I Don't Want to Wait
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"I Don't Want to Wait" is a song written, recorded, and produced by American singer-songwriter Paula Cole. Cole wrote the song in mid-1996 and released it as second single from her second studio album, '' This Fire'' (1996), on October 14, 1997. The single release was successful, reaching 11 in the United States and No. 5 in Canada.
VH1 VH1 (originally an initialism for Video Hits One) is an American basic cable television network that launched on January 1, 1985, and is currently owned by the MTV Entertainment Group unit of Paramount Global's networks division based in New Y ...
ranked "I Don't Want to Wait" as one of the 100 Greatest Songs of the '90s at No. 81. The chorus of the song later served as the opening theme for the American
teen drama In film and television show, television, drama is a category or genre of narrative fiction (or docudrama, semi-fiction) intended to be more serious than humour, humorous in tone. The drama of this kind is usually qualified with additional te ...
television series ''
Dawson's Creek ''Dawson's Creek'' is an American teen drama television series about the lives of a close-knit group of friends in the fictional town of Capeside, Massachusetts, beginning in high school and continuing into college. It aired from January 20, 19 ...
'', which ran from 1998 to 2003.


Composition

Paula Cole wrote "I Don't Want to Wait" at her
spinet A spinet is a smaller type of harpsichord or other keyboard instrument, such as a piano or organ. Harpsichords When the term ''spinet'' is used to designate a harpsichord, typically what is meant is the ''bentside spinet'', described in this ...
piano in her apartment in New York City during mid-1996. Described by Cole as "a very personal song", she wrote the song when she realized that her grandfather was near the end of his life. The song is about him and his wife, and specifically the relationship between their life and Cole's who realized "I don't want to make some of these mistakes. I really hope I don't". Cole has described the central question of the chorus as "Do you say yes to life? Do you embrace the things that give you joy? Or do you cower back in fear or by culture's machinations keeping you small?" Sheet music for "I Don't Want to Wait" shows the key of
G major G major is a major scale based on G (musical note), G, with the pitches G, A (musical note), A, B (musical note), B, C (musical note), C, D (musical note), D, E (musical note), E, and F♯ (musical note), F. Its key signature has one sharp (music ...
in common time with a moderate tempo of 87
beats per minute Beat, beats, or beating may refer to: Common uses * Assault, inflicting physical harm or unwanted physical contact * Battery (crime), a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact * Battery (tort), a civil wrong in common law of in ...
. Cole originally composed the song in
F major F major is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat.Music Theory'. (1950). United States: Standards and Curriculum Division, Training, Bureau of Naval Personnel. 28. Its relati ...
, but when the songbook for the album was prepared, the song was notated in G major. According to Cole, "most sales ..are to beginners and intermediate musicians", so the publishers opted against the original key.


Chart performance

On the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100, "I Don't Want to Wait" spent 56 weeks within the top 100, peaking at No. 11 in January 1998. The single ranked at No. 10 on the Hot 100 year-end chart for 1998. In Canada, it is Cole's highest-charting single, peaking at No. 5 on the ''
RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or r⋅min−1) is a unit of rotational speed (or rotational frequency) for rotating machines. One revolution per minute is equivalent to hertz. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 def ...
'' 100 Hit Tracks chart, and it also reached No. 27 in Australia and No. 43 in the United Kingdom.


Music video

The music video for the song was directed by Mark Seliger and Fred Woodward. It was one of Cole's first videos and is based on the concept of a woman who is immortal and had lovers in different time periods, all of whom have died. The cut of the video was originally in chronological order, but for unknown reasons, a cut that was out of order was more frequently aired which led to the directors taking their name off the video, replacing it with the common moniker Alan Smithee.


