee". ARIA Top 50 Singles. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
5. "Boyz II Men – On Bended Knee" (in Dutch). Ultratop 50. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
6. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 2701." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
7. "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 2705." RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
8. Lwin, Nanda (2000). Top 40 Hits: The Essential Chart Guide. Music Data Canada. p. 49. ISBN 1-896594-13-1.
9. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles". Music & Media. Vol. 11, no. 49. December 3, 1994. p. 11.
10. "Adult Contemporary Europe Top 25" (PDF). Music & Media. January 21, 1995. p. 21. Retrieved May 28, 2023.
11. "Boyz II Men – On Bended Knee" (in French). Les classement single. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
12. "Boyz II Men – On Bended Knee" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts. Retrieved May 1, 2021.
13. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (28.1 '95 – 3.2 '95)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). January 28, 1995. p. 20. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
14. "The Irish Charts – Search Results – On Bended Knee". Irish Singles Chart. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
15. "Nederlandse Top 40 – Boyz II Men" (in Dutch). Dutch Top 40. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
16. "Boyz II Men – On Bended Knee" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
17. "Boyz II Men – On Bended Knee". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
18. "Discos más populares de Latinoamérica". El Siglo de Torreón. April 21, 1995. Retrieved September 30, 2022.
19. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
20. "Boyz II Men: Artist Chart History". Official Charts Company. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
21. "Official Hip Hop and R&B Singles Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company.
22. "Boyz II Men Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
23. "Boyz II Men Chart History (Adult Contemporary)". Billboard. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
24. "Boyz II Men Chart History (Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
25. "Boyz II Men Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
26. "Boyz II Men Chart History (Rhythmic)". Billboard. Retrieved June 17, 2017.
27. "RPM Top 100 Hit Tracks of 1995". RPM. Retrieved March 19, 2023 – via Library and Archives Canada.
28. "RPM Top 100 Adult Contemporary Tracks of 1995". RPM. Retrieved March 19, 2023 – via Library and Archives Canada.
29. "Billboard Top 100 – 1995". Archived from the original on August 15, 2009. Retrieved August 27, 2010.
30. "1995 The Year in Music" (PDF). Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 51. December 23, 1995. p. YE-80. Archived (PDF) from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved August 27, 2021.
31. "The Year in Music: Hot R&B Singles". Billboard. Vol. 107, no. 51. December 23, 1995. p. YE-38.
32. "Most Played Mainstream Top 40 Songs of 1995" (PDF). Airplay Monitor. Vol. 3, no. 51. December 15, 1995. p. 8. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
33. "Most Played Rhythmic Top 40 Songs of 1995" (PDF). Airplay Monitor. Vol. 3, no. 51. December 15, 1995. p. 9. Retrieved November 21, 2023.
34. "Hot 100 Singles of the '90s". Billboard. Vol. 111, no. 52. December 25, 1999. p. YE-20. Retrieved October 15, 2010.
35. "American single certifications – Boyz II Men – On Bended Knee". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 11, 2024.
36. "Single Releases". Music Week. November 12, 1994. p. 23.
37. "Boyz II Men Discography" (in Japanese). PolyGram. Archived from the original on February 21, 1999. Retrieved August 27, 2023.