"Crash and Burn" is a song by Australian pop duo Savage Garden from their second album Affirmation (1999). It was released as the album's fourth overall single, sent to radio in the United States on 13 March 2000; in that region, it was released as the third single. The track received positive reception from music critics, and received the award "Most Performed Australian Work Overseas" at the APRA Music Awards of 2002.
The song's lyrics describe the difficult search for solace and meaningful relationships in a cold world, peaking in a chorus that argues it is fine to "crash and burn" during tough times in order to get over heartache and pain. According to the sheet music published on Musicnotes.com, the track is written in the key of E major, with the vocals ranging from C4âÂÂB5. In a June 2017 interview, lead singer Darren Hayes named "Crash and Burn" as one of his favourite Savage Garden songs saying, "Musically itâÂÂs a dear song to me, because it's all the words I wished someone would have said to me during the period after the first Savage Garden album."
Chuck Taylor of Billboard magazine reviewed the track positively, writing, "Musical maestro and Savage partner Daniel Jones and producer Walter Afanasieff set the instrumental stage with a barrage of gentle keyboards and a persistent but embracing percussive edge against Hayes' emotional vocal." Taylor ended his review with, "Radio shouldn't hesitate to get this one going for the long haul."
"Crash and Burn" topped the Canadian Adult Contemporary Tracks chart while entering the top 10 in Croatia, the Czech Republic, and on the US Adult Contemporary chart. In the United States, the track hit number 24 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming their last charting single there to date. Radio made up the entirety of its performance. On the week of its peak on the Hot 100, 27 May 2000, "Crash and Burn" also made its peak at number 26 on the airplay component chart, while it was absent from the one for sales.
Yariv Garber directed the music video for "Crash and Burn". The video first made its debut on VH1 for the week ending 19 March 2000. It was then added to MTV for the week ending 10 April 2000.
The video is shot in a partially fantastical theme, featuring actress Abigail Culwell watching scenes of troubled young adults interspersed with scenes of the group singing in a warehouse. Messages such as "stay connected" and lyrics from the song, such as "fall apart" appear on the screen. At the end of the video, Hayes uses Auslan to sing the last lyrics of the song.
Credits and personnel are adapted from the Affirmation album liner notes.