How to Save a Life by the Fray

How to Save a Life is a song by The Fray. It is also the title of their debut album. The song has been downloaded over 2.8 million times and has been certified as 2x Platinum by the RIAA. At 58 consecutive weeks, it is among one of the longest streaks.

How to Save a Life reached number three in the Billboard Hot 100. It was an international hit, too. It reached the top five for charts in Australia, Ireland, Sweden, and the U.K. It was leaked five weeks early in the U.K. It became the eleventh biggest sold single in the country.

Isaac Slade, the lead singer and songwriter of the band, said the song was influenced by his experiences as a mentor at a camp for troubled teens. He stated that he felt protected, given his situation in life, while other teenagers had many problems. Slade claimed one particular teenager, a seventeen year old male, was his main inspiration. He remembers that this teenager had many problems, but did not have any support from his family.

With its catchy melody and strong purpose, the song has been featured on many television shows. It first was played on Grey's Anatomy, before it was a big hit. It was featured again in the show the next season, and at that point, members of Grey's Anatomy agreed that this song was their "theme" for the show. It was aired again in the third season. Then, it was aired on Scrubs the same year. After these two airings, the song jumped twenty-two spots on the charts, reaching number 29. It would later be included on the Grey's Anatomy soundtrack album.

After being aired on these two shows, the song became a wide television hit. It was aired on One Tree Hill, Family Guy, Ghost Whisperer, The Hills, 8^th & Ocean, Cold Case, and Big Brother 8. It was also featured on some British shows. It was also used in A Shot at Love.

The band has released three music videos for this song. The original debuted on VH1 on September 12, 2006. In this video, the theme is reoccurring light and a stoppage of time. There is a car crash, but shows all the victims in a pause of time. The setting is in a heavily wooded area and in a dark warehouse.

The second music video made included scenes from Grey's Anatomy. Only the scenes from The Fray in the warehouse are shown, as the wooded area is discarded.

Finally, On December 6, 2006, the third video was released. It shows different children, ages twelve to eighteen, that seem to be depressed or suicidal. They are seen crying and screaming against a white background. The Fray can be seen playing against this same background. At the end of the video, it appears the children have a strong emotional release and find a catharsis. This video eventually reached number 1 on TRL.

The song reached number three on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. It reached the top spot for U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary and Hot Adult Top 40 tracks. It reached number four for Hot Christian Songs, third for Top 40 Mainstream, and fourth for Pop 100. It was also able to reach as high as 31^st in Hot Modern Rock Tracks.

Wikipedia, http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/How_to_Save_a_Life_(song)