"Don't Tell Me No" is a song by the

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

New wave band, the Cars. The song, written by Ric Ocasek, appeared on the band's third studio album, ''

Panorama A panorama (formed from Greek πᾶν "all" + ὅραμα "view") is any wide-angle view or representation of a physical space, whether in painting, drawing, photography, film, seismic images, or 3D modeling. The word was originally coined in ...

''.

Release and reception

"Don't Tell Me No" first saw release on the ''Panorama'' album in August 1980, but in November of that same year, the song was released as the follow-up single to the marginally successful " Touch and Go" single in America. However, unlike its predecessor, it failed to chart at all in said country. AllMusic critic Greg Prato noted the track as an album highlight from ''Panorama'', and went on to call it "strong, just not as well known as some of the other material

n the album N, or n, is the fourteenth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''. History ...

. ''Record World'' said that "A steamroller rhythm section has its own way here while steaming guitars and Ric Ocasek's trademark vocal detachment ride high." ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' chose it as a "recommended" pick.

B-side

The song's B-side titled "Don't Go to Pieces", which was also the B-side to "

Gimme Some Slack "Gimme Some Slack" is a song by the American rock band the Cars from the album ''Panorama.'' The song was written by bandleader Ric Ocasek. Lyrics and music The lyrics to "Gimme Some Slack" have a more concrete basis than many songs written by O ...

", includes rare backing vocals from lead guitarist Elliot Easton and keyboardist Greg Hawkes singing "You can make the switch, you can have your wish", followed by the band joining and singing the chorus "don't go to pieces, b-b-b-baby."

References

{{authority control The Cars songs 1980 singles Songs written by Ric Ocasek Song recordings produced by Roy Thomas Baker Elektra Records singles 1980 songs