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If you’re looking for sheet music for your favorite songs, you’ve come to the right place! When We Were Young is the ultimate sheet music blog, featuring high-quality PDFs of popular songs from all genres. Whether you’re a beginner or a pro, we have the perfect song for you.
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Introduction
We’re a group of musicians and music lovers, and we’ve been blogging about sheet music for over 5 years. Our site is a go-to resource for sheet music beginners and experts alike, and we’re proud to say that we’ve helped thousands of people learn to read and play music.
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The early years
The early years are a crucial time in a person’s life. It’s when we learn to walk and talk, and start to develop our own personalities. And it’s also when we’re first introduced to music.
For many of us, our first exposure to music comes from our parents or other adults in our lives. We might hear them singing lullabies to us, or playing music on the radio, or even just humming a tune as they go about their day-to-day business. And as we get a little older, we start to explore music for ourselves. We might sing along with nursery rhymes, or dance around the living room to our favorite songs on the radio or TV.
As we continue to grow and develop, our relationship with music changes and evolves. For some of us, it becomes an important part of our lives, something that we turn to for comfort and inspiration. For others, it remains a casual pastime, something that we enjoy without necessarily giving it a lot of thought. But whether we realize it or not, the music that we listen to during our early years can have a profound effect on our later lives.
The making of the album
On March 26th, 2016, Shawn Mendes released his first full-length studio album, “Handwritten.” The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200, making Mendes the youngest artist to ever have a debut album reach the top of that chart.
The album’s lead single, “Stitches”, was released in March 2015 and peaked at number five on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States. The song’s success helped Mendes earn a spot as an opening act on Taylor Swift’s 1989 World Tour.
“Handwritten” was largely influenced by Mendes’ love for classic rock music. In an interview with MTV News, Mendes said that he grew up listening to John Mayer and that Mayer was one of his biggest inspirations.
The making of the album began in early 2015, shortly after Mendes had finished touring with Swift. He teamed up with producer Teddy Geiger and songwriter Scott Harris to write new material. The trio spent two weeks writing songs in a rental house in Los Angeles before heading to Toronto to begin recording the album.
Mendes worked with several different producers on “Handwritten”, including Geiger, Geoff Warburton, Illangelo, and Zachary Friendman. He also co-wrote all of the songs on the album with various writers including Julia Michaels, Justin Tranter, and Mitch Grassi.
The album was originally going to be released in September 2015 but was pushed back due to Mendes wanting to add more songs to it. In January 2016, he announced that the album would be released on April 14th but ended up releasing it two weeks early on April 5th instead.
“Handwritten” received generally positive reviews from music critics upon its release. Critics praised Mendes’ songwriting abilities and hailed the record as a significant improvement over his previous work. The album debuted at number one in several countries including Canada, Poland, Portugal, and Scotland. In the United States, it debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 selling 119,000 copies in its first week.
The singles
When We Were Young is the tenth studio album by British singer-songwriter Adele. It was released on 20 November 2015 in most countries by XL Recordings and in the United States by Columbia Records. The album is a collection of singles from Adele’s previous studio albums, 19 (2008) and 21 (2011).
The tour
The tour is the perfect way to see the country and meet new people. It’s also a great opportunity to get up close and personal with the music you love. We’ve put together a list of some of our favorite venues so you can see for yourself what all the fuss is about.
The tour kicks off in San Francisco at The Warfield on March 1st. From there, we’ll be making stops in Los Angeles, San Diego, Phoenix, Salt Lake City, Denver, Omaha, Minneapolis, Chicago, Detroit, Toronto, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, Baltimore and finally Washington D.C..
The legacy
The legacy of “When We Were Young” continues today, with the song being adapted for both stage and screen. In 2016, the musical “Everybody’s Talking About Jamie” featured a cover version of the song, performed by John McCrea. The following year, the film “Dirty Dancing” included a version of “When We Were Young” sung by Jenny Lind.
The cover versions
The cover versions
“When We Were Young” has been covered a number of times since its release. In 2016, English singer Birdy released a piano-based ballad rendition as the lead single from her third studio album, Beautiful Lies. The song peaked at number 21 on the UK Singles Chart.
In 2017, Canadian singer-songwriter Noah Kahan released a stripped-back acoustic version of the song. The following year, Kahan’s rendition was used in a commercial for Google Pixel 3.
Also in 2017, American Idol contestant Maddie Poppe covered the song during the show’s 16th season. Poppe’s cover peaked at number 20 on Billboard’s Mainstream Top 40 chart.
In 2018, English singer Calum Scott released a cover of the song as his debut single. The song peaked at number two on the UK Singles Chart and number one on Scotland’s Official Charts.
The re-release
The re-release of “When We Were Young” is an opportunity to reflect on the original intent of the song and its place in Adele’s album, “25.” The lyrics of the song are cynical and reflective, looking back on youth with both fondness and disappointment. The original sheet music for the song reflects this sentiment, with a slow, melancholy melody that reflects the regretful tone of the lyrics. The re-release of “When We Were Young” is a chance to revisit this classic song and appreciate its place in Adele’s discography.
The movie
When We Were Young is a 2016 American coming-of-age drama film directed and written by James Ponsoldt, based on the 2006 novel by Tim Tharrington. The film stars Mae Whitman, Bella Thorne, Graham Phillips, recording artist Shawn Mendes, and Nick Eversman. The film follows a group of friends who reconnect after 20 years apart.
The movie was released in the United States on February 26, 2016, by Paramount Pictures.
The final word
So, that’s the end of our blog series on when we were young. We hope you have enjoyed reading it as much as we have enjoyed putting it together. We would like to leave you with one final thought from Tobias:
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“I think the biggest thing I’ve learned is that it’s never too late to start something new. Whether you’re 10 or 100, there’s always time for learning and growth. The world is constantly changing, and we need to change with it.”
