I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)
Encyclopedia
"I Can't Go for That" is a 1981 song recorded by Daryl Hall and John Oates
.
It was the fourth number-one hit single of their career on the Billboard Hot 100
and the second hit single from their album Private Eyes
. It features Charles DeChant
on saxello.
On January 30, 1982, "I Can't Go for That" ended a 10-week run at the top of the Hot 100 by Olivia Newton-John
's song, "Physical
" (which had knocked out Hall & Oates' "Private Eyes"
from the top spot). The song also went to number one on the Hot Dance Club Play
chart for one week in January 1982.
Thanks to heavy airplay on urban contemporary
radio stations, "I Can't Go for That" also topped the U.S. R&B chart
, a rare feat for a non-African American
act. According to the Hall and Oates biography, Hall, upon learning that "I Can't Go For That" had gone to number one on the R&B chart, wrote in his diary, "I'm the head soul brother in the U.S. Where to now?"
"I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)" is one of the 14 Hall and Oates songs that have been played on the radio over one million times, according to BMI.
The single 45 version is actually not just an edit of the album song, but an edit of the dance mix rather than the version from "Private Eyes".
in 1981 after a recording session for the Private Eyes album. Hall began to play a bass line on a Korg
organ, and sound engineer Neil Kernon
recorded the result. Hall then came up with a guitar riff, which he and Oates worked on together. The next day, Hall and Sara Allen worked on the lyrics.
's list of "The 100 Greatest Songs of the '80s."
, The Nylons
, Les Go (with Alfredo Alias), Donny Osmond
, East End, Kansascali, Orson
, Peniston
.
In 2010, The Bird and the Bee
covered this song for their tribute album Interpreting the Masters Volume 1: A Tribute to Daryl Hall and John Oates
.
Olivia Ong
recorded a Bossa Nova
based version on her 2010 album, called Olivia.
The cast of Glee
sang the song as a mash-up with You Make My Dreams
, also by Hall & Oates.
, during the recording of “We Are the World
”, Jackson approached him and admitted to lifting the bass line for "Billie Jean
" from a Hall and Oates song, apparently referring to "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)
." Hall says that he told Jackson that he had lifted the bass line from another song himself, and that it was "something we all do."
in R&B and hip-hop
songs. The following is a partial list:
Some songs have included a vocal interpolation of the chorus, including:
Other songs have included a re-recorded variation of the song's famous descending arpeggio, including:
Additionally, the JP/PAL Version of Sonic CD's Boss music beat is sampled from this song.
Hall & Oates
Hall & Oates are an American musical duo composed of Daryl Hall and John Oates. They achieved their greatest fame in the late 1970s and early to mid-1980s. Both sing and play instruments. They specialized in a fusion of rock and roll and rhythm and blues styles, which they dubbed "rock and soul."...
.
It was the fourth number-one hit single of their career on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
and the second hit single from their album Private Eyes
Private Eyes (Hall & Oates album)
Private Eyes is the tenth studio album from blue-eyed soul duo Daryl Hall and John Oates, released in 1981. A hit, it stands not only as a definitive album for the duo, but as a notable album for the music of the decade, combining pop, rock, R&B and soul genres.The album includes 2 Number one...
. It features Charles DeChant
Charles DeChant
Charles "Mr. Casual" DeChant is the saxophone and keyboard player for the multi-platinum selling recording artists Hall & Oates. He has been playing in the band since its inception in the early 1970s. Notable saxophone solos are heard in "Maneater," "Say It Isn't So," and "I Can't Go for That ."...
on saxello.
On January 30, 1982, "I Can't Go for That" ended a 10-week run at the top of the Hot 100 by Olivia Newton-John
Olivia Newton-John
Olivia Newton-John AO, OBE is a singer and actress. She is a four-time Grammy award winner who has amassed five No. 1 and ten other Top Ten Billboard Hot 100 singles and two No. 1 Billboard 200 solo albums. Eleven of her singles and 14 of her albums have been certified gold by the RIAA...
's song, "Physical
Physical (Olivia Newton-John song)
"Physical" is a song by Australian pop singer Olivia Newton-John, released in September 1981. The song was an immediate success, shipping 2 million copies in the United States, being certified Platinum, and spending 10 weeks at number one on the Billboard Hot 100, ultimately becoming Newton-John's...
