Nobody's Wife

"Nobody's Wife" is the second single released from Dutch singer-songwriter Anouk's debut studio album, Together Alone (1997). The song, a rock ballad, was written by Anouk, Satindra Kalpoe, and Bart van Veen, and it was produced by George Kooymans, Barry Hay, and John Sonneveld. It was released through Dino Music in the Netherlands and Ireland, BMG in Europe and Australia, and Columbia Records in the United States. First issued as a single in the Netherlands, "Nobody's Wife" became a hit, reaching number two on both the Dutch Top 40 and the Single Top 100 charts. In early 1998, the song began to gain popularity in the rest of mainland Europe, especially in the Flanders region of Belgium and the Nordic countries, reaching the top 10 in these regions; in Iceland, it peaked at number one for two weeks. A music video shot in black and white was made for the song, featuring clips of Anouk singing and dancing to the song. Composition "Nobody's Wife" is published in the key of F major with a tempo of 98 beats per minute. Critical reception Music & Media wrote about the song. On the 13 December 1997 issue, Dutch music programmer Ben Houdijk said of the song, "It might be loud on the surface, but under the skin, there's a beautiful song. A rock song with balls is a gift to radio in these ballad -flooded times." Meanwhile, on the 31 January 1998 issue, Music & Media commented, "This is an excellent rock ballad by the Golden Earring endorsed Dutch debutante artist [...]. Anouk has made a bold—and as it turns out, convincing—move into the territory already occupied by the likes of Alanis Morissette and Meredith Brooks." British trade paper Music Week wrote that while the track is not "original", it appeals to both young and old rock music fans.