Fool's Gold (One Direction song)

"Fool's Gold" is a song by English-Irish boy band One Direction from their fourth studio album, Four. It was released on 13 November 2014, as the sixth and final promotional single from the album.

Background
On 13 November 2014, Harry Styles announced on social media that fans who pre-ordered their fourth studio album, Four, would get the song for free via digital download. The song is about falling in love with the wrong person.

Composition
"Fool's Gold" was written by Maureen McDonald, Jamie Scott, Harry Styles, Zayn Malik, Niall Horan, Liam Payne and Louis Tomlinson, while production was handled by Matt Rad and Scott. The song's BPM count is 118, and its key is E Major. Scott recruited McDonald to create the song, but originally didn't know what to do with it. However, Styles helped make the song "come to life." Scott recalled, "I was in the studio with Harry, kind of just recording vocals, and it happened so quick. It took on this amazing sound and meaning for me as a writer on this album."

Critical reception
Laura Reineke of Vice remarked, "a frank admission that sometimes false love is better than none at all. It's the best they've ever sounded, and the most perceptive." Lindsay Zoladz of Vulture stated that the song "showcase their expertly arranged harmonies, but when their voices join together it is more often a show of sheer, blow-your-inattentive-boyfriend's-house-down force." Allison Stewart of The Washington Post described the track as "seamless pop perfection."

Chart performance
"Fool's Gold" reached at number 74 on the UK Singles Chart, selling 3,551 copies in the UK. The song also peaked at number 24 on the US Bubbling Under Hot 100. The track sold 18,645 copies in the United States.

Personnel
Credits for "Fool's Gold" adapted from album's liner notes.


 * Matt Rad – producer, programming, guitar, piano, drums
 * Jamie Scott – producer, backing vocals, keyboards, guitar
 * Randy Merrill – assistant mastering engineer
 * Sam Miller – additional producer
 * Joe Zook – mixing
 * Alex Oriet – recording engineer
 * Benjamin Cheng – recording engineer
 * Tom Coyne – mastering (Sterling Sound, Nashville, Tennessee)