What's your favorite song called "I Want You"?

Cafe Society
1

Allmusic.com has 658 entries for songs called “I Want You.” I’m sure a lot of those are duplicates, either covers of the same song or the same song showing up on different albums. But my brain can, on a moment’s notice, sing four compeletely different "I Want You"s: the ones by Bob Dylan, Elvis Costello, the Troggs, and the Beatles. (Which is technically “I Want You/She’s So Heavy,” but I say it still counts.)

Much as I love the Beatles, “I Want You” isn’t one of the reasons why. Bob Dylan’s “I Want You” is nice, but the least memorable of the ones I know. The Troggs’ version is nice and primal and growly. Good show, Troggs.

But my favorite is Elvis Costello’s. It’s one of the high points on Blood and Chocolate, one of his best albums. Each time I’ve seen him do it live, it brings the house to its feet with applausitory hosannas. Equally heaping spoonfuls of jealousy, desire, and anger percolate through his tawdry-clever lyrics: “it’s knowing that he knows you now after only guessing / It’s the thought of him undressing you or you undressing / I want you.”

It’s a song about infidelity called “I Want You.” Nice job, Elvis. Gives me shivers, it does.

So what’s your favorite “I Want You”?

2

I immediately thought of the Dylan one – indeed, I couldn’t place who sand it at first, but the riff was in my brain. I don’t guess I know the Costello one.

–Cliffy

3

I don’t know them all, but I give Dylan the nod over the Beatles.

4

Absolutely the Elvis Costello one. Damn, but that’s a good song.

5

I want you to want me,
I need you to need me,
I’d love you to love me.

Cheap Trick baby.

6

Cabaret Voltaire. I wonder if I can find it on iTunes…

7

I want you, you, you
All I want, is you, you, you
Written by Tom Waits, as recorded by Holly Cole.

8

:slight_smile: **Rachel Yamagata’s I Want You off the Happenstance album. ** Great song, fantastic album.

9

Definitely the one on Faith Hill’s new album. (This is apparently the only song called ‘I want you’ in my musical library, but it’s kick-ass anyway.)

http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/I-Want-You-lyrics-Faith-Hill/576994765A1C7A8348257057000CAA63

I get shivers when I hear it, still.

10

Melissa Etheridge’s take on the title is pretty good, too.

11

A tie, between Marvin Gaye and Elvis Costello.

12

I’ve never heard any one except James Montgomery Flagg’s, and he’s not a songwriter.

13

I Want You, I Need You, written by Harvey Brooks in 1933 for Mae West’s film “I’m No Angel.” (Harvey played piano for Paul Howard, one of LA’s premier black bandleaders.)

14

Marvin Gaye first. KISS second.

15

Dylan #1, KISS #2

16

Very fun song. I’ll take the Beatles song just for its schizophrenic intensity, but I’ve got only good things to say about Rachael’s “I Want You.”

17

I like the one by The Godfathers.

18

Definitely Dylan’s for the lyrics.

19

Chrisk and everyone else: please remember that you can quote a line or two of a song, but you may not quote full (or even a majority of) lyrics here without the permission of the songwriter.

You’ve given a link to the lyrics, presumably to a website that has permission to publish them, and that’s fine. However, you may not quote them here. Please go to Forum Rules, post #2.

20

Neither the best nor my favorite, but worth mentioning here is “I Want You,” the first track on Lindsey Buckingham’s Go Insane album.