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"I Want You to Want Me" is a song by the American rock band Cheap Trick. It is originally from their second album In Color, released in September 1977. It was the first single released from that album, but it did not chart in the United States. Nineteen months later, a live version from the band's successful Cheap Trick at Budokan album was released as a single and became one of their biggest hits, peaking at number seven in the US, number two in Canada, and number one in Japan. It has since become Cheap Trick's signature song.

"I Want You to Want Me"
Epic 50435
Single by Cheap Trick
from the album In Color
B-side	"Oh Boy (Instrumental Version)"
Released	September 1977 (1977-09)
Recorded	1977
Studio	Kendun Recorders, Los Angeles
Genre	Power pop[1]
Length	3:07
Label	Epic
Songwriter(s)	Rick Nielsen
Producer(s)	Tom Werman
Cheap Trick singles chronology
"Oh, Candy" (1977) "I Want You to Want Me" (1977) "Southern Girls" (1977)

"I Want You to Want Me"
Epic 50680
Single by Cheap Trick
from the album Cheap Trick at Budokan
B-side	"Clock Strikes Ten"
Released	April 1979 (1979-04)
Recorded	April 1978
Venue	Nippon Budokan, Tokyo
Genre	Hard rock power pop
Length	3:38
Label	Epic
Songwriter(s)	Rick Nielsen
Producer(s)	Cheap Trick
Cheap Trick singles chronology
"California Man" (1978) "I Want You to Want Me" (1979) "Ain't That a Shame" (1979)

Background

"I Want You to Want Me" was a number-one single in Japan.[2][3]^{[better source needed]} Its success in Japan, as well as the success of its preceding single "Clock Strikes Ten", paved the way for Cheap Trick's concerts at Nippon Budokan in Tokyo in April 1978 that were recorded for the group's most popular album, Cheap Trick at Budokan.[4] A live version of "I Want You to Want Me" from the album Cheap Trick at Budokan was released in 1979 and became their biggest selling single, reaching #7 on the Billboard Hot 100.[5] It was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, representing sales of one million records. In Canada, it reached #2 in on the RPM national singles chart, remaining there for two weeks[6] and was certified Gold for the sale of 500,000 singles in September 1979.[7] It was also the band's highest charting single in Britain, where it reached #29.

Years later, Rick Nielsen and Tom Petersson criticized the lightweight production of "I Want You to Want Me" as it originally appeared on their second album, In Color. Cheap Trick went as far as to mostly re-record that album in 1997, though this version hasn't been officially released. Producer Tom Werman explains:

"'I Want You To Want Me' was a fabulous dance hall type of song, and a perfect pop tune, and it was meant to be a little campy. I put the piano on—a guy named Jai Winding played it. I remember asking the band what they thought of it, and Rick Nielsen kind of shrugged and said, 'You're the producer.'" Further: "It was a burlesque song, like a 30s number. That is what they wrote it as."^{[citation needed]}

Version differences

The live version has a faster tempo than the album version, which contributed to its success^{[citation needed]}. However, the album version features an echo at the verse "Didn't I, didn't I, didn't I see you cryin' (cryin)". This echo does not appear in the live version. The crowd, however, emulates the echo by chanting "cryin'". The studio version features guitar by Jay Graydon.[8] The live version consists of two guitar solos, while the studio version has a piano fill as a second instrumental. In early 1977, Cheap Trick recorded a version played in the style they played in concerts. It was played with dramatic vocals, high tempo and two guitar solos. It was later released in 1998 and is almost identical to the "alternate" version, with a slightly different song structure, that was released two years earlier in 1996, from "Sex, America, Cheap Trick".^{[citation needed]} In 1997, the band recorded another version as part of a complete remake of In Color with producer Steve Albini. This version generally follows the live arrangement as heard on At Budokan.

33 years after the Budokan version became Cheap Trick's first Top Ten hit, the band recorded a festive version of the song with the same arrangement, but with slightly modified lyrics, called "I Want You for Christmas", included on A Very Special Christmas: 25 Years Bringing Joy to the World, in 2012.[9]

"Oh Boy"

The single is backed with the non-album track "Oh Boy (Instrumental)", which was later re-worked with vocals and released on a promotional single.[10]

Critical reception

Cash Box said that it's "a slick piece of pop-rock written by its goofy guitarist, Rick Nielsen" and "though the lyrics are terribly original [sic], it's a pleasant tune, impeccably produced by Tom Weman."[11]

Classic Rock critic Malcolm Dome rated it as Cheap Trick's greatest song, saying that although Nielsen conceived it as "an overblown pop parody" it became "a true pop rock classic."[12]

In the 2007 book Shake Some Action: The Ultimate Power Pop Guide, a section on Cheap Trick featured reviews on the top 20 stand-out tracks from the band. One track included was "I Want You to Want Me", where author John M. Borack wrote "the In Color version lacked anything resembling balls, but that was remedied on the hit version from the groundbreaking Cheap Trick at Budokan disc. A piece of history and a darned cool tune, to boot."[13] Billboard Magazine found the live version to be "high energy" with "an infectious melody and raspy guitar work."[14]

Chart history

Weekly charts

Chart (1977)	Peak position
Canada RPM 100 Top Singles [15]	97
U.S. Record World Singles Chart 101–150 [16]	119

All appearances

• 1977: In Color
• 1978: From Tokyo to You
• 1979: Cheap Trick at Budokan (Recorded Apr 28, 1978)
• 1991: The Greatest Hits
• 1991: Queens Logic soundtrack
• 1996: Sex, America, Cheap Trick compilation (Alternate Version)
• 1997: Private Parts soundtrack
• 1998: Cheap Trick (1998 Reissue) (Early Version)
• 1998: Cheap Trick at Budokan: The Complete Concert
• 1999: That '70s Album (Rockin')
• 1999: Music for Hangovers
• 2000: Authorized Greatest Hits

Letters to Cleo version

"I Want You to Want Me"
Single by Letters To Cleo
from the album 10 Things I Hate About You
Released	1999
Genre	Pop punk[citation needed]
Length	3:25
Label	Hollywood
Songwriter(s)	Rick Nielsen

Letters to Cleo recorded a version in 1999 for the 10 Things I Hate About You soundtrack. It was released as a single [27] but failed to chart.

Track listings and formats

• CD single[28]

1. "I Want You to Want Me"  – 3:24
2. "Cruel to Be Kind"  – 3:01

References

External links

• Allmusic entry

На других языках

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- [en] I Want You to Want Me

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[es] I Want You to Want Me

I Want You To Want me es una canción perteneciente al segundo álbum de la banda Cheap Trick llamado In color lanzado en 1977. Fue el primer sencillo de ese álbum y, aunque en los Estados Unidos no tuvo éxito, en Japón alcanzó el primer lugar del Top. Aprovechando esto, dos años después —1979—, lanzaron una versión en vivo de la canción «I Want You To Want me» en el álbum Cheap Trick at Budokan y esta se convirtió en el sencillo con mejores ventas de la banda en Estados Unidos y llegó a ser el número 7 en el Billboard Hot 100. Además fue disco de oro por la Recording Industry Association of America ya que las ventas superaron el millón de discos. La canción también fue un éxito en el Reino Unido donde alcanzó el # 29.

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