Can't Fight This Feeling

For the Junior Caldera song, see Can't Fight This Feeling (Junior Caldera song).

"Can't Fight This Feeling" is a power ballad^[4] performed by the American rock band REO Speedwagon. The song first appeared on the 1984 album Wheels Are Turnin'. The single reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and held the top spot for three consecutive weeks from March 9 to March 23, 1985.^[5] It was the group's second and last number-one hit on the U.S. charts (the first being 1980's "Keep on Loving You", also written by Kevin Cronin) and reached number sixteen in the UK.^[6] "Can't Fight This Feeling" has appeared on dozens of 'various artists' compilation albums, as well as several REO Speedwagon greatest hits albums.^[7]

"Can't Fight This Feeling"
Single by REO Speedwagon
from the album Wheels Are Turnin'
B-side	"Break His Spell"
Released	December 17, 1984^[1]
Recorded	August 1984
Genre	Soft rock^[2] arena rock^[3]
Length	4:54
Label	Epic
Songwriter(s)	Kevin Cronin
Producer(s)	Kevin Cronin, Gary Richrath, Alan Gratzer
REO Speedwagon singles chronology
"I Do' Wanna Know" (1984) "Can't Fight This Feeling" (1984) "One Lonely Night" (1985)
Music video
"Can't Fight This Feeling" on YouTube

REO Speedwagon performed the song at the 1985 Live Aid concert; they were introduced by Chevy Chase.^[8]

Background

Cronin said that he wrote the verses years before, and had made a demo of it when he left REO Speedwagon briefly in the mid-70s.^[9] Cronin finished writing the song in Hawaii while supposedly on a break from composing for the Wheels Are Turnin' album.^[10][11] According to REO Speedwagon drummer Alan Gratzer, the song is about a relationship Cronin had and it took Cronin several years to come up with all the lyrics.^[12]

According to Cronin, the inspiration for the song was the hurt he felt when he became attracted to a woman who was part of his friend group. Cronin states that this woman was “…of course, going out with my friend, so I kept it to myself. There was a group of us who would hang out together...and she was always there. Eventually she and I were becoming friends, but there was no hanky-panky going on. The more I got to know her, the more I liked her, but I couldn't say anything about it.”^[13]

Cronin said that he was only able to finish the song when he "couldn't fight the feeling anymore and made the move to kind of go for it."^[13] He said he "knew those verses were something special because of the depth (of feeling). I felt for them. I couldn't force it."^[13] Cronin said that when he did express his feelings to the woman, they ended up having a great relationship, and although it didn't last they remained friends.^[13]

Cronin described the theme of the song as being about "that moment in time where...it gets too painful to be where you are and you know you have to change...but change is hard...and you overcome that fear of change."^[11]

The other REO Speedwagon members referred to "Can't Fight This Feeling" as "that stupid ballad" until it became a charting hit.^[11]

Composition

"Can’t Fight This Feeling" is in the key of A major.

Reception

Chicago Tribune critic Jan DeKnock said that the song "rode a pretty melody all the way to No. 1."^[14] DeKnock also said that it was "the latest in a series of ballads that have found success on the dance-dominated charts with a tried and true formula: A melody that is pretty enough for adult contemporary listeners, with instrumentation that is strong enough for rock-oriented radio stations.^[15] Billboard recommended the single, calling it a "midtempo rock ballad."^[16] Rapid City Journal writer Mike Sanborn called it one of REO Speedwagon's "best ballads."^[17] Palm Beach Post music writer Leslie Gray Streeter named it her 3rd greatest power ballad.^[18] Arizona Republic writer Andrew Means noted that the song "has a similar tone of emotional frailty [as some ballads on Hi Infidelity], which revives comparisons with such so-called 'corporate rock' entities as Foreigner and Journey."^[19] Streeter attributes the song's success to its combination of "frighteningly candid emotion with searing rock guitar.^[13] But Greg Kennedy of the Red Deer Advocate called it a "bland formula-fed composition."^[20]

Austin American-Statesman writer Drew Carr felt that the performance of REO Speedwagon keyboardist Neal Doughty was particularly effective on this song.^[21]

Music video

Two different music videos exist for the song. Both videos have been shown at various times on VH1 Classic (now known as MTV Classic).

