"Why Can't I?" is a song by American singer-songwriter

Liz Phair Elizabeth Clark Phair (born April 17, 1967) is an American singer-songwriter. Born in New Haven, Connecticut, Phair was raised primarily in the Chicago area. After graduating from Oberlin College in 1990, she attempted to start a musical career ...

. It was released on May 5, 2003, as the lead single from her self-titled album, ''

''. It reached number 32 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, Phair's highest-charting single and only top-40 single. The song was certified gold in the US, having sold 500,000 copies there. The song was featured in the 2004 film '' 13 Going on 30''.

Writing and inspiration

"Why Can't I?" was written by Phair and

The Matrix ''The Matrix'' is a 1999 science fiction action film written and directed by the Wachowskis. It is the first installment in ''The Matrix'' film series, starring Keanu Reeves, Laurence Fishburne, Carrie-Anne Moss, Hugo Weaving, and Joe Pantolia ...

. Phair released "Why Can't I?" in hopes that she would expand her audience and attract more listeners to its parent record, ''

'' (2003). In an interview with ''

Vice A vice is a practice, behaviour, or habit generally considered immoral, sinful, criminal, rude, taboo, depraved, degrading, deviant or perverted in the associated society. In more minor usage, vice can refer to a fault, a negative character tra ...

'', Phair explained: "My hope was that someone would hear the song in the gym and buy the record and then start buying my albums and sort of have an awakening."

Composition

"Why Can't I?" is written in the key of

B major B major (or the key of B) is a major scale based on B. The pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A are all part of the B major scale. Its key signature has five sharps. Its relative minor is G-sharp minor, its parallel minor is B minor, and its ...

and has a

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

of 81 beats per minute. It follows a chord progression of B–B/A–Gm7–E(add 2).

Critical reception

Chuck Taylor of ''

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 ...

'' called the song a "melodic adult pop/rocker" and a "knock-out, stand-out, break-out record that adult top 40 should take right home." Matt LeMay of ''

Pitchfork A pitchfork (also a hay fork) is an agricultural tool with a long handle and two to five tines used to lift and pitch or throw loose material, such as hay, straw, manure, or leaves. The term is also applied colloquially, but inaccurately, to th ...

'' said that with the "cookie-cutter rock/pop background" it could easily pass for

Michelle Branch Michelle Jacquet DeSevren Branch (born July 2, 1983) is an American singer, songwriter, and guitarist. During the early 2000s, she released two top-selling albums: ''The Spirit Room'' and '' Hotel Paper.'' She won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Co ...

." Mary Huhn of the ''

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'' called the song "a breathless romantic confection, and very un-Phair-like". Mim Udovitch of ''

Slate Slate is a fine-grained, foliated, homogeneous metamorphic rock derived from an original shale-type sedimentary rock composed of clay or volcanic ash through low-grade regional metamorphism. It is the finest grained foliated metamorphic rock. ...

'' called the song an "almost parodically basic power ballad" but stated that the chorus is "hooky". Keith Phipps of ''

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'' criticized the song, referring to it as "an embarrassingly awkward marriage of dumbed-down Phair songwriting and every tired production trick of the last year". Adrien Begrand of ''

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'' compared the song to

Avril Lavigne Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. At age 16, she signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records. Her debut studio album, ''Let Go (Avril Lavigne album), Let Go'' (2002), is the ...

, referring to it as "a note-for-note retread of Lavigne's " Complicated".

Music video

The video was directed by Phil Harder and was released in June 2003. It features a jukebox where an unknown man puts a coin in the jukebox where Liz Phair appears on every record cover on the jukebox indicating the song's lyrics.

Track listing

* CD single # "Why Can't I?" – 3:28 # "Jeremy Engle" – 3:10 # "Fine Again" – 2:47

Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel are adapted from the ''Liz Phair'' album liner notes. *

– writer, lead vocals *

– writer,

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

arrangement In music, an arrangement is a musical adaptation of an existing composition. Differences from the original composition may include reharmonization, melodic paraphrasing, orchestration, or formal development. Arranging differs from orches ...

recording A record, recording or records may refer to: An item or collection of data Computing * Record (computer science), a data structure ** Record, or row (database), a set of fields in a database related to one entity ** Boot sector or boot record, ...

, additional vocals * Krish Sharma – drum recording *

Serban Ghenea Șerban Ghenea (born October 13, 1969) is a Grammy award-winning Romanian-Canadian audio engineer and mixer. Early life and education Ghenea was born in Bucharest, Romania in 1969. In 1976 he moved to Montreal with his family. He later attended ...

– mixing *

Corky James Corky James (born February 10, 1954) is a Los Angeles-based session guitarist and bassist who has appeared on a considerable number of music albums and motion picture soundtracks. His genres encompass rock, pop, country, singer-songwriter, and f ...

– guitars *

Victor Indrizzo Victor Indrizzo (born September 23, 1967) is an American session musician, primarily known for playing the drums, as well as a songwriter and producer. Indrizzo was born in Freeport, Long Island, New York. He has toured, recorded and worked wi ...

– drums * Wizardz of Oz – additional vocals

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications and sales

Release history

References

{{Authority control Liz Phair songs 2003 singles 2003 songs Capitol Records singles Music videos directed by Phil Harder Song recordings produced by the Matrix (production team) Songs written by Graham Edwards (musician) Songs written by Lauren Christy Songs written by Liz Phair Songs written by Scott Spock