[1] The song takes place in the second act of the musical, as the characters Alexander Hamilton and his wife Eliza grieve over their son's death.
Alex Lacamoire, Hamilton's musical director said the show's best use of strings is "probably 'It's Quiet Uptown,' when there's nothing else playing except those two guys.
Through their grieving, Alexander begs for forgiveness for what he has done to Eliza (his affair with Maria Reynolds) so he can help her through Philip's death, to which she silently agrees as they begin to mend their relationship.
[3] The Huffington Post offers an explanation to the vague nondescript language used throughout the song: "Our guide, our word-playing, rhyming, subtle, subtextual, double-meaning beacon of logic and reason is utterly unable to comprehend the death of his son, rendered speechless.
"[8] Charles McNulty of the Los Angeles Times said "No contemporary musical has touched grief in a song as profoundly as 'It's Quiet Uptown,' which I'll confess is impossible for me to listen to without tearing up.
"[12] The Hollywood Reporter wrote that the "exquisite [song] resonates with such raw, wrenching feeling it elicits sobs from the audience.
[20] During the development of the musical production, Miranda frequently communicated that a "mixtape" of select songs from the show's score was being recorded.