Greater (song) explained

Greater
Type:single
Artist:MercyMe
Album:Welcome to the New
Recorded:2013–14
Genre:
Length:[1]
Label:Fair Trade/Columbia
Producer:
  • Garcia
  • Glover
Prev Title:Shake
Prev Year:2013
Next Title:Flawless
Next Year:2015

"Greater" is the second single by contemporary Christian music band MercyMe for their eighth studio album, Welcome to the New (2014).[2] It was released as a single on June 20, 2014. The song peaked at No. 2 on the US Hot Christian Songs chart, blocked from the top by "Oceans (Where Feet May Fail)" by Hillsong United. It was their record-extending twelfth Christian Airplay chart topper. It lasted 49 weeks on the overall chart.[3] It also peaked at No. 14 on the Billboard Bubbling Under Hot 100.[4] The song is played in a D major key, and 116 beats per minute.[5]

The song also appears in the compilation album, WOW Hits 2016.[6]

Background

"Greater" was released on June 20, 2014 as the second single from their eighth studio album Welcome to the New.[7] Bart Millard, the band's frontman, revealed the meaning of the song in an interview with NewReleaseToday, "My kids have memorized the album already. Nothing warms your heart more than to hear your kids sing this message. The thing with 'Greater' is that my middle son Charlie is a lot like me. In fact, I went through a lot of grief counseling these past few years. My grief counselor said if I ever want to know what I'm like when in a healthy family to watch Charlie. One day I was trying to tell my son, because he has a stuttering problem, we were talking, and I said, "Buddy, people may make fun of you, but you have something inside of you that is telling you that you're something different, that you're stronger than that and that you're beautiful. We were at church one day and some kids made of him and he was kind of down. I told him, 'You know what I've told you. That's not them. The enemy may be using them, but these kids are good kids. They're not coming after you, it's just the enemy is taking shots at you. He's taking shots at you because you're something special and he's afraid of something you may do. I've always told him to set his mind on things above, and he started singing this song, 'You are holy, righteous and redeemed.' I just started bawling. From time to time I can hear him singing this song in the house and I've thought that's the reason to make a record."[8]

Composition

"Greater" is an CCM, Worship and Pop Rock track with Amerciana, folk and country elements and some acoustic elements,[9] [10] which has a "campfire sing-along" vibe,[11] and this takes a cue from Rend Collective's music.[12] It is originally in the key of D major, with a tempo of 116 beats per minute. Written in common time, Millard's vocal range spans from D3 to B4 during the song.[13] Commercial performance

"Greater" spent 16 weeks at No. 1 on the Christian Airplay chart,[14] and peaked at No. 2 on both the Christian Digital Songs chart[15] and the Christian Songs chart. It also appeared on the Bubbling Under Hot 100 chart at No. 14 and Heatseekers Songs chart at No. 21.[16] [17]

Track listing

CD release[18]
  1. "Greater"
  2. "Greater (Vocal Demonstration)"
  3. "Greater (High Key with Background Vocals)"
  4. "Greater (High Key without Background Vocals)"
  5. "Greater (Medium Key with Background Vocals)"
  6. "Greater (Medium Key without Background Vocals)"
  7. "Greater (Low Key with Background Vocals)"
  8. "Greater (Low Key without Background Vocals)"

Music video

The lyric video of "Greater" was published on YouTube on July 11, 2014.[19] As of March 2019, the video has received more than 40 million views. The official music video of "Greater" was released on November 21, 2014, through YouTube.[20]

Charts

Weekly charts

Chart (2014-2015)Peak
position
US Christian AC (Billboard)[21] 1
US Christian AC Indicator (Billboard)[22] 1
US Heatseekers Songs (Billboard)[23] 21

Year-end charts

Chart (2014)Peak
position
US Christian AC (Billboard)[24] 12
US Christian Airplay (Billboard)[25] 12
US Christian Songs (Billboard)[26] 6
Chart (2015)Peak
position
US Christian AC (Billboard)[27] 7
US Christian Airplay (Billboard)[28] 8
US Christian Songs (Billboard)[29] 9

