"I Can't Love You Back" is a song written by

Carson Chamberlain Carson Chamberlain (born in Berea, Kentucky) is an American songwriter, record producer and session musician who works mainly in the field of country music. He worked as a bandleader and steel guitarist for Keith Whitley until Whitley died in 1 ...

, Jeff Hyde, and

Clint Daniels Clint Allen Daniels (born August 24, 1974, in Panama City, Florida) is an American country music artist. Signed to Arista Nashville in 1998, Daniels charted two singles for the label. In 2003, Daniels signed to Epic Records, releasing a third si ...

and recorded by American

country music Country (also called country and western) is a popular music, music genre originating in the southern regions of the United States, both the American South and American southwest, the Southwest. First produced in the 1920s, country music is p ...

artist

Easton Corbin Dan Easton Corbin (born April 12, 1982) is an American country music singer. He signed to Universal Music Group Nashville, Mercury Records Nashville in 2009 and released his Easton Corbin (album), self-titled debut album in March 2010, featuring ...

. It was released in November 2010 as the third and final single from Corbin's self-titled debut album. The song peaked at number 14 on the U.S. ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data along with digital sales and streaming. ...

chart.

Content

The narrator goes through all the ways he wants to love his significant other except for the fact that she is not returning to him.

Music video

The music video for the song was directed by

Shaun Silva Shaun Silva is an American music video director who works primarily in the country music field. He has directed a number of music videos for many country music artists, including many of Kenny Chesney's music videos. His other clients include Jas ...

and premiered on

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and

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in December 2010. The storyline of the video is told backwards, starting with a young woman being T-boned by a truck, presumably fatally, showing in reverse her drive into the city, walk up the driveway, through the house, and all the way back to the bedroom where Corbin does his performance. She leans down to kiss him and as she does so, time once again flows normally. The woman leaves, but not before looking back at Corbin a final time as he simply watches her intently. The video ends with her walking out the door, en route to her fate, while Corbin sits with tear-filled eyes.

Critical reception

Kyle Ward of Roughstock gave the song a favorable review with 4.5/5 stars, saying that Corbin "pours out his heart and bears his emotions and grabs you with a convincingly heartbreaking performance." Ward also states that the production was "appropriate; wistful during the verses and a louder, more emotional score during the chorus." Kevin John Coyne of ''Country Universe'' gave the song a B grade, saying that the song is beautiful but the only flaw is his "over-singing in the choruses."

Chart performance

"I Can't Love You Back" debuted at number 54 on the U.S. ''Billboard''

chart for the chart week ending November 27, 2010. It also debuted at number 97 on the U.S. ''Billboard''

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...

chart for the week of March 26, 2011. It peaked at number 14 in May 2011, becoming his first single to miss the Top 10 of the country chart.

Year-end charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:I Can't Love You Back 2010 singles 2010 songs Easton Corbin songs Songs written by Clint Daniels Songs written by Carson Chamberlain Music videos directed by Shaun Silva Song recordings produced by Carson Chamberlain Mercury Records singles Songs written by Jeff Hyde Country ballads 2010s ballads