Why Can't I?

"Why Can't I?" is a song by American pop rock artist Liz Phair. It was released in May 2003 as the lead single from her self-titled album, Liz Phair. It reached number 32 on the Billboard Hot 100, Phair's highest-charting single to date, and only top 40 single. The single was certified gold, having sold 500,000 copies.[1] The song is featured on the 13 Going on 30 Soundtrack.

"Why Can't I?"
Single by Liz Phair
from the album Liz Phair
B-side
  • "Jeremy Engle"
  • "Fine Again"
ReleasedMay 2003 (2003-05)
Studio
Decoy Studios (Studio City)
Genre
Length
  • 3:28
LabelCapitol
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)
Liz Phair singles chronology
"Johnny Feelgood"
(1998)		 "Why Can't I?"
(2003)		 "Extraordinary"
(2004)
Music video
"Why Can't I?" on YouTube

Writing and inspiration

"Why Can't I?" was written by Phair and The Matrix. Phair released "Why Can't I?" in hopes that she would expand her audience and attract more listeners to its parent record, Liz Phair (2003). In an interview with Vice, 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".[2]

Composition

"Why Can't I?" is written in the key of B major and has a tempo of 81 beats per minute.[3] It follows a chord progression of B–B/A♯–G♯m7–E(add 2).[4]

Critical reception
"Why Can't I?" was compared to songs by Avril Lavigne (left) and Michelle Branch (right).

Chuck Taylor of Billboard 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."[5] Matt LeMay of Pitchfork said that with the "cookie-cutter rock/pop background" it could easily pass for Michelle Branch."[6] Mary Huhn of the New York Post called the song "a breathless romantic confection, and very un-Phair-like".[7] Mim Udovitch of Slate called the song an "almost parodically basic power ballad" but stated that the chorus is "hooky".[8]

Keith Phipps of The A.V. Club 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 PopMatters compared the song to Avril Lavigne, referring to it as "a note-for-note retread of Lavigne's "Complicated".[9]

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 listings and formats
  1. "Why Can't I?"  – 3:28
  2. "Jeremy Engle"  – 3:10
  3. "Fine Again"  – 2:47

Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel adapted from Liz Phair album liner notes.[11]

Charts
Chart (2003–04) Peak
position
Belgium (Ultratip Flanders)[12] 17
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[13] 37
US Billboard Hot 100[14] 32
US Adult Top 40 (Billboard)[15] 7

Certifications and sales
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[16] Gold 500,000[17]

References
  1. Liz Phair Sales Certifications
  2. https://www.vice.com/en/article/8xkp8z/after-25-years-in-guyville-liz-phair-is-glad-to-be-in-woman-world
  3. "BPM Database - Browse". bpmdatabase.com. Retrieved 2015-11-29.
  4. "Why Can't I?". www.musicnotes.com. Retrieved 2015-11-29.
  5. Billboard - June 7, 2003, page 42
  6. Matt LeMay (2003-06-24). "Liz Phair: Liz Phair | Album Reviews". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved 2012-09-21.
  7. Mary Huhn (2003-08-10). "CYNIC TURNED SEXPOT LIZ PHAIR DOESN'T WANT TO BE COOL ANYMORE". New York Post. Retrieved 2017-09-21.
  8. Mim Udovitch (2003-06-27). "What Is Liz Phair Thinking?". New York Post. Retrieved 2017-09-21.
  9. Begrand, Adrien (2003-06-22). "Liz Phair: self-titled < PopMatters". PopMatters. Retrieved 2012-09-21.
  10. Why Can't I? (EU CD Single liner notes). Liz Phair. Capitol Records. 2003. 7243 5 52959 2 7.CS1 maint: others (link)
  11. Liz Phair (Inlay cover). Liz Phair. Capitol. 2003. CDP 7243 5 22084 0 1.CS1 maint: others (link)
  12. "Ultratop.be – Liz Phair – Why Can't I?" (in Dutch). Ultratip.
  13. "Charts.nz – Liz Phair – Why Can't I?". Top 40 Singles.
  14. "Liz Phair Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  15. "Liz Phair Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved February 28, 2019.
  16. "American single certifications – Liz Phair – Why Can't I?". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved December 11, 2020. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
  17. https://www.riaa.com/gold-platinum/?tab_active=default-award&se=Liz+Phair#search_section. Missing or empty |title= (help)
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