Track listings

US 7-inch single :A. "I Don't Want to Wait" (edit) – 4:07 :B. "Hitler's Brothers" (album version) – 3:35 UK, Australian, and Japanese CD single # "I Don't Want to Wait" (edit) # "Bethlehem" # "Hitler's Brothers" UK cassette single and German CD single # "I Don't Want to Wait" (edit) # "Bethlehem"


Credits

Credits are lifted from the '' This Fire'' liner notes. Studios * Recorded at The Magic Shop (New York City) * Mixed at Room with a View (New York City) * Mastered at Gateway Mastering (
Portland, Maine Portland is the List of municipalities in Maine, most populous city in the U.S. state of Maine and the county seat, seat of Cumberland County, Maine, Cumberland County. Portland's population was 68,408 at the 2020 census. The Portland metropolit ...
, US) Personnel * Paula Cole – writing, vocals, piano, keyboards, production * Greg Leisz – guitars *
Tony Levin Anthony Frederick Levin (born June 6, 1946) is an American musician and composer specializing in electric bass guitars, Chapman Stick and upright bass. He also sings and plays synthesizer. Levin is best known for his work with King Crimson (19 ...
– bass * Jay Bellerose – drums, percussion * Roger Moutenot – recording, mixing * Joe Warda – recording assistance * Jack Herscha – mixing assistance *
Bob Ludwig Robert Carl Ludwig (born December 11, 1944), is a retired American mastering engineer. He mastered recordings on all the major recording formats for all the major record labels, and on projects by more than 1,300 artists, including Led Zeppeli ...
– mastering


Charts


Weekly charts


Year-end charts


Release history


In popular culture

Screenwriter Kevin Willamson became a fan of Cole's and used "I Don't Want to Wait" as a theme song to his teen drama series ''
Dawson's Creek ''Dawson's Creek'' is an American teen drama television series about the lives of a close-knit group of friends in the fictional town of Capeside, Massachusetts, beginning in high school and continuing into college. It aired from January 20, 19 ...
'' after being unable to secure the licensing for
Alanis Morissette Alanis Nadine Morissette ( ; born June 1, 1974) is a Canadian and American singer, songwriter, musician, and actress. Known for her emotive mezzo-soprano voice and confessional songwriting, she became a cultural phenomenon during the mid 199 ...
's " Hand in My Pocket". At the time, the use of a pre-existing work for a TV show theme, rather than the commissioning of a new song, was novel. The song became sufficiently identified with ''Dawson's Creek'' that it was used in parodies of the show, as featured in the film ''
Scary Movie ''Scary Movie'' is a 2000 American parody film directed by Keenen Ivory Wayans and written by Marlon Wayans, Marlon and Shawn Wayans (who both also star), alongside Buddy Johnson, Phil Beauman, Jason Friedberg and Aaron Seltzer. Starring Jon ...
'', the " Peterotica" episode of ''
Family Guy ''Family Guy'' is an American animated sitcom created by Seth MacFarlane for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series premiered on January 31, 1999, following Super Bowl XXXIII, with the rest of the first season airing from April 11, 1999. Th ...
'', and the " Escape to Beer Mountain: A Rope of Sand" series premiere of '' Clone High'' on its original airing (replaced with "Standard Lines" by Dashboard Confessional in all subsequent airings and the DVD release). The song was featured in the 1998 horror film ''
Urban Legend Urban legend (sometimes modern legend, urban myth, or simply legend) is a genre of folklore concerning stories about an unusual (usually scary) or humorous event that many people believe to be true but largely are not. These legends can be e ...
'' as a nod to Joshua Jackson's character. Paula Cole said it initially annoyed her how the song became closely tied with Dawson's Creek, but she now feels touched by it. “I Don't Want to Wait" is humorously sung by Eric Cartman in the ''
South Park ''South Park'' is an American animated sitcom created by Trey Parker and Matt Stone, and developed by Brian Graden for Comedy Central. The series revolves around four boysStan Marsh, Kyle Broflovski, Eric Cartman, and Kenny McCormickand the ...
'' episode " Trapper Keeper." In this episode, Cartman boasts about his advanced Trapper Keeper while facing a threat from a mysterious figure who warns that it could take over the world.https://imsdb.com/transcripts/South-Park-Trapper-Keeper.html


References


External links


Behind the Song: The Nine Lives of Paula Cole's "I Don't Want to Wait"
by ''
American Songwriter ''American Songwriter'' is a bimonthly magazine covering songwriting. Established in 1984, it features interviews, songwriting tips, news, reviews and lyric contest. The magazine is based in Nashville, Tennessee. History The ''American Songwri ...
'' {{Authority control 1996 songs 1997 singles Dawson's Creek Imago Records singles Paula Cole songs Television drama theme songs Warner Records singles Songs written by Paula Cole