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Composition and lyrical interpretation[edit]

"Cry Me a River" is a pop ballad[1] with an instrumentation that features clavinet, guitars,[2][1] beatboxing,[3] synthesizers, Arabian-inspired riffs and Gregorian chants.[4] The instruments are arranged into what critics described as a graceful and mysterious melody.[4] Jane Stevenson of Jam! said the single combines gospel and opera.[5] Tyler Martin of Stylus Magazine enjoyed the way that the song unconventionally mixed a range of experimental sounds.[6] According to Martin, the wave synth affects the real strings to create a strange dissonance.[6] The song's chorus devolves into a choral reading in which Timberlake pleads over the group. "Cry Me a River" finishes with a Timbaland vocal sample.[6]

"Cry Me a River" is written in the key of B major, in common time, with a tempo of 74 beats per minute.[1] Timberlake's vocal range spans from C♯4 to B5.[1] Billboard magazine critics called "Cry Me a River" a bittersweet funk song, in which Timberlake's "familiar tenor belting" is tempered with a soulful falsetto and a "convincingly aggressive rock-spiked baritone" rasp.[7] David Browne of Entertainment Weekly labeled the song "a haunted, pained farewell".[8]

Lyrically, the song is about a brokenhearted man who moves on from his past.[9] A Rolling Stone reviewer called the song a "breakup aria".[10] According to Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian, "Cry Me a River" stands out for its "slow-building sense of drama", which highlights Timberlake at his "husky best".[11] The song begins with the phrase "You were my sun, you were my earth", which according to Timbaland was Timberlake's inspiration to write the song.[12][1] Tanya L. Edwards of MTV News observed that Timberlake was wronged and said this is demonstrated by the lyrics: "You don't have to say whatcha did / I already know, I found out from him / Now there's just no chance."[13] The chorus contains the lines: "Told me you loved me, why did you leave me all alone / Now you tell me you need me when you call me on the phone."[14] Slant Magazine's Sal Cinquemani called Timberlake's 2007 single "What Goes Around... Comes Around" an ostensible sequel to "Cry Me a River" both lyrically and musically.[15]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b c d e "Justin Timberlake Cry Me a River – Digital Sheet Music". Musicnotes.com. Alfred Music Publishing. Retrieved October 28, 2012.
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Notes was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ Cinquemani, Sal (November 8, 2002). "Justin Timberlake – Justified". Slant Magazine. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  4. ^ a b Needham, Alex (November 1, 2002). "Justin Timberlake : Justified". NME. IPC Media. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  5. ^ Stevenson, Jane. "Music – Artists – Album Review: Justified". Jam!. Canoe.ca. Retrieved May 17, 2012.
  6. ^ a b c "Justin Timberlake – Justified". Stylus Magazine. Todd Burns. September 1, 2003. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  7. ^ "Timberlake In Sync With '60s Sounds On His Solo Debut". Billboard. Vol. 114. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 2003. p. 73. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved May 18, 2012.
  8. ^ Browne, David (October 28, 2002). "Justin Timberlake – Justified (2002)". Entertainment Weekly. Time Warner. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  9. ^ Boyd, Denise (November 20, 2002). "Justin Timberlake: Justified – Review". BBC Music. BBC. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  10. ^ "500 Greatest Songs of All the Time: Justin Timberlake, 'Cry Me a River'". Rolling Stone. Wenner Media LLC. Archived from the original on January 27, 2013. Retrieved May 16, 2012.
  11. ^ Sullivan, Caroline (November 1, 2002). "Justin Timberlake: Justified". The Guardian. Retrieved May 15, 2012.
  12. ^ Cite error: The named reference huffington was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  13. ^ L. Edwards, Tanya (February 13, 2003). "Crying A River This Valentine's Day? Join Justin Timberlake". MTV News. Viacom. Retrieved May 16, 2012.
  14. ^ M. Silverman, Stephen (December 30, 2002). "Just 'Didn't See' Britney, Says Justin". People. Time Warner. Retrieved May 16, 2012.
  15. ^ Cinquemani, Sal (September 5, 2006). "Justin Timberlake: FutureSex/LoveSounds | Music Review". Slant Magazine. Retrieved May 16, 2012.
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