“Payphone” Is a Hit Because Love Isn’t a Fairy Tale

Maroon 5's new album Overexposed debuted at #2 on the Billboard album chart, and the first single, "Payphone," is currently #2 on the Hot 100. "Payphone" was a smash hit right from the start; it broke the record for the most downloads ever in one week for a song by a group.  And despite the band's long history of hits, Maroon 5 guitarist James Valentine says they don't take that sort of success for granted. As for why he thinks "Payphone" is resonating with people, James says all you have to do is look at the lyrics, which feature Adam Levine singing, "If happy-ever-afters did exist/I would still be holding you like this/All those fairy tales are full of it/One more stupid love song, I'll be sick."  In other words, the song isn't some idealized look at love, like so many other pop hits.