| "It's All I Can Do" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by the Cars | ||||
| from the album Candy-O | ||||
| B-side |
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| Released | September 25, 1979 | |||
| Genre | New wave, pop rock | |||
| Length | 3:45 | |||
| Label | Elektra 46546 | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Ric Ocasek | |||
| Producer(s) | Roy Thomas Baker | |||
| The Cars singles chronology | ||||
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| Candy-O track listing | ||||
11 tracks
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"It's All I Can Do" is a song by the American rock band the Cars. It is the third track from their 1979 album Candy-O . It was written by the band's leader and songwriter Ric Ocasek, and features bassist Benjamin Orr on vocals.
"It's All I Can Do" is a new wave influenced pop rock song. [1] According to Brett Milano, writer of the Just What I Needed: The Cars Anthology album notes "'It's All I Can Do' was an affecting, straight-ahead piece of romantic pop, give or take a line like 'When I was crazy, I thought you were great.'" [2] The track was described as "gentle" by AllMusic reviewer Greg Prato, while Hamish Champ, writer of The 100 Best-Selling Albums of the 70s called the song "laidback". [3]
The bass lines and the G major guitar riffs have a major rock feel, but the song is softened down with Benjamin Orr's vocals and Greg Hawkes keyboard and synth lines.
"It's All I Can Do" was released as the follow-up to the "Let's Go" single on September 25, 1979, backed with "Got a Lot on My Head" in the U.S. and Canada, and with "Candy-O" in Britain. Although the song did not reach the Top 20 standard of its predecessor, it reached number 41 on the Billboard Hot 100. [4] A third and final single from Candy-O , "Double Life", failed to chart.
"It's All I Can Do" has generally received positive reception from critics. Prato said that "'It's All I Can Do' ... deserved to be a hit," while Champ said the track (as well as its predecessor, "Let's Go,") "give ample evidence of the band's range." [3] William Ruhlmann, author of The All-Music Guide to Rock, said "'It's All I Can Do' hit as well [as 'Let's Go']", and in the Billboard review of Candy-O, the song was chosen as one of the "best cuts". [3] In a negative review, Tom Carson of Rolling Stone said, "'It's All I Can Do' calculatedly recycles the 'Just What I Needed' hook but to less-telling effect. It's simply cold." [3] Billboard felt "It's All I Can Do" was less "dynamic and catchy" than "Just What I Needed" and "Let's Go," describing it as a "rocker with a simple melody line and spare instrumentation." [5] Cash Box said it is "more subdued but equally intriguing" compared with "Let's Go" and said it has "infectious rhythms" and "sparse yet effective electronics." [6] Classic Rock History critic Emily Fagan rated it as the Cars 5th best song sung by Orr, saying that the lyrics in the verses "speak to a relationship marked by disappointment and unfulfilled desire, while the chorus reinforces a sense of helplessness in the face of unresolved emotions." [7] Ultimate Classic Rock critic Dave Swanson rated it as the 9th best Benjamin Orr Cars song, calling it "one of the Cars' most straightfoward love songs and praising the "linear keyboard, simple drums and shiny yet gritty guitars." [8]
The B-side of "It's All I Can Do" is "Got a Lot on My Head", another track from Candy-O. In a review of Candy-O, AllMusic reviewer Greg Prato says the band "rocks out on 'Got a Lot on My Head' and 'Night Spots'". [9]
Weekly charts
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The Cars were an American rock band formed in Boston in 1976. Emerging from the new wave scene in the late 1970s, they consisted of Ric Ocasek, Benjamin Orr, Elliot Easton, Greg Hawkes (keyboards), and David Robinson (drums). Ocasek and Orr shared lead vocals, and Ocasek was the band's principal songwriter and leader.
The Cars is the debut studio album by American rock band the Cars, released June 6, 1978, by Elektra Records. The album was produced by longtime collaborator Roy Thomas Baker, and spawned several hit singles, including "Just What I Needed", "My Best Friend's Girl", and "Good Times Roll", as well as other radio and film hits such as "Bye Bye Love" and "Moving in Stereo". The Cars peaked at number 18 on the US Billboard 200 album chart, and has been certified 6x platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).
Candy-O is the second studio album by American new wave band the Cars, released on June 2, 1979, by Elektra Records.