Decade-end charts

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Greater - MercyMe on Spotify . April 8, 2014. Spotify . Spotify . March 28, 2019.
  2. Web site: Lifer by MercyMe. March 31, 2017. February 7, 2019.
  3. Web site: Hot Christian Songs September 6, 2014. September 6, 2014. Billboard. March 28, 2019.
  4. Web site: Greater by MercyMe on Bubbling Under. March 25, 2014. Billboard. March 28, 2019.
  5. Web site: Key & BPM for Greater by MercyMe. March 25, 2014. TuneBat. March 28, 2019.
  6. Web site: iTunes (U.S.) - Music - Various Artists - WOW Hits 2016. March 28, 2019. September 25, 2015. iTunes (U.S.).
  7. Web site: Welcome To the New – MercyMe | Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards . AllMusic . April 8, 2014 . . March 28, 2019.
  8. Web site:
    1. 510 - "Greater" by MercyMe
    . Newreleasetoday.com. March 28, 2019.
  9. Web site: https://web.archive.org/web/20140408222330/http://christianmusiczine.com/mercyme-welcome-to-the-new-review/ . MercyMe – Welcome To The New (Review) . Andre . Joshua . April 8, 2014 . April 7, 2014 . Christian Music Zine . March 28, 2019.
  10. Web site: REVIEW: MercyMe, Welcome to the New . Williams . Lindsay . April 16, 2014 . New Release Tuesday . March 28, 2019.
  11. Web site: CD Reviews: SoMo; Martina McBride; Manchester Orchestra; Carlene Carter; MercyMe; Nathaniel Rateliff; Saintseneca; Michaela Anne; Katie Herzig . Levy . Piet . April 8, 2014 . Milwaukee Journal Sentinel . March 28, 2019.
  12. Web site: Reviews – Mercy Me – Welcome to the New . Davies . Jono . April 18, 2014 . Louder Than the Music . March 28, 2019.
  13. Web site: Greater by MercyMe. Musicnotes.com. March 28, 2019.
  14. Web site: Chart Highlights: Top 40 Clicks 'Like' on New 5 Seconds of Summer Remake. Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc . December 29, 2014. March 28, 2019.
  15. Web site: MercyMe Album & Song Chart History – Christian Digital Songs. Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. March 28, 2019.
  16. Web site: Greater by Mercyme Heatseeker Songs. Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc . March 28, 2019.
  17. Web site: Greater by Mercyme Bubbling Under Hot 100. Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc . March 28, 2019.
  18. Web site: Search - MercyMe :: Greater [Accompaniment/Performance Track]]. SwapACD. March 28, 2019.
  19. Web site: MercyMe - Greater (Official Lyric Video) . July 11, 2014. . March 28, 2019.
  20. Web site: MercyMe - Greater (Official Music Video) . November 21, 2014 . . March 28, 2019.
  21. Web site: MercyMe - Christian AC History . Billboard . March 28, 2019.
  22. Web site: Christian AC Indicator . https://web.archive.org/web/20180618204746/https://www.billboard.com/music/mercyme/chart-history/christian-ac-indicator. dead. June 18, 2018. Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. March 28, 2019.
  23. Web site: MercyMe - Chart history - Billboard. March 28, 2019. Billboard.
  24. Web site: Christian AC - Year-End 2014 - Billboard. March 28, 2019.
  25. Web site: Christian Airplay - Year-End 2014 - Billboard. March 28, 2019.
  26. Web site: Hot Christian Songs – Year-End 2014 . Billboard. March 28, 2019.
  27. Web site: Christian AC - Year-End 2015 - Billboard. March 28, 2019.
  28. Web site: Christian Airplay - Year-End 2015 - Billboard. March 28, 2019.
  29. Web site: Hot Christian Songs – Year-End 2015. Billboard. March 28, 2019.
  30. Web site: Hot Christian Songs – Decade-End 2010s. https://web.archive.org/web/20191031231618/https://www.billboard.com/music/mercyme/chart-history/3AT. dead. October 31, 2019. Billboard. October 31, 2019.