"If I Wanted To" is a song by American singer-songwriter

Melissa Etheridge Melissa Lou Etheridge (born May 29, 1961) is an American singer, songwriter, musician, and guitarist. Her Melissa Etheridge (album), eponymous debut album was released in 1988 and became an underground success. It peaked at No. 22 on the Billbo ...

, released in 1994 as the final single from her fourth studio album, '' Yes I Am'' (1993). The song entered the top 50 in Australia, Canada, Iceland, and the United States.

Commercial performance

"If I Wanted To", which was released as a

double A-side The A-side and B-side are the two sides of vinyl records and cassettes, and the terms have often been printed on the labels of two-sided music recordings. The A-side of a single usually features a recording that its artist, producer, or ...

with " Like the Way I Do" in the United States, debuted on the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in February 1995 at No. 25, making it the highest-debuting single of 1995 at that point. The single's debut was the highest for any song since

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's "

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" debuted at No. 14 in November 1994. "If I Wanted To" peaked at No. 16 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in March 1995. Strong singles sales in March 1995 for

TLC TLC may refer to: Arts and entertainment Television * ''TLC'' (TV series), a 2002 British situational comedy television series that aired on BBC2 * TLC (TV network), formerly the Learning Channel, an American cable TV network ** TLC (Asia), an A ...

's "

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", Real McCoy's " Run Away", and

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's "

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" prevented "If I Wanted To" from rising higher on the Hot 100 despite widespread airplay on major US radio stations.

Reaction

Critical reception

Fred Bronson Fredric M. "Fred" Bronson (born January 10, 1949) is an American journalist, author and writer. He is the author of books related to number one songs on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart and other books related to various music charts as well. He ...

of ''

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 ...

'' wrote that with the single's debut, "Melissa Etheridge continues to solidify her new status as a chart superstar with the highest-debuting single of 1995." Fell and Rufer from the ''

Gavin Report The ''Gavin Report'' was a San Francisco-based radio industry trade publication. The publication was founded by radio performer Bill Gavin in 1958. Its Top 40 listings were used for many years by programmers to decide content of programs. The ...

'' felt that the song "rocks with the best of her previous winners, but can also stand alone on its own merit, as it builds in intensity without losing its cool." Sam Wood from ''

Philadelphia Inquirer ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'', often referred to simply as ''The Inquirer'', is a daily newspaper headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Founded on June 1, 1829, ''The Philadelphia Inquirer'' is the third-longest continuously operating da ...

'' found that with "If I Wanted To" "she describes her own desires with a full palette of harrowing visions that never meander into prettified abstraction".

Accolades

Music video

The single's accompanying music video was directed by

Samuel Bayer Samuel David Bayer (born February 17, 1962) is an American visual artist, cinematographer, and commercial, music video and film director. Bayer was born in Syracuse, New York. He graduated from New York City's School of Visual Arts in 1987 with ...

. The music video was also featured briefly in

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Track listings

* US and Australian maxi-CD single # "If I Wanted To" – 3:29 # " Come to My Window" (live) – 3:21 # " Bring Me Some Water" (live) – 4:35 # "Like the Way I Do" (live) – 10:12 * US 7-inch single :A. "If I Wanted To" – 3:29 :B. "Come to My Window" – 3:34 * US cassette single # "If I Wanted To" – 3:29 # "Like the Way I Do" – 5:23

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

References

{{authority control 1993 songs 1995 singles Island Records singles Melissa Etheridge songs Music videos directed by Samuel Bayer Song recordings produced by Hugh Padgham Songs written by Melissa Etheridge