a decent follow-up to "Since U Been Gone", saying "It's no "Since U Been Gone" which is just a pop-rock juggernaut, but as follow-ups go, it's not too shabby. Clarkson's down-home everything (well, mostly her looks) sells these little heartbreak haikus exceptionally well." He also listed "Behind These Hazel Eyes" as one of the 40 songs that defined the summer of 2005. The same sentiment was echoed by Robert Copsey of Digital Spy who considered the song as Clarkson's second best single after "Since U Been Gone", writing "It proved a slow burner at the time of release, but this track's greatness continues to be realised over time." "Behind These Hazel Eyes" was listed at number five on Billboard magazine's list of Songs of the Summer of 2005. In 2015, the same publication ranked the song at number four on its list of Top 100 'American Idol' Hits of All Time. It also appeared at number three on the list of Kelly Clarkson's Top 15 Biggest Billboard Hot 100 Hits. Chris Kal of WKNS ranked "Behind These Hazel Eyes" at number four in his list of "Top 10 Summer Songs From 2005". Sam Lamsky of PopCrush described the song as "a surefire fan favorite" and ranked it at number nine in his list of "Top 10 Kelly Clarkson songs". Bill Lamb of About.com put the song at number 62 on his list of "Top 100 Pop Songs of 2005". The song was nominated in the category for Song of the Year: Mainstream Hit Radio in the 2005 Radio Music Awards. At the 24th ASCAP Pop Music Awards, the song was honored with the Most Performed Songs award. In January 2010, "Behind These Hazel Eyes" was the fifth most played song of the last decade by American Idol performers. According to Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems, the song has been played 513,149 times through the week ending March 24, 2010. Chart performance "Behind These Hazel Eyes" debuted at number eighty-seven on the Billboard Hot 100 on the week ending, April 23, 2005. The song stayed inside the top ten in Billboard Hot 100 for fifteen weeks before peaking at number six on the week ending June 11, 2005. It consequently held the record as the song with the most weeks in the chart's top ten without hitting the top five, before being surpassed by Rihanna's "Needed Me" which spent sixteen weeks in