Couldn't I Just Tell You

"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.^[5] The song is considered influential to the development of the power pop genre.

"Couldn't I Just Tell You"
Single by Todd Rundgren
from the album Something/Anything?
Released	July 1972 (1972-07)
Genre	Power pop[1] psychedelic pop[2] psychedelic rock[3] jangle pop[4]
Length	3:34
Label	Bearsville
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)

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."^[6]

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."^[7] 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".^[8] 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."^[9] 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."^[10] Music critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine on AllMusic called the song "terrific power pop classic"^[11] and "blinding power pop."^[12]

Personnel

• Todd Rundgren – all instruments and vocals^[6]

Charts

Chart (1972)	Peak position
US Billboard Hot 100[5]	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. Buckley, Peter (2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. p. 895. ISBN 978-1-84353-105-0.
3. 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.
4. DeMain, Bill (August 1, 2019). "How to buy the very best of Todd Rundgren". Classic Rock.
5. "Todd Rundgren - Chart History". Billboard. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
6. Harris, Will (April 9, 2012). "Todd Rundgren on his musical history, from Nazz to The New Cars". The A.V. Club.
7. Troper, Morgan (June 10, 2015). "A Wizard, a True Star". Portland Mercury.
8. Lester, Paul (February 11, 2015). "Powerpop: 10 of the best". The Guardian.
9. Miller, Scott (2010). Music: What Happened?. 125 Records. p. 68. ISBN 9780615381961.
10. 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.
11. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Todd Rundgren | Biography & History". AllMusic. Retrieved May 10, 2020.
12. Erlewine, Stephen Thomas. "Something/Anything? - Todd Rundgren | Songs, Reviews, Credits". AllMusic. Retrieved May 10, 2020.