Benjamin Orr was an American musician. He was best known as the bassist, co-lead vocalist, and co-founder of the band the Cars. He sang lead vocals on several of their hits, including "Just What I Needed", "Let's Go", "Moving in Stereo", and "Drive". He also had a moderate solo hit with "Stay the Night".
"Just What I Needed" is a song by American rock band the Cars from their self-titled debut album (1978). The song, which first achieved radio success as a demo, took inspiration from the Ohio Express and the Velvet Underground. The song is sung by bass player Benjamin Orr and was written by Ric Ocasek.
"Drive" is a song by American rock band the Cars from their fifth studio album, Heartbeat City (1984). It was released on July 23, 1984, as the album's third single. Written by Ric Ocasek, the track was sung by bassist Benjamin Orr and produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange with the band. Upon its release, "Drive" became the Cars' highest-charting single in most territories. In the United States, it peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Adult Contemporary chart. It reached number five in the United Kingdom, number four in West Germany, number six in Canada and number three in Ireland.
"Shake It Up" is a song by American rock band the Cars from their fourth studio album of the same name (1981). It was released on November 9, 1981, as the album's lead single. Although appearing for the first time in 1981, it was actually written years earlier by the band's songwriter and lead singer Ric Ocasek. The song became one of the Cars' most popular songs, peaking at number four on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Billboard Top Tracks chart in early 1982. With the track "Cruiser" as its B-side, it reached number 14 on the Billboard Disco Top 80 chart.
"Let's Go" is a song by American rock band the Cars, written by Ric Ocasek for the band's second studio album, Candy-O (1979). A new wave rock song, the song's hook was inspired by the Routers. The song's vocals are performed by bassist Benjamin Orr.
Just What I Needed: The Cars Anthology is a two-disc, career-spanning compilation album of songs by the American new wave rock band the Cars. It features most of the band's singles, as well as many album tracks, non-album B-sides and unreleased songs.
"You Might Think" is a song by American rock band the Cars from their fifth studio album, Heartbeat City (1984). The track was written by Ric Ocasek and produced by Mutt Lange and the Cars, with Ocasek also providing the lead vocals.
"Good Times Roll" is a song by American rock band the Cars released as the first track from their 1978 debut album The Cars. Written by Ric Ocasek as a sarcastic comment on rock's idea of good times, the song features layered harmonies courtesy of producer Roy Thomas Baker.
"Magic" is a song by American rock band the Cars from their fifth studio album, Heartbeat City (1984). It was released on May 7, 1984, as the album's second single, reaching number 12 on the US Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Billboard Top Tracks chart. The track was written by Ric Ocasek and produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange and the Cars. Ocasek sang lead vocals.
"Dangerous Type" is a 1979 song by the Cars from their second studio album, Candy-O. It was written by Ric Ocasek.
"My Best Friend's Girl" is a song by American rock band the Cars from their 1978 self-titled debut album on Elektra Records, released on June 6 of that year. Written by Ocasek as a song about something that "probably ... happened to a lot of people," the track found radio success as a demo in 1977.
"Tonight She Comes" is a 1985 song by American rock band the Cars from their Greatest Hits album. It was released as a single in October 1985, reaching number seven on the Billboard Hot 100 in January 1986. The song reached number one on the Top Rock Tracks chart, where it stayed for three weeks.
"You Are the Girl" is a 1987 song by the Cars, from their album Door to Door. It was released as a single in August 1987, reaching number 17 on the Billboard Hot 100. It also reached number 2 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, and number 12 on the Adult Contemporary chart. It was the Cars' 13th and final Top 40 hit.
"Candy-O" is a song by the American rock band the Cars, the title track of their 1979 album Candy-O. Written by Ric Ocasek, the song was not based on a real person. The song features a prominent guitar solo by Elliot Easton and lead vocals by bassist Benjamin Orr.
"Double Life" is a single by the American rock band the Cars from their second album Candy-O. Written by Ric Ocasek, the song was almost left off the album. The song was released as the third single from the album in 1979, but did not chart.
"Gimme Some Slack" is a song by the American rock band the Cars from the album Panorama. The song was written by bandleader Ric Ocasek.
"Don't Tell Me No" is a song by the American New wave band, the Cars. The song, written by Ric Ocasek, appeared on the band's third studio album, Panorama.
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| Related articles | |
| The New Cars | |
