Wishing I Was There

"Wishing I Was There" is a song by Australian singer-songwriter Natalie Imbruglia, released on 25 May 1998 as the third single from her debut album, Left of the Middle (1997). The track was produced by Phil Thornalley and was co-written by Imbruglia, Thornalley and Colin Campsie. The single reached number five in Canada, Hungary, and Iceland, became a top-twenty hit in the United Kingdom, and broke the top 30 in Imbruglia's native Australia.

"Wishing I Was There"
Single by Natalie Imbruglia
from the album Left of the Middle
B-side	"Why" "Impressed"
Released	25 May 1998 (1998-05-25)
Length	4:25 (radio edit) 3:50 (album version)
Label	RCA BMG
Songwriter(s)	Natalie Imbruglia Phil Thornalley Colin Campsie
Producer(s)	Phil Thornalley
Natalie Imbruglia singles chronology
"Big Mistake" (1998) "Wishing I Was There" (1998) "Smoke" (1998)
Music video
"Wishing I Was There" on YouTube

Background and reception

On 25 May 1998, RCA Records released "Wishing I Was There" as the third single from Left of the Middle.^[1] Prior to this song's release, Imbruglia's first two singles, "Torn" and "Big Mistake" were major chart hits during late 1997 and early 1998. "Wishing I Was There" followed, but was less successful than her first two singles, reaching number 19 on the UK Singles Chart, number 24 in Australia, and number 40 in New Zealand. In Canada, however, the song reached number five on the RPM Top Singles chart in September 1998, becoming her second hit there after "Torn", which spent 12 weeks at number one between April and July.^[2]

In the United States, the song was not allowed to chart on the Billboard Hot 100 due to rules in place at the time but reached a peak of number 25 on the Billboard Hot 100 Airplay chart, where "Torn" had stayed at number one for 11 weeks.^[3] It also peaked at number 13 on the Adult Top 40 chart and number 15 on the Mainstream Top 40 chart. Elsewhere, the song charted in Belgium, France, Germany, and the Netherlands, but did not reach the top 50 in any of those countries. It did, however, make it to number 27 in Italy.

Composition

"Wishing I Was There" is a song with a single version length of three minutes and 52 seconds and an album version of four minutes and 25 seconds.^[4][5] The song is set in the key of F major and has a medium tempo – 96 beats per minute – with a piano, guitar and vocal arrangement. Imbruglia is co-credited, with Phil Thornalley and Colin Campsie, for both lyrics and music.^[6]

Music video

The music video was shot in parts of New York. Towards the end of the video, the now destroyed World Trade Center complex and parts of lower Manhattan are featured.

Track listings

Australian and Japanese CD single^[7]^[8] "Wishing I Was There" – 4:25 "Why" – 4:18 "Big Mistake" (MTV live version) – 5:07 "Wishing I Was There" (Transister Remix) – 3:33 UK CD1^[5] "Wishing I Was There" – 4:25 "Big Mistake" (live version on MTV) – 5:07 "Why" – 4:18

UK CD2^[9] "Wishing I Was There" – 4:25 "Wishing I Was There" (Transister Remix) – 3:33 "Impressed" (Tim Bran Remix) – 4:08 UK cassette single and European CD single^[10]^[11] "Wishing I Was There" – 4:25 "Why" – 4:18

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1998) Peak position Australia (ARIA)^[12] 24 Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)^[13] 5 Canada Top Singles (RPM)^[14] 5 Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)^[15] 21 Europe (Eurochart Hot 100)^[16] 73 France (SNEP)^[17] 56 Germany (Official German Charts)^[18] 68 Hungary (Mahasz)^[19] 5 Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)^[20] 5 Netherlands (Single Top 100)^[21] 77 New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)^[22] 40 Scotland (OCC)^[23] 18 UK Singles (OCC)^[24] 19 US Radio Songs (Billboard)^[25] 25 US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)^[26] 13 US Alternative Airplay (Billboard)^[27] 26 US Mainstream Top 40 (Billboard)^[28] 15

Year-end charts Chart (1998) Position Canada Top Singles (RPM)^[29] 54 Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)^[30] 32

Release history

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)	Ref.
United Kingdom	25 May 1998	CD cassette	RCA BMG	^[1]
United States	14 July 1998	Contemporary hit radio		^[31]

References

1. "New Releases: Singles" (PDF). Music Week. 23 May 1998. p. 29. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
2. "Results: RPM Weekly – "Torn","1998","Top Singles"". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
3. "Radio Songs – The Week of May 16, 1998". Billboard. Retrieved 15 April 2018.
4. Prato, Greg. "Left of the Middle – Natalie Imbruglia". AllMusic. Retrieved 24 September 2012.
5. Wishing I Was There (UK CD1 liner notes). Natalie Imbruglia. RCA Records, BMG. 1998. 74321585062.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
6. "'Wishing I Was There' at APRA search engine". Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA). Retrieved 24 September 2012.
7. Wishing I Was There (Australian CD single liner notes). Natalie Imbruglia. RCA Records, BMG. 1998. 74321586472.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
8. Wishing I Was There (Japanese CD single liner notes). Natalie Imbruglia. RCA Records, BMG. 1998. BVCP-4903.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
9. Wishing I Was There (UK CD2 liner notes). Natalie Imbruglia. RCA Records, BMG. 1998. 74321585152.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
10. Wishing I Was There (UK cassette single sleeve). Natalie Imbruglia. RCA Records, BMG. 1998. 74321585064.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
11. Wishing I Was There (European CD single liner notes). Natalie Imbruglia. RCA Records, BMG. 1998. 74321586462.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
12. "Natalie Imbruglia – Wishing I Was There". ARIA Top 50 Singles.
13. "Natalie Imbruglia – Wishing I Was There" (in Dutch). Ultratip.
14. "Top RPM Singles: Issue 7932." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
15. "Top RPM Adult Contemporary: Issue 7938." RPM. Library and Archives Canada.
16. "Eurochart Hot 100 Singles" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 15, no. 24. 13 June 1998. p. 11. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
17. "Natalie Imbruglia – Wishing I Was There" (in French). Les classement single.
18. "Natalie Imbruglia – Wishing I Was There" (in German). GfK Entertainment charts.
19. "Top National Sellers" (PDF). Music & Media. Vol. 15, no. 30. 25 July 1998. p. 14. Retrieved 6 March 2020. See LW column.
20. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (18.6. – 25.6. 1998)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 19 June 1998. p. 22. Retrieved 3 October 2019.
21. "Natalie Imbruglia – Wishing I Was There" (in Dutch). Single Top 100.
22. "Natalie Imbruglia – Wishing I Was There". Top 40 Singles.
23. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
24. "Official Singles Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company.
25. "Natalie Imbruglia Chart History (Radio Songs)". Billboard.
26. "Natalie Imbruglia Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard.
27. "Natalie Imbruglia Chart History (Alternative Airplay)". Billboard.
28. "Natalie Imbruglia Chart History (Pop Songs)". Billboard.
29. "RPM's Top 100 Hit Tracks of '98" (PDF). RPM. Vol. 63, no. 12. 14 December 1998. p. 20. Retrieved 23 March 2019.
30. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 100 – Vinsælustu lögin '98". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). 2 January 1999. Retrieved 7 February 2019.
31. "New Releases". Radio & Records. No. 1256. 10 July 1998. p. 39.