Why Can't I?

"Why Can't I?" is a song by American singer-songwriter Liz Phair. It was released on May 5, 2003, as the lead single from her self-titled fourth album. It reached number 32 on the US Billboard Hot 100, becoming Phair's highest-charting single and only top-40 single. The song was certified gold in the US, having sold 500,000 copies there.

"Why Can't I?"
Single by Liz Phair
from the album Liz Phair
B-side
  • "Jeremy Engle"
  • "Fine Again"
ReleasedMay 5, 2003 (2003-05-05)
StudioDecoy (Studio City)
GenrePop rock
Length3:28
LabelCapitol
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s)The Matrix
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."[1]

Composition

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

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

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".[8]

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

Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel are adapted from the Liz Phair album liner notes.[10]

Charts

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

* Sales figures based on certification alone.

Release history
Region Date Format(s) Label(s) Ref.
United States May 5, 2003
Capitol [18]
July 14, 2003 Contemporary hit radio [19]

References
  1. "After 25 Years in Guyville, Liz Phair Is Glad to Be in Woman-World".
  2. "BPM Database - Browse". bpmdatabase.com. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  3. "Why Can't I?". www.musicnotes.com. October 27, 2003. Retrieved November 29, 2015.
  4. Billboard - June 7, 2003, page 42
  5. Matt LeMay (June 24, 2003). "Liz Phair: Liz Phair | Album Reviews". Pitchfork Media. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
  6. Mary Huhn (August 10, 2003). "Cynic Turned Sexpot Liz Phair Doesn't Want to Be Cool Anymore". New York Post. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
  7. Mim Udovitch (June 27, 2003). "What Is Liz Phair Thinking?". New York Post. Retrieved September 21, 2017.
  8. Begrand, Adrien (June 22, 2003). "Liz Phair: self-titled < PopMatters". PopMatters. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
  9. Why Can't I? (European CD single liner notes). Liz Phair. Capitol Records. 2003. 7243 5 52959 2 7.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  10. Liz Phair (CD liner notes). Liz Phair. Capitol Records. 2003. CDP 7243 5 22084 0 1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. "Liz Phair – Why Can't I?" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  12. "Liz Phair – Why Can't I?". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  13. "Liz Phair Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  14. "Liz Phair Chart History (Adult Pop Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved June 8, 2021.
  15. "2003 The Year in Music". Billboard. Vol. 115, no. 52. December 27, 2003. p. YE-80. Retrieved October 24, 2021.
  16. "American single certifications – Liz Phair – Why Can't I". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved June 11, 2021.
  17. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1502. May 2, 2003. p. 26. Retrieved June 11, 2021.
  18. "Going for Adds" (PDF). Radio & Records. No. 1512. July 11, 2003. p. 24. Retrieved June 11, 2021.
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