Couldn't I Just Tell You

"Couldn't I Just Tell You"
Single by Todd Rundgren
from the album Something/Anything?
ReleasedJuly 1972 (1972-07)
Genre
Length3:34
LabelBearsville
Songwriter(s)Todd Rundgren
Producer(s)Todd Rundgren
Todd Rundgren singles chronology
"I Saw the Light"
(1972) 		"Couldn't I Just Tell You"
(1972) 		"Hello It's Me"
(1972)

"Couldn't I Just Tell You" is a song written by American musician Todd Rundgren that was released on his 1972 album Something/Anything?. In July, it was released as a single and reached number 93 on the Billboard Pop Singles chart.[6] The song is considered influential to the development of the power pop genre.

Unlike most of Something/Anything?, which consists primarily of piano-based compositions, "Couldn't I Just Tell You" is a rock song. Rundgren reflected that there would have been more songs in this style if he had not been performing all the music by himself: "I was pretty happy with the song because I realized it was the kind of thing I would probably have done more of if I had been using other players."[7]

Legacy

On a television performance in 1978, Rundgren introduced "Couldn't I Just Tell You" as a part of "the latest musical trend, power pop."[8] The song became influential to artists in the genre. Music journalist Paul Lester called the recording a "masterclass in compression" and said that Rundgren "staked his claim to powerpop immortality [and] set the whole ball rolling".[9] Musician Scott Miller's 2010 book Music: What Happened? calls the song "likely the greatest power pop recording ever made," with lyrics "somehow both desperate and lighthearted at the same time," and a guitar solo having "truly amazing dexterity and inflection."[10] VH1 named "Couldn't I Just Tell You" at eighth in their list "Catchy, Loud and Proud: 20 Essential Power Pop Tracks That Will Be Stuck In Your Head Forever."[11] Music critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine on AllMusic called the song "terrific power pop classic"[12] and "blinding power pop."[13]

Personnel

Charts

Chart (1972) Peak
position
US Billboard Hot 100[6] 93

References

  1. ^ Molanphy, Chris (November 19, 2022). "Angry Young Men Edition". Hit Parade | Music History and Music Trivia (Podcast). Slate. Retrieved February 18, 2023.
  2. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. Various Artists - Poptopia! 70's Power Pop Classics (1997) Review at AllMusic. Retrieved December 4, 2024.
  3. ^ Buckley, Peter (2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. p. 895. ISBN 978-1-84353-105-0.
  4. ^ Sisario, Ben (November 2, 2004). "Todd Rundgren". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide. New York: Simon & Schuster. pp. 707–708.
  5. ^ DeMain, Bill (August 1, 2019). "How to buy the very best of Todd Rundgren". Classic Rock.
  6. ^ a b "Todd Rundgren - Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
  7. ^ a b Harris, Will (April 9, 2012). "Todd Rundgren on his musical history, from Nazz to The New Cars". The A.V. Club.
  8. ^ Troper, Morgan (June 10, 2015). "A Wizard, a True Star". Portland Mercury.
  9. ^ Lester, Paul (February 11, 2015). "Powerpop: 10 of the best". The Guardian.
  10. ^ Miller, Scott (2010). Music: What Happened?. 125 Records. p. 68. ISBN 9780615381961.
  11. ^ Runtagh, Jordan (April 8, 2014). "Catchy, Loud and Proud: 20 Essential Power Pop Tracks That Will Be Stuck In Your Head Forever". VH1. Archived from the original on April 6, 2023. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
  12. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Todd Rundgren | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
  13. ^ Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Something/Anything? - Todd Rundgren | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved May 10, 2020.