Version 1: Studio (videotape)

The videotaped version was produced by MTV for a special on REO Speedwagon and features the band in the studio. It begins with Kevin Cronin playing the piano, attempting to find the key in which he can best sing the song (starting off in G major, he later decides he can sing it better in A). After Cronin exchanges some laughs with his bandmates, the original track of the song plays, with the band members miming their respective parts. It concludes with Cronin uttering the line, "That warmed the cockles of my cockles!"^[22]

Version 2: Film

The second more famous version, directed by John Jopson, was considered a "more professional one" and makes various references to the life-cycle and shows the band singing the song.^[23]

Personnel

REO Speedwagon^[24]

• Kevin Cronin - lead and backing vocals, acoustic guitar
• Gary Richrath - electric guitar
• Neal Doughty - piano
• Alan Gratzer - drums
• Bruce Hall - bass guitar

Other personnel

• Bill Cuomo - orchestration

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (1985) Peak position Australia (Kent Music Report)^[25] 2 Canada (CHUM)^[26] 2 Canada Adult Contemporary (RPM)^[27] 4 Canada (The Record)^[28] 5 Canadian RPM Singles Chart^[29] 1 Germany Media Control Charts^[30] 34 Irish Singles Chart^[31] 5 Radio Luxemburg Singles^[32] 13 New Zealand Singles Chart^[33] 33 South African Singles Chart^[34] 8 Swedish Singles Chart^[35] 15 UK Singles Chart^[36] 16 US Billboard Hot 100^[37] 1 US Adult Contemporary^[37] 3 US Top Rock Tracks^[37] 5 US Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks^[37] 89 US Cash Box^[38] 1 US Radio & Records (R&R)^[39]^[40] 1 Chart (2011) Peak position US Rock Digital Songs^[41] 32

Year-end charts Chart (1985) Rank Australia (Kent Music Report)^[42]^[43] 33 Canada (RPM Top 100 Singles)^[44] 33 US Billboard Hot 100^[45] 13 US Cash Box^[46] 10

Certifications

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)^[47]	Gold	50,000^^
United Kingdom (BPI)^[48]	Gold	400,000^‡
United States (RIAA)^[49]	Gold	500,000^^
^^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. ^‡ Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Bastille version

"Can't Fight This Feeling"
Single by Bastille featuring London Contemporary Orchestra
from the album Doom Days: This Got Out of Hand Edition
Released	November 19, 2019
Recorded	2019
Length	3:18
Label	Virgin EMI Records
Songwriter(s)	Kevin Cronin
Bastille singles chronology
"Another Place" (2019) "Can't Fight This Feeling" (2019) "What You Gonna Do???" (2020)

In 2019, English indie pop band Bastille released a cover version of the song, featuring the London Contemporary Orchestra. It was released on November 19, 2019, by Virgin EMI Records. The song was selected as the soundtrack to the 2019 John Lewis Christmas advert.^[50][51]

Charts

Chart (2019–2020)	Peak position
Belgium (Ultratip Bubbling Under Flanders)^[52]	23
Euro Digital Song Sales (Billboard)^[53]	7
Scotland (OCC)^[54]	4
UK Singles (OCC)^[55]	39

Other versions

• The song was sung by the cast at the end of the 2008 animated film, Horton Hears a Who!
• In 2024, American singer JoJo released a cover of "Can't Fight This Feeling"; the song was from the soundtrack to the film Lisa Frankenstein.^[56][57]

References

1. "RIAA".
2. "VH1's 40 Most Softsational Soft-Rock Songs". Stereogum. SpinMedia. May 31, 2007. from the original on July 29, 2016. Retrieved July 31, 2016.
3. Breihan, Tom (September 23, 2020). "The Number Ones: REO Speedwagon's "Can't Fight This Feeling"". Stereogum. Retrieved July 30, 2023. ...very few people have enjoyed such success in the field of wimpily overdriven arena-rock power balladry. Consider the band's second and final #1 hit.
4. . AllMusic. Archived from the original on April 11, 2015. Retrieved April 20, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
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14. DeKnock, Jan (April 5, 1985). "Madonna sets pace for female soloists". Chicago Tribune. pp. 7–58. Retrieved July 27, 2022 – via newspapers.com.
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49. "American single certifications – R.E.O. Speedwagon – Can't Fight This Feeling". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved January 19, 2015.
50. "The John Lewis & Partners Christmas Advert". johnlewis.com. November 14, 2019. Retrieved November 14, 2019.
51. John Lewis & Partners [@jlandpartners] (November 14, 2019). "Thank you @bastilledan for soundtracking the story of Edgar with this year's song! #ExcitableEdgar" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
52. "Bastille feat. London Contemporary Orchestra – Can't Fight This Feeling" (in Dutch). Ultratip. Retrieved 1 February 2020.
53. "Bastille Chart History (Euro Digital Song Sales)". Billboard. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
54. "Official Scottish Singles Sales Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 30 November 2019.
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56. "JoJo - Can't Fight This Feeling". Spotify. February 9, 2024. Retrieved February 29, 2024.
57. Grow, Kory (February 8, 2024). "JoJo Goes Full REO Speedwagon for 'Lisa Frankenstein' Song". Rolling Stone. Retrieved February 29, 2024.