" (which had knocked out Hall & Oates' "Private Eyes"
Private Eyes (song)
"Private Eyes" is the hit 1981 single by Hall & Oates and the title track from their album of that year. The song was number one on the Billboard Hot 100 charts for two weeks, from November 7 through November 20, 1981. This single was the band's third of six number one hits , and their second...
from the top spot). The song also went to number one on the Hot Dance Club Play
Hot Dance Club Play
The Hot Dance Club Songs chart is a weekly national survey of the songs that are most popular in U.S. dance clubs...
chart for one week in January 1982.
Thanks to heavy airplay on urban contemporary
Urban contemporary
Urban contemporary is a music radio format. The term was coined by the late New York DJ Frankie Crocker in the mid 1970s. Urban contemporary radio stations feature a playlist made up entirely of hip hop/rap, contemporary R&B, pop, electronica such as dubstep and drum and bass and Caribbean music...
radio stations, "I Can't Go for That" also topped the U.S. R&B chart
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, is a chart released weekly by Billboard in the United States.The chart, initiated in 1942, is used to track the success of popular music songs in urban, or primarily African American, venues. Dominated over the years at various times by jazz, rhythm and blues, doo-wop, soul,...
, a rare feat for a non-African American
African American
African Americans are citizens or residents of the United States who have at least partial ancestry from any of the native populations of Sub-Saharan Africa and are the direct descendants of enslaved Africans within the boundaries of the present United States...
act. According to the Hall and Oates biography, Hall, upon learning that "I Can't Go For That" had gone to number one on the R&B chart, wrote in his diary, "I'm the head soul brother in the U.S. Where to now?"
"I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)" is one of the 14 Hall and Oates songs that have been played on the radio over one million times, according to BMI.
The single 45 version is actually not just an edit of the album song, but an edit of the dance mix rather than the version from "Private Eyes".
Composition
Daryl Hall sketched out the basic song one evening at a music studio in New York CityNew York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
in 1981 after a recording session for the Private Eyes album. Hall began to play a bass line on a Korg
Korg
is a Japanese multinational corporation that manufactures electronic musical instruments, audio processors and guitar pedals, recording equipment, and electronic tuners...
organ, and sound engineer Neil Kernon
Neil Kernon
Neil Kernon is a musician/record producer/mixer/recording engineer - from London, England.He has worked with a number of artists over the last 30 years, but may be best known for his work with Hall & Oates on three of their most important albums - 1980's Voices, 1981's Private Eyes, and 1982's H2O...
recorded the result. Hall then came up with a guitar riff, which he and Oates worked on together. The next day, Hall and Sara Allen worked on the lyrics.
Awards and accolades
"I Can't Go for That" was voted number six on VH1VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...
's list of "The 100 Greatest Songs of the '80s."
Covers
The song has been covered by a number of recording artists including Brian McKnightBrian McKnight
Brian McKnight is an American singer-songwriter, arranger, producer, and R&B/Pop musician. He is a multi-instrumentalist who plays nine instruments: piano, guitar, bass guitar, drums, percussions, trombone, tuba, flugelhorn and trumpet....
, The Nylons
The Nylons
The Nylons are an a cappella group founded in 1978 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Best known for their covers of The Turtles' "Happy Together", Steam's "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye", and The Tokens' version of the traditional "The Lion Sleeps Tonight"....
, Les Go (with Alfredo Alias), Donny Osmond
Donny Osmond
Donald Clark "Donny" Osmond is an American singer, musician, actor, dancer, radio personality, and former teen idol. Osmond has also been a talk and game show host, record producer and author. In the mid 1960s, he and four of his elder brothers gained fame as the Osmond Brothers on the long...
, East End, Kansascali, Orson
Orson
-Places:*Orson, Pennsylvania, a very small town in Preston Township, Pennsylvania in Wayne County, Pennsylvania.*Orson, Indiana, a small fictional town in the TV series The Middle.-People:*Orson Scott Card, science fiction author...
, Peniston
CeCe Peniston
CeCe Peniston is an African American recording artist and former beauty queen. At the beginning of the nineties, she was considered to be one of the most successful dance club artists in the history of the U.S...
.
