sections of the bridge. It is set in the signature common time, and is written in the key of B-flat minor. It features a basic chord progression of A-F1. Carey's vocal range in the song spans from the low note of E3 to the high note of F5; the piano and guitar pieces range from F3 to G5 as well. The song contains lyrics written by Carey, who produced the song's melody and chorus as well. Aside from assisting with its chord progression, Cory Rooney co-arranged and produced the track as well. Author Chris Nickson felt the song was extremely important for Carey's musical transition, writing "Lyrically, this was some of her best work ever, the melody slinky and overtly sexy, confirmation – as if any was needed at this point! – that this was the new Mariah." Critical reception "The Roof" was acclaimed by contemporary music critics for its choice of vocal work, instrumentation, and lyrics. David Browne from Entertainment Weekly praised the song as well as Carey's choice of vocals, writing "Carey is still a vocal grandstander capable of turning all into a six-syllable word. Yet for most of the album she keeps her notorious octave-climbing chops at bay. Showing some admirable restraint, she nestles herself into the downy-soft beats of 'The Roof'." Rich Juzwiak from Slant wrote "Little more than yearning, kissing, and remembering happens during the course of 'The Roof,' a rough-enough R&B revision of Mobb Deep's 'The Shook Ones.' But lyrically Mariah the writer is vivid, sometimes shockingly clever (rhyming 'liberated' with 'Moet' is a stroke of genius)." Chart performance "The Roof" was chosen as the third single from Butterfly, receiving an airplay-only release. Because of conflict between Carey and her record label at the time, Sony Music Entertainment, it was only given a commercial release in Europe, while "Breakdown" was released throughout Oceania. Although not officially released there, in the UK the song peaked at number 87 during May 1998, and first appeared on its R&B chart at the end of March. "The Roof" stayed in the UK Singles Chart for two weeks, charting on import sales only, before falling outside the top 100. In the Netherlands, it performed weakly as well, peaking at number 63 while spending five weeks fluctuating in the Single Top 100. Music video The music video for "The Roof" garnered critical acclaim, and was ranked 18th on Slant's "100