"Won't Go Home Without You" is a song by American band Maroon 5. It was released on November 19, 2007, as the third single from their second studio album It Won't Be Soon Before Long (2007). The guitar lines in the song are somewhat similar to The Police single "Every Breath You Take".[2] In 2022, Billboard ranked it as the tenth best Maroon 5 song of all time.[2]
Reviews for "Won't Go Home Without You" have been generally positive, although some were mixed. Music journalistRobert Christgau gave a positive review on the album as well as the song, saying "The devilishly memorable "Won't Go Home Without You" combines confidence with affection rather than macho."[3]Channel 4 called the song "[the] musical equivalent of a dog's fart at the dinner table" and gave it just one star out of a possible ten.[4]Digital Spy gave the song two stars out of five, calling the song's lyrics "as cold, functional and ruthlessly effective as a state-of-the-art refrigerator".[5]
On August 16, 2007, Maroon 5 posted a notice on their official website asking for fans to send in homemade videos to help the band make the video for this song;[7] however, in October 2007, another video was released in Europe and Australia. The official video was directed by Sophie Muller and premiered on VH1 Top 20 Video Countdown on December 1, 2007.[8]
The song's music video starts with flashbacks where Adam Levine (Maroon 5's lead singer) and a female character (portrayed by Tania Raymonde[9]) appear to have an argument upon which Levine decides to leave. The video then cuts to Levine sitting in a chair thinking it over with the rest of the band performing in the background. Adam realizes that he 'will not go home without you', referring to the female he had walked out on. Levine appears to know where the woman is at the moment and decides to look for her. After having meandered through the city for a few hours - including bumping into a Chinese lion puppet - Levine eventually gets to a restaurant where he finds the woman, but to his disappointment, she is with another man.
This video features Jesse Carmichael playing both piano and guitar.
^"ČNS IFPI" (in Czech). Hitparáda – Radio Top 100 Oficiální. IFPI Czech Republic. Note: Select 3. týden 2008 in the date selector. Retrieved September 4, 2018.