Why Can't We Be Friends? (song)

"Why Can't We Be Friends?" is a song by the funk band War for its 1975 studio album of the same name. The song has a simple structure, with the phrase "Why can't we be friends?" being sung four times after each two-line verse amounting to over forty times in under four minutes. The song reached #6 on the Billboard Hot 100 in the summer of 1975. The song is unique as various members of the band exchange vocal duties from verse to verse. It was played in outer space when NASA beamed it to the linking of Soviet cosmonauts and U.S. astronauts for the Apollo–Soyuz Test Project.[1] Billboard ranked it as the No. 23 song of that year.

"Why Can't We Be Friends?"
Single by War
from the album Why Can't We Be Friends?
B-side"In Mazatlan"
ReleasedApril 1975
Format7"
Recorded1974
Genre
Length3:50
LabelUnited Artists
Songwriter(s)Papa Dee Allen, Harold Ray Brown, B. B. Dickerson, Lonnie Jordan, Charles Miller, Lee Oskar, Howard E. Scott
Producer(s)Jerry Goldstein
War singles chronology
"Ballero"
(1974)		 "Why Can't We Be Friends?"
(1975)		 "Low Rider"
(1975)

Chart performance

Certifications
Region CertificationCertified units/sales
United States (RIAA)[5] Gold 1,000,000^

*sales figures based on certification alone
^shipments figures based on certification alone
sales+streaming figures based on certification alone

Smash Mouth version
"Why Can't We Be Friends?"
Single by Smash Mouth
from the album Fush Yu Mang
ReleasedApril 7, 1998
FormatCD single
Recorded1997
GenreSka punk
Length4:46 (Album Version)
3:17 (Radio Edit)
LabelInterscope
Songwriter(s)Papa Dee Allen, Harold Ray Brown, B. B. Dickerson, Lonnie Jordan, Charles Miller, Lee Oskar, Howard E. Scott
Producer(s)Eric Valentine
Smash Mouth singles chronology
"Walkin' on the Sun"
(1997)		 "Why Can't We Be Friends?"
(1998)		 "The Fonz"
(1998)

American pop rock band Smash Mouth covered the song on its debut album Fush Yu Mang on April 7, 1998, releasing it as the band's second single and was also featured in the 1998 films BASEketball and Wild Things.[6] The song was also featured in the Friendships trailer for Mortal Kombat 11.[7]

Charts
Chart (1998) Peak
position
Australia (ARIA)[8] 67
Iceland (Íslenski Listinn Topp 40)[9] 19
Netherlands (Single Top 100)[10] 89
New Zealand (Recorded Music NZ)[11] 39
Spain (AFYVE)[12] 5
Sweden (Sverigetopplistan)[13] 29
US Alternative Songs (Billboard)[14] 28

References
  1. Gabriel San Roman (December 23, 2010). "WAR Is the Answer (and the Question) for Lonnie Jordan". OC Weekly. Retrieved February 5, 2013.
  2. "Image : RPM Weekly - Library and Archives Canada". Bac-lac.gc.ca. Retrieved October 10, 2016.
  3. "Top Singles – Volume 24, No. 14, December 27, 1975". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved March 28, 2017.
  4. "Top 100 Hits of 1975/Top 100 Songs of 1975". Musicoutfitters.com. Retrieved October 10, 2016.
  5. "American single certifications – War – Why Can't We Be Friends". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 21, 2019. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Single, then click SEARCH. 
  6. "Music — Why Can't We Be Friends? - Single by Smash Mouth". Amazon. Retrieved March 9, 2016.
  7. "Mortal Kombat 11: Aftermath - Official Friendships Trailer". YouTube. Retrieved May 18, 2020.
  8. "The ARIA Australian Top 100 Singles Chart Week Ending 24 May 1998". ARIA. Retrieved February 4, 2016.
  9. "Íslenski Listinn Topp 40 (26.2 – 5.3. 1998)". Dagblaðið Vísir (in Icelandic). February 27, 1998. Retrieved October 3, 2019.
  10. "Dutchcharts.nl – Smash Mouth – Why Can't We Be Friends" (in Dutch). Single Top 100. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  11. "Charts.nz – Smash Mouth – Why Can't We Be Friends". Top 40 Singles. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  12. Salaverri, Fernando (September 2005). Sólo éxitos: año a año, 1959–2002 (1st ed.). Spain: Fundación Autor-SGAE. ISBN 84-8048-639-2.
  13. "Swedishcharts.com – Smash Mouth – Why Can't We Be Friends". Singles Top 100. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
  14. "Smash Mouth Chart History (Alternative Songs)". Billboard. Retrieved October 6, 2018.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.