Take A Bow (Rihanna Song) - Critical Reception

Critical Reception

"Take A Bow" received mixed reviews from music critics. Upon the song's release as an official single, Nick Levine of Digital Spy commented its choice for the promotion of Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded, writing that the singer could have chosen "Breakin' Dishes" which served as a promotional single for Good Girl Gone Bad and charted at number four on the US Hot Dance Club Songs chart in February 2008—but had opted for "Take A Bow" due to it being new and more likely to find a receptive audience. Levine continued in his review to write that although the ballad succeeds in its mission of telling of a failed relationship, he noted that the song was not at the same level as the singer's previous single, "Don't Stop the Music". Levine cited that his reason for this was that "'Take A Bow' does what it sets out to do very well, but it's an underwhelming follow-up to the dancefloor rush of 'Don't Stop The Music'". Levine also commented on the song with regard to the other new songs included on the re-release, "Disturbia" and "If I Never See Your Face Again" (a collaboration with Maroon 5), as part of his review of Good Girl Gone Bad: Reloaded, writing that "Take A Bow" is inferior to the former, but superior to the latter. Bill Lamb of About.com praised the lyrical content of the song as well as its "effectiveness" with regard to successfully delivering the song's message, and compared the effort to that of Beyoncé Knowles's "Irreplaceable" due to its similar lyrical content. Lamb also praised how the song features a few spoken instances during the song, writing "the production utilizes brief spoken asides by Rihanna to great effect. It's her "please!" and dismissive giggle that are likely to be the most memorable elements from this effort." Despite commending the song's lyrics, Lamb condemned Stargate's production of "Take A Bow", labeling it as "standard lifeless instrumental arrangement".