‘Can't Fight This Feeling’ is a power ballad performed by the American rock band REO Speedwagon. The song first appeared on the 1984 album Wheels Are Turnin'. The single reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and held the top spot for three consecutive weeks from March 9 to March 23, 1985. It was the group's second number-one hit on the U.S. charts (the first being 1980's "Keep on Loving You", also written by Kevin Cronin) and reached number sixteen in the UK. ‘Can't Fight This Feeling’ has appeared on dozens of 'various artists' compilation albums, as well as several REO Speedwagon greatest hits albums.
In this song, a man is falling in love with a girl he has been friends with for a long time. When the band had difficulty coming up with songs for their Wheels Are Turnin' album, they took time off so each member could write alone. Lead singer Kevin Cronin went to Molokai, Hawaii, during his "time off." There, he played around with a song that he wrote 10 years earlier but never finished. When he stopped tinkering with his composition, it had become a song about a person's fear of change - even though he knows that he MUST change.
Kevin Cronin's girlfriends have provided inspiration for several REO hits - he says this one is based on an amalgamation of these relationships, but the song has a deeper meaning: "Really, what the song is about was about my inability to have the courage to express myself," he said in a Songfacts interview. "I was brought up in an Irish-Catholic family, and you were taught to always keep a bright face, always act like everything was OK, even if maybe everything on the inside wasn't so OK. So that's something I've struggled with, and over the years have gotten better at. At that time, the only way I knew to express those feelings was to write songs about them. I've learned over the years that it works better to talk to people! You can actually become closer to other human beings when you are vulnerable and express yourself and are free to tell the truth and to be honest and to be up front with your feelings. It does work. Back in those days, the best that I could do was write a song about it."
Chicago Tribune critic Jan DeKnock said that the song "rode a pretty melody all the way to No. 1." DeKnock also said that it was "the latest in a series of ballads that have found success on the dance-dominated charts with a tried and true formula: A melody that is pretty enough for adult contemporary listeners, with instrumentation that is strong enough for rock-oriented radio stations. Billboard recommended the single, calling it a "midtempo rock ballad." Rapid City Journal writer Mike Sanborn called it one of REO Speedwagon's "best ballads." REO Speedwagon performed the song at the 1985 Live Aid concert; they were introduced by Chevy Chase.
Label – Epic
Songwriter – Kevin Cronin
Producers – Kevin Cronin, Gary Richrath, Alan Gratzer
SONG LYRICS
[Verse 1]Oh, I can't fight this feeling any longer
And yet, I'm still afraid to let it flow
What started out as friendship, has grown stronger
I only wish I had the strength to let it show
I tell myself that I can't hold out forever
I said there is no reason for my fear
'Cause I feel so secure when we're together
You give my life direction
You make everything so clear
[Pre-Chorus]
And even as I wander, I'm keeping you in sight
You're a candle in the window on a cold, dark winter's night
And I'm getting closer than I ever thought I might
[Chorus]
And I can't fight this feeling anymore
I've forgotten what I started fighting for
It's time to bring this ship into the shore
And throw away the oars, forever
Cause I can't fight this feeling anymore
I've forgotten what I started fighting for
And if I have to crawl upon the floor
Come crashing through your door
Baby, I can't fight this feeling anymore
[Verse 2]
My life has been such a whirlwind since I saw you
I've been running round in circles in my mind
And it always seems that I'm following you, girl
'Cause you take me to the places that, alone, I'd never find
[Pre-Chorus]
And even as I wander, I'm keeping you in sight
You're a candle in the window on a cold, dark winter's night
And I'm getting closer than I ever thought I might
[Chorus]
And I can't fight this feeling anymore
I've forgotten what I started fighting for
It's time to bring this ship into the shore
And throw away the oars, forever
Cause I can't fight this feeling anymore
I've forgotten what I started fighting for
And if I have to crawl upon the floor
Come crashing through your door
Baby, I can't fight this feeling anymore