I Can't Be with You

"I Can't Be with You"
Single by The Cranberries
from the album No Need to Argue
Released	27 February 1995 (UK) Fall 1995 (North America)
Format	CD single 7" single
Recorded	1994
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	3:08
Label	Island
Writer(s)	Dolores O'Riordan
Producer(s)	Stephen Street
The Cranberries singles chronology
"Ode to My Family" (1994) "I Can't Be with You" (1995) "Ridiculous Thoughts" (1995)
Music sample "I Can't Be with You"

"I Can't Be with You" is a 1994 song recorded by the Irish band The Cranberries. It was the third single from their second studio album No Need to Argue, except in North America, where it was released as the fourth and final single of the album in Fall 1995.

The song achieved minor chart success in most of the European countries where it was released, peaking at #21 in Ireland, its highest position in the various charts. This single was less successful than the previous Cranberries' singles.

Music Video

The music video to "I Can't Be with You" was directed by Samuel Bayer who was also the director of several of the band's other hit singles: "Zombie", "Ode to My Family", and "Ridiculous Thoughts".

It shows lead singer Dolores O'Riordan, wearing 1920's clothing, kneeling beside a bed and holding a young toddler and bathing him in a small bathtub. She then appears walking through desolate buildings and streets with a wooden torch with an old man dressed as an angel often lurking in the background. Throughout the video the band is seen playing in grassland while wearing red suits. At the end of the video the old man returns to the location where he was seen at the beginning of the clip.

Charts

Track listings

7" single

1. "I Can't Be With You"
2. "(They Long to Be) Close to You" (Burt Bacharach, Hal David)

CD single

1. "I Can't Be With You"
2. "(They Long to Be) Close to You"
3. "Empty" (live on BBC Radio One FM Evening Session, 26 September 1994)

Limited Edition CD single

1. "I Can't Be with You" (live on BBC Radio One FM Evening Session, 26 September 1994)
2. "Zombie" (acoustic)
3. "Daffodil Lament" (live at Feile, Tipperary, 30 July 1994)

Australian CD single (cardboard sleeve)

1. "I Can't Be with You"
2. "Empty" (live on BBC Radio One FM Evening Session, 26 September 1994)
3. "I Can't Be with You" (live on BBC Radio One FM Evening Session, 26 September 1994)

References