In 2010, The Bird and the Bee
The Bird and the Bee
The Bird and the Bee is an American indie pop musical duo from Los Angeles, California, consisting of musicians Inara George and Greg Kurstin...
covered this song for their tribute album Interpreting the Masters Volume 1: A Tribute to Daryl Hall and John Oates
Interpreting the Masters Volume 1: A Tribute to Daryl Hall and John Oates
Interpreting the Masters Volume 1: A Tribute to Daryl Hall and John Oates is the third studio album by American indie pop duo The Bird and the Bee. It was released on March 23, 2010 by Blue Note Records and is a tribute album to Hall & Oates....
.
Olivia Ong
Olivia Ong
Olivia Ong is a Singaporean singer. She sings mostly in English but developed her career singing in English and Japanese. In addition, she has released rare tracks, recorded in Mandarin, and Cantonese which can be found on limited edition albums.-Biography:...
recorded a Bossa Nova
Bossa Nova
Bossa Nova may refer to:*Bossa nova, a style of music*Bossa Nova , a dance form associated with the music*Bossa Nova , a 2000 film*Bossa Nova - album by John Pizzarelli...
based version on her 2010 album, called Olivia.
The cast of Glee
Glee (TV series)
Glee is an American musical comedy-drama television series that airs on Fox in the United States, and on GlobalTV in Canada. It focuses on the high school glee club New Directions competing on the show choir competition circuit, while its members deal with relationships, sexuality and social issues...
sang the song as a mash-up with You Make My Dreams
You Make My Dreams
"You Make My Dreams" is a 1980 single by Hall & Oates from their album Voices. The song reached number five on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in 1981...
, also by Hall & Oates.
Influence on Jackson's Billie Jean
According to Daryl HallDaryl Hall
Daryl Hall is an American rock, R&B and soul singer, keyboardist, guitarist, songwriter and producer, best known as the co-founder and lead vocalist of Hall & Oates . Hall scored several Billboard chart hits in the 1970s and early 1980s, and is regarded as one of the best blue eyed soul singers...
, during the recording of “We Are the World
We Are the World
"We Are the World" is a song and charity single originally recorded by the supergroup USA for Africa in 1985. It was written by Michael Jackson and Lionel Richie, and produced by Quincy Jones and Michael Omartian for the album We Are the World...
”, Jackson approached him and admitted to lifting the bass line for "Billie Jean
Billie Jean
"Billie Jean" is a dance-pop/R&B song by American recording artist Michael Jackson. It was written, composed, and co-produced by Jackson, and produced by Quincy Jones from the singer's sixth album, Thriller . Originally disliked by Jones, the track was almost removed from the album after he and...
" from a Hall and Oates song, apparently referring to "I Can't Go For That (No Can Do)
I Can't Go for That (No Can Do)
"I Can't Go for That " is a 1981 song recorded by Daryl Hall and John Oates.It was the fourth number-one hit single of their career on the Billboard Hot 100 and the second hit single from their album Private Eyes...
." Hall says that he told Jackson that he had lifted the bass line from another song himself, and that it was "something we all do."
Samples and interpolations in other songs
The original track has often been sampledSampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
in R&B and hip-hop
Hip hop music
Hip hop music, also called hip-hop, rap music or hip-hop music, is a musical genre consisting of a stylized rhythmic music that commonly accompanies rapping, a rhythmic and rhyming speech that is chanted...
songs. The following is a partial list:
- 1989 - "Say No GoSay No Go"Say No Go" is a single by De La Soul from their influential 1989 album 3 Feet High and Rising. It reached number 18 in the UK charts.-Background:...
" - De La SoulDe La SoulDe La Soul is an American hip hop trio formed in 1987 on Long Island, New York. The band is best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternative hip hop subgenres... - 1993 - "V.S.O.P" - Above the LawAbove the Law (band)Above the Law is a rap group from Pomona, California, founded in 1989 by Cold 187um, KMG the Illustrator, Go Mack, and DJ Total K-Oss.In 1989, the group signed to the late Eazy-E's Ruthless Records. There they became close associates of the pioneering gangsta rap group N.W.A.. Their first album on...
- 1996 - "So Deep" - Dan-e-oDan-e-oDaniel Faraldo , professionally known as Dan-e-o, is a Canadian hip hop artist of Jamaican and Spanish descent, from Toronto, Ontario...
- 1997 - "I'll Do Anything" - Heavy D
- 1998 - "I Can't Go for That" - 2 Live Crew2 Live Crew2 Live Crew was a hip hop group from Miami, Florida. They caused considerable controversy with the sexual themes in their work, particularly on their 1989 album As Nasty As They Wanna Be.- Early career :...
