I Can't Wait (Nu Shooz song)

"I Can't Wait"
Single by Nu Shooz
from the album Poolside (original version on Tha's Right)
Released	February 1986
Format	CD single, 7", 12"
Recorded	1984–1985
Genre	Soul, Freestyle
Length	5:25
Label	Atlantic
Writer(s)	John Smith
Nu Shooz singles chronology
- "I Can't Wait" (1986) "Point of No Return" (1986)
Audio sample file info · help

"I Can't Wait" is the title of a song recorded by American group Nu Shooz from the album Poolside. The song was originally recorded in late 1984, was featured on the band's now-rare second album Tha's Right the following year, and became a popular radio track in and around the band's hometown of Portland, Oregon. Credits on the back of the single indicate that the Poolside LP was originally to be called "The Point of No Return." The song was remixed overseas, and this new version connected with the rest of the nation. This remixed version is the one that appears on Poolside.

In the United States, the song reached #1 on Billboard's Hot Dance Club Play chart in late March 1986, remaining atop the chart for two weeks. Soon afterwards, the song appeared on the Hot 100 chart, where it climbed to #3 in mid-June of that year, and remained in the top 40 for 15 weeks. In the United Kingdom, the song reached #2 on the UK Singles Chart.

The song's American chart run coincided with that of a Stevie Nicks song also titled "I Can't Wait" (a rare incidence of two different songs with the same title charting at the same time). The extended "Long Dutch Mix" contains more samples (such as "c'mon!" from Madonna's "Into the Groove"), and takes the pitchshifting of the chorus even further, creating an eventual "pitchdown" at the ending.

Critical reception

John Leland's writeup in a Spin magazine column wrote about the single, saying: "You can listen to this record as many times as you want and still not have any strong impressions that human beings actually made it. In other words, it's the perfect disco record."

Music video

The music video was directed by Jim Blashfield. It contains animations and has a hint of the very surreal. The plot has Valerie Day singing the song sitting at a desk, while tools and other oddities pass through and out again.

Charts

Chart (1986)	Peak position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100	3
U.S. Billboard Hot Black Singles	2
U.S. Billboard Hot Dance Club Play	1
UK Singles Chart	2
Austrian Singles Chart	16
Canadian RPM Top Singles	1
Dutch Singles Chart	9
French Singles Chart	24
German Singles Chart	2
Irish Singles Chart	10
Italian Singles Chart	9
Swiss Singles Chart	4

In other media

• The intro can be heard in the 2007 UK film Son of Rambow.
• Portions of the intro can be heard in a Powerade Zero television commercial that aired in 2010.
• Briefly heard in the 2010 comedy, Hot Tub Time Machine, when Nick runs out realizing the group is in the 1980s.
• Used in the 2010 film The Switch, and was included on the film's soundtrack.
• Included on the Grand Theft Auto IV soundtrack.
• Used in Season 1, Episode 3 of The Cleveland Show, "The One About Friends" when Cleveland goes shoe-shopping.
• Heard on one of the commercials used for The Big Bang Theory syndication on TBS (TV channel) in the Fall of 2011.

Charting

Preceded by "I'm Not Gonna Let You" by Colonel Abrams	Billboard Hot Dance Club Play number-one single March 29, 1986 - April 5, 1986	Succeeded by "Kiss" by Prince and The Revolution
Preceded by "There'll Be Sad Songs (To Make You Cry)" by Billy Ocean	Canadian RPM number-one single July 12, 1986	Succeeded by "Who's Johnny" by El Debarge

Cover versions and samples

A rap cover of the song, "I Can't Wait (To Rock the Mike)", by Spyder-D was released later that year. In 1996, Vanessa Williams used an interpolation of "I Can't Wait" in her hit "Happiness", which is one of the words in the original song.

Brian McKnight's "Jam Knock" used a sample of "I Can't Wait" on his 1997 album, Anytime.

It was sampled by Natalie Alvarado's "I Can't Wait" off her 2005 debut album Natalie.

The song was sampled by Vanessa Williams in her song "Happiness."

In 2007, the music was replayed in a remix for Paula DeAnda's single "Easy", featuring a rap appearance by Bow Wow. This song was produced by a production team by the name of The Flyntstones.

The song was sampled by Girl Talk in the song "No Pause" on his 2008 album Feed the Animals. The vocals to Work It by Missy Elliott are mixed over it.

Belgian beauty queen Tatiana Silva covered the song in 2008.

The song was mashed up with Snoop Dogg's "Drop It Like It's Hot" by dj BC in a song called "Snoop's Nu Shooz". It also was mashed up with 50 Cent and Mobb Deep's "Have a Party" on the Statik Selektah mixtape of 2008 called The Empire Strikes Back; the track is titled "I Can't Wait (Have a Party Showoff Rmx)" (feat. 50 Cent & Mobb Deep).

The song is also sampled in the 2010 single "Buzzin'" by Mann.

The song was covered by Gavin Castleton for PDX Pop Now Compilation "Let It Rain."

See also

• List of number-one dance hits (United States)