"Never Really Wanted" is a debut song co-written and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

artist Eric Paslay. It was released on July 25, 2011 as the first single from Paslay's self-titled debut album.

Critical reception

Billy Dukes of ''

Taste of Country Townsquare Media, Inc. (formerly Regent Communications until 2010) is an American radio network and media company based in Purchase, New York. The company started in radio and expanded into digital media toward the end of the 2000s, starting wi ...

'' gave the song a four-star review, saying that "The debut single from Eric Paslay is the cute but shy kid in class. It’s not going to sweep you off your feet the first time you lay ears on it. No, ‘Never Really Wanted’ is built for the long run. It’s a song you can fall in love with." Liv Carter of ''Urban Country News'' gave the song a "thumbs up", praising Paslay's vocals as well as the song's chorus. She summarized her review by saying that "So, country radio, do your thing and make this a solid hit. Eric Paslay already has Top 10 success as co-writer of Jake Owen‘s ‘ Barefoot Blue Jean Night’. Now it’s time for him to stand in the spotlight all by himself.

Chart performance

References

2011 songs 2011 debut singles Eric Paslay songs EMI Records singles Songs written by Eric Paslay Songs written by Walt Aldridge Song recordings produced by Marshall Altman {{2010s-country-song-stub