Hoppus was inspired by the loneliness he experienced while on tour; while his bandmates had significant others to return home to, he was single.

It received praise from music critics, who considered it a change of pace from the trio's more lighthearted singles.

Though the song was intended to inspire hope to those struggling with depression, it encountered controversy when a student of Columbine High School died by suicide with the track playing on repeat in 2000.

Beginning in the summer of 1997, Blink-182 would enter an extended period of touring to support their second studio album, Dude Ranch.

However, upon Dude Ranch's release and popularity, Blink-182 would play every date of the 1997 tour worldwide with the bands NOFX and Social Distortion.

"[7] The couplet "I couldn't wait til I got home/To pass the time in my room alone" originally ended "to get off the plane alone.

[8] Hoppus said the song's inspiration came from "reading a magazine where some teenage kid had killed himself and left a letter for his family.

"[12] "Adam's Song" was among the last tracks composed and recorded for Enema of the State, and was nearly absent from the final album.

[16] "Adam's Song" was a departure from the content of the band's previous singles, in favor of a slower tempo and more depressing lyrics.

[7] Brian Wallace of MTV wrote that Blink-182 "explores new ground on "Adam's Song," setting aside their normal pop-punk punch for a more emo-influenced approach.

"Adam's Song", in turn, includes the lyrics "I took my time, I hurried up, The choice was mine, I didn't think enough".

"[26] "Adam's Song" was mainly a commercial success in the United States, but it was a top 25 hit in Canada and Italy as well.

[30] In CMJ New Music Report, a trade magazine that contained exclusive charts of non-commercial and college radio airplay and independent and trend-forward retail sales, "Adam's Song" was a number one hit on their Commercial Alternative Cuts chart in the issue dated May 15, 2000.

[31] The song made its sole appearance on Billboard's Hot 100 Airplay chart on that same date, peaking at number 79.

[34] In the Billboard issue for July 19, 2003, Nielsen Broadcast Data Systems recognized the single with the BDS Certified Award for 100,000 radio spins.

[44] Richard Harrington of The Washington Post deemed the song "a powerful exploration of exhaustion and depression.

[46] Katy Kroll of Billboard recognized it among her top 10 singles of 2000, calling it "a good old-fashioned depressing song with mainstream flair.

"[49] Scott Mervis of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette called it a "rare departure from the usual Blink fare.

"[51] In a retrospective review, Chris Payne of Billboard wrote, "Stylistically, it's also a Blink breakthrough: rather than putting their heads down and plowing through at breakneck speed, the band dials back the verses and interludes to let them breathe a bit.

[53] The song caused a controversy in 2000 when it was set to replay indefinitely on a nearby stereo as 17-year-old Greg Barnes, a teenager who attended Columbine High School and had lost one of his best friends in the massacre the previous year, hanged himself in the garage of his family's home.

[60] The song's music video was directed by Liz Friedlander[10] and debuted on MTV's Total Request Live on March 7, 2000.

In another, while DeLonge and Hoppus read magazines inside a late-night convenience store, a melancholy woman attempts to make a call via a pay phone.

[63] However, the band brought the song back after nine years, playing it again during their Kings of the Weekend Las Vegas residency in 2018.

When asked about its revival, Hoppus said he found new meaning in the song: "I think of it more, now, as almost a celebration, of hardships gone through and friends lost.

[64][65] For a 2018 broadcast of NPR's All Things Considered, reporter Andrew Limbong chose "Adam's Song" as part of their series of "American Anthems"—"music that challenges, unites, and celebrates".

In describing his selection, he wrote: You don't need subtlety to write an anthem; even the ones that are subversively tongue-in-cheek are pretty obvious about it.