In 2018, Rolling Stone listed “Blue Jeans” as the 35th greatest song of the century, adding “Del Rey exudes an alluring sense of longing on this slow-melt Cali-goth benediction”.
Consequence of Sound said that “Blue Jeans and “ Video Games” inextricably link Del Rey’s flaxen locks with starry-eyed classical instruments, providing the aural and visual irresistibility of a good montage". Music OMH said that "Video Games and Blue Jeans, despite suffering Adele style levels of ubiquity in recent months, still sound achingly beautiful, both of them sounding like the saddest love songs ever written". No Ripcord said that "Just like in the dark ballad 'Blue Jeans', Del Rey sounds more comfortable when she tries to perform as a tough songstress". Midway into the song the pace speeds up and Lana crams in a lot of lyrics, keeping the rhymes tight and the emotions high, until it dissipates into a dreamy chorus with Lana proclaiming “I will love you till the end of time". DOA magazine said that "The lyrics-centric story-telling “Blue Jeans” slows it down a bit with a deliberate, but swinging beat as Lana delves into a relationship where the guy is a “Big dreams / gangsta…” and the girl wants him to stop living that lifestyle. Beats Per Minute said that “Blue Jeans would probably be described by Del Rey as “gangsta spaghetti western,” but, aside from its most basic of forced rhymes (“‘Cause I’mma ride or die / Whether you fail or fly / Well shit at least you tried”), it is still a clever spin on genre, sounding unique, even inspired".
Sputnikmusic stated that it's reminiscent of the music in Quentin Tarantino's films and named it one of the best song on the album. NME said that "Blue Jeans' lush Chris Isaakshades shimmer like sea-spume on Helena Christensen’s naked thighs as Del Rey longs for her James Dean". Slant magazine said that Del Rey "uses her impressive range to dazzling effect on, "Blue Jeans", comparing her delinquent lover to both cancer and her favorite sweater in what seems like one swooning breath". The combination of hip-hop and chamber pop featured in the song has become a continuous theme in Del Rey's music. The instrumental is primarily composed of simple string instruments, guitar, and percussion. It samples a spoken line from a live performance of "Mary Jane" by Rick James, also heard in " National Anthem", " Lolita", " Dark Paradise" and " Without You". The song contains heavy use of male background vocals, much like in " Born to Die", and includes coo-like background vocals from Del Rey herself. The song focuses on use of the repeated chorus, which highlights a fragility in Del Rey's voice, and the polarizing hip-hop influenced beat which contrasts the lyrical and vocal content. According to Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian, the composition of the song is "powerfully atmospheric". It is composed in the key of F Minor with Del Rey's vocals ranging from F3 to F5. Musically, "Blue Jeans" is an down-tempo pop-ballad song with an alternative hip-hop beat and highly orchestrated instrumentation. The background vocals, strings and the sample "Sure" stems were leaked on May 13, 2018. Lyrically, it tells a story similar to the narrative in " Dear Elliot", a song from Del Rey's unreleased acoustic first album Sirens.Ī stripped version of the song is registered on the Harry Fox Agency. But before "Blue Jeans" was officially released as an B-side to " Video Games", Del Rey uploaded the original music video for the song onto her personal YouTube channel, on September 11, 2011. The song was written by Del Rey, Haynie, and Heath in the same sessions as " Video Games" and was originally released with the song as a B-side on October 7, 2011, prior to being released individually as the third single from Born to Die.
12.5 Blue Jeans CD by Polydor and Interscope Records in UK & Europe.12.4 Blue Jeans CD by Stranger Records and Universal Music in UK.12.2 Blue Jeans CD by Interscope Records and Polydor in France.12.1 Blue Jeans CD by Interscope Records and Polydor in UK.6.2.10 Photoshoot by Nicole Nodland (March 2, 2012).