"Water Runs Dry" is a song by American vocal harmony group Boyz II Men, written and produced by Babyface.[1] The single, the fourth released from the album II, reached number two in the United States and number four in Canada. It also contains a version of the group's previous number one hit from the same album, "I'll Make Love to You". A Spanish version, "No dejemos que muera el amor", was also recorded and peaked at number 10 on the US Latin Pop Airplay chart.
The music video features a woman (played by Tyra Banks) walking through a desert setting and holding a glass ball. The camera zooms in on the ball to reveal an aerial view, from a helicopter, of Boyz II Men standing atop a sand dune inside the ball. Shots of a string orchestra and guitarist playing along are interspersed throughout as the group sings the song. Clips of both the woman and the group walking and running across the dunes are also shown. Some scenes feature a rippling effect that mimics water. The video ends with the woman holding the glass ball once again and the camera zooming out to show her watching the group walk away inside it.
Reception
In a brief throwback-to-1995 piece, Essence magazine jokingly commented that the video "has more white-on-white sets than, well, the Essence Festival", but also said that it was "full of more 90s goodness" and concluded with "We love it".[4] Pop culture website Vulture listed the outfits worn in the video by Boyz II Men as one of the forty "matchiest" of their careers, stating that the group's clothes, like their music, were "always harmonious".[5]
Boyz II Men performed an acoustic rendition of "Water Runs Dry" at the 1995 MTV Movie Awards.[9] They later headlined the "Budweiser Superfest" concert series that ran from July through August of that year,[10] and performed the song as part of the setlist for each show.[11][12][13] In 2018, the group was one of the opening acts for Bruno Mars on five dates (between September–October) of the second North-American leg of his 24K Magic World Tour,[14] and performed the song during their appearances.[15]
In 1998, contemporary jazz guitarist Chuck Loeb covered the song for his album The Moon, the Stars and the Setting Sun.[49]
American cover band Boyce Avenue released an acoustic version of the song in 2010.[50]
Contemporary Christian artist The Katinas covered the song for their 2013 album Love Chapter.[51]
American singer Kelly Clarkson performed a stripped-down version of the song, accompanied by only a guitarist, on the June 7, 2021, episode of her daytime television talk showThe Kelly Clarkson Show, during the "Kellyoke"[a] segment.[53]
Notes
^Clarkson opens the show with a musical performance of various songs requested by audience members—she performs one cover per episode.[52]
^Love Chapter (Liner notes). The Katinas. United States: Destiny Productions. 2012. 643157424314.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
