"I'm Not the One" 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 ...

rock band

the Cars The Cars were an American rock band formed in Boston in 1976. Emerging from the new wave scene in the late 1970s, they consisted of Ric Ocasek ( rhythm guitar), Benjamin Orr (bass guitar), Elliot Easton (lead guitar), Greg Hawkes (keyboards), ...

, from their fourth album, ''

Shake It Up Shake It Up may refer to: * ''Shake It Up'' (Boney James & Rick Braun album), 2000 * ''Shake It Up'' (The Cars album), 1981 ** "Shake It Up" (The Cars song), the title song * "Shake It Up" (Divine song), 1983 * "Shake It Up" (Koda Kumi song), ...

''. It features

Ric Ocasek Richard Theodore Otcasek (March 23, 1944 – September 15, 2019), known as Ric Ocasek, was an American singer-songwriter, musician, and record producer. He was the primary co-lead vocalist, rhythm guitarist, songwriter, and frontman for the rock ...

on lead vocals,

Benjamin Orr Benjamin Orzechowski (September 8, 1947 – October 3, 2000), known professionally as Benjamin Orr, was an American musician best known as the bassist, co-lead vocalist, and co-founder of the rock band The Cars. He sang lead vocals on sever ...

singing the 'You Know Why' phrase, with the whole group repeating "going round and round" as backing vocals throughout the song.

Overview

"I'm Not the One" first appeared in 1981 on ''Shake It Up''. In 1985, the song was remixed for the ''

Greatest Hits A greatest hits album or best-of album is a type of compilation album that collects popular and commercially successful songs by a particular artist or band. While greatest hits albums are typically supported by the artist, they can also be crea ...

'' album, emphasizing the drum track with added

reverb Reverberation (also known as reverb), in acoustics, is a persistence of sound, after a sound is produced. Reverberation is created when a sound or signal is reflected causing numerous reflections to build up and then decay as the sound is abso ...

. It was released as a single in 1986, following "

Tonight She Comes "Tonight She Comes" is a 1985 song by American rock band the Cars from their ''Greatest Hits'' album. It was released as a single in October 1985, reaching number seven on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in January 1986. The song reached number one on ...

", also from the ''Greatest Hits'' album. "I'm Not the One" debuted on the ''

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 ...

'' Top 40 chart on March 8, 1986, and peaked at number 32.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

reviewer Donald A. Guarisco described "I'm Not the One" as one of ''Shake It Up'' "strongest and most memorable tunes", commenting that its sound still sounded fresh upon its 1986 re-release, five years after its first appearance on ''Shake It Up''. ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' called it a "laid back tune

hat A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

may get new life from its single re-issue." The song is played in a scene from the 1995 comedy film ''

Billy Madison ''Billy Madison'' is a 1995 American comedy film directed by Tamra Davis. It stars Adam Sandler in the title role, Bradley Whitford, Bridgette Wilson, Norm Macdonald, Darren McGavin, Mark Beltzman, and Larry Hankin. The film was written by Sandler ...

'', where the title character (Adam Sandler) reads Valentine's Day cards in third grade. The song was sampled for the 2001 song "

Thank You "''Thank you''" (often expanded to ''thank you very much'' or ''thanks a lot'', or informally abbreviated to ''thanks'' or alternately as ''many thanks''Geoffrey Leech, ''The Pragmatics of Politeness'' (2014), p. 200.) is a common expression of ...

" by rapper

Lil' Bow Wow Shad Gregory Moss (born March 9, 1987), better known by his stage name Bow Wow (formerly Lil' Bow Wow), is an American rapper and actor. His career began upon being discovered by rapper Snoop Dogg in the late 1990s, eventually being brought ...

. In 2005, the album, '' Substitution Mass Confusion: A Tribute to The Cars'', was released on

Not Lame Recordings Not Lame Recordings was a Ft. Collins, Colorado based independent record label specializing in power pop music. History The label was started by Bruce Brodeen in November 1994Not Lame Recordings (2010)"About us" Retrieved November 17, 2010. I ...

, which included a cover of "I'm Not the One" by

Gigolo Aunts Gigolo Aunts are an American power pop band, who formed in 1981. Biography Early history The band was formed by middle school students Steve Hurley, Dave Gibbs, Phil Hurley, and Paul Brouwer in 1981 in Potsdam, New York, United States, origin ...

Composition

The song's

intro Introduction, The Introduction, Intro, or The Intro may refer to: General use * Introduction (music), an opening section of a piece of music * Introduction (writing), a beginning section to a book, article or essay which states its purpose and ...

and choruses are in the

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

B minor B minor is a minor scale based on B, consisting of the pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A. Its key signature has two sharps. Its relative major is D major and its parallel major is B major. The B natural minor scale is: : Changes neede ...

. The intro features two synthesizer parts layered on top of each other, one derived from Ric Ocasek's vocal melody, and the other a supporting

counter-melody In music, a counter-melody (often countermelody) is a sequence of notes, perceived as a melody, written to be played simultaneously with a more prominent lead melody. In other words, it is a secondary melody played in counterpoint with the prima ...

in a softer tone. The intro/chorus begins with a

chord progression In a musical composition, a chord progression or harmonic progression (informally chord changes, used as a plural) is a succession of chords. Chord progressions are the foundation of harmony in Western musical tradition from the common practice ...

of B minor, F♯ minor, E minor, and A major, but is immediately followed with a reversal, F♯ minor to B minor, retaining the E minor to A major movement. After another "reversed" repeat, the E minor to A functions as a ii-V-I turnaround in the key's

relative major In music, relative keys are the major and minor scales that have the same key signatures (enharmonically equivalent), meaning that they share all the same notes but are arranged in a different order of whole steps and half steps. A pair of major an ...

of D. The official sheet music folio lists the chord progression as D, to D/C, to D/B (enharmonic to a B

minor seventh chord In music, a minor seventh chord is a seventh chord composed of a root note, together with a minor third, a perfect fifth, and a minor seventh (1, 3, 5, 7). For example, the minor seventh chord built on C, commonly written as C–7, h ...

), to D/B♭ (enharmonic to a B♭

augmented major seventh chord In music, an augmented major seventh chord or major seventh sharp five chord is a seventh chord composed of a root, major third, augmented fifth, and major seventh (1, 3, 5, 7). It can be viewed as an augmented triad with an additional major seven ...

), and video exists of Ocasek performing the song, solo on acoustic guitar, according to this progression. However, other transcriptionists describe the chord progression as D to D/C, to G/B, or to Gm/B♭.''The Cars: Complete Greatest Hits (Guitar Recorded Versions)'', Universal Music Publishing Group, Distributed by Hal Leonard Either way, the last chord of the verse is a G minor sixth chord, in transition to the chorus in B minor. Each verse is introduced with a guitar melody from

Elliot Easton Elliot Easton (born Elliot Steinberg, December 18, 1953) is an American guitarist. He played lead guitar and sang backing vocals for The Cars, and his guitar solos are an integral part of the band's music. Easton has also recorded music as a so ...

, who layers several clean-tone guitar parts over the synthesizer-dominated arrangement. There is also a horn-like synthesizer solo by

Greg Hawkes Gregory A. Hawkes (born October 22, 1952) is an American musician best known as the keyboardist for the rock band The Cars. Hawkes, a native of Fulton, Maryland, United States, attended Atholton High School where he played in a band called Teeth ...

, played over the chorus progression.

Charts

References

{{authority control 1981 songs 1986 singles The Cars songs Elektra Records singles Song recordings produced by Roy Thomas Baker Songs written by Ric Ocasek New wave ballads