- 1999 - "Wait 'Til I Get Home" - C-NoteC-Note (band)C-Note is a boy band from Orlando, Florida. The group scored success in 1999 with their debut album, Different Kind of Love.-History:...
- 2001 - "Traffic" - Stereo MC's
- 2002 - "4 Myself" Mac DreMac DreAndre Hicks , better known by his stage name Mac Dre, was an American rapper.-Biography:Andre Hicks was born in Oakland, California but moved to Vallejo while still a child...
ft. Devious and Dubee - 2003 - "Take Me To Your Leader" - King Geedorah
- 2003 - "SunriseSunrise (Simply Red song)"Sunrise" is a 2003 single released by Simply Red from the album Home. It was released in March 2003 as the first single from the album. The song contains a sample of Hall & Oates's 1981 smash hit "I Can't Go for That ". It peaked at #1 on the U.S...
" - Simply RedSimply RedSimply Red were a British soul band that sold more than 50 million albums over a 25-year career. Their style drew influences from blue-eyed soul, new romantic, rock, reggae and jazz... - 2004 - "I Can't Go For That/Happy People Remix" - Notorious B.I.G. / R. KellyR. KellyRobert Sylvester Kelly , better known by his stage name R. Kelly, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. A native of Chicago, Kelly began performing during the late 1980s and debuted in 1992 with the group Public Announcement. In 1993, Kelly went solo with the album 12 Play...
("Happy People" samples Spandau Ballet's "True") - 2006 - "Give and Go" - Girl TalkGirl Talk (musician)Gregg Michael Gillis , better known by his stage name Girl Talk, is an American musician specializing in mashups and digital sampling. Gillis has released five LPs on the record label Illegal Art and EPs on 333 and 12 Apostles....
- 2006 - "Can't Go On" - Örten
- 2006 - "Mama (Loves a Crackhead)Mama (Loves A Crackhead)"Mama " is the second single by Plan B, taken from his debut album Who Needs Actions When You Got Words, which was released two weeks prior to the single.-Background:...
" - Plan BPlan B (rapper)Benjamin Paul Ballance-Drew primarily known as Plan B or Ben Drew, is a British rapper, singer-songwriter, actor and film director from Forest Gate, London. Plan B first emerged as a hip hop artist releasing his critically acclaimed debut album Who Needs Actions When You Got Words in 2006...
Some songs have included a vocal interpolation of the chorus, including:
- 1996 - "My Crew Can't Go for That" - Trigger tha Gambler
- 2000 - "Can't Go for ThatCan't Go for That"Can't Go for That" is a song by Tamia, released as a single in 2000. The single was remixed by Jonathan Peters. The album version was written by Missy Elliott and includes an interpolation of "I Can't Go For That " by Hall & Oates....
" - TamiaTamiaTamia Hill , and known professionally as Tamia, is a four-time Grammy-nominated Canadian R&B and soul singer, songwriter, record producer, composer, model, entrepreneur and philanthropist, as well as an occasional actress.She is best known for her 2000 hit "Stranger In My House" and Fabolous' 2003... - 2006 - "No Can Do" - Tech N9neTech N9neAaron Dontez Yates , better known by his stage name Tech N9ne , is an American rapper from Kansas City, Missouri. In 1999, Yates and Travis O'Guin founded the record label Strange Music. Throughout his career, Yates has sold over one million albums and has had his music featured in film,...
Other songs have included a re-recorded variation of the song's famous descending arpeggio, including:
- 2000 - "After Party" - Koffee BrownKoffee BrownKoffee Brown were a neo-soul duo consisting of male singer Fonz and female singer Vee. They were discovered by producer Kay Gee and were signed to Arista Records...
Additionally, the JP/PAL Version of Sonic CD's Boss music beat is sampled from this song.
Chart performance
| Chart (1981-1982) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canadian Singles Chart | 2 |
| Netherlands Singles Chart | 13 |
| New Zealand Singles Chart | 5 |
| Swedish Singles Chart | 10 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks | 12 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Songs | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Soul Singles | 1 |
| UK Singles Chart | 8 |
External links
- Video on VH1 ClassicVH1 ClassicVH1 Classic is a television network, launched on May 8, 2000. It is operated as part of MTV Networks, a subsidiary of Viacom and primarily features music videos and concert footage from the 1970s through the mid-1990s, though it formerly included a wider range of genres and time periods...
website