Just Can't Get Enough
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11. Just Can't Get Enough List of Speak & Spell songs |
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Just Can't Get Enough
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| Song | Just Can't Get Enough |
|---|---|
| By | Depeche Mode |
| Songwriter | Vince Clarke |
| Produced by | Depeche Mode Daniel Miller |
| Recorded at | Blackwing Studios (London) |
| Length (mm:ss) | 3:41 (7" version) 6:46 (12" version) |
| Tempo | 128 BPM |
| Time signature | 4 4 |
| Key | C Major |
| Engineered by | Eric Radcliffe John Fryer |
| Photography | Brian Griffin |
| Recorded | Summer 1981 |
| Originally released | 18 September 1981 |
| Live performances as Depeche Mode | 729 times * |
| Total live performances | 796 times * |
"Just Can't Get Enough" is a song from the 1981 album Speak & Spell by Depeche Mode. It was released as a single on 18 September 1981.
Notes
Author Jonathan Miller reported: "According to Deb Danahay, the song is about Vince's infatuation from afar with a particularly striking young lady who was often seen around Basildon at the time - not that the reserved songwriter ever made his feelings known to the girl in question."
When Depeche Mode was interviewed about the songs on the '101' CD for the April 1989 issue of French magazine 'Best', Dave Gahan said (translated from French):
"It's a perpetual subject of discussion in the band. Every time we go on tour, we're wondering if we should play 'Just Can't Get Enough.' Since it's a Vince Clarke song - who is no longer in the band - and it is so different from what we're doing now, we're still hesitant about it. But at the same time, it was our very first hit and the audience would be disappointed if we did not play it. I do not want to appear to be ignoring it, because it's a good pop song, but I do have to admit that it does not really excite me anymore to sing it."
Dave Gahan discussed 'Just Can't Get Enough' and its music video in an interview with Entertainment Weekly in 2017:
Dave Gahan: I was maybe 18, almost 19. The punk thing had just kind of ended, but there were still a few people who were hanging out in the clubs in London, who were trying to play music that you could dance to a bit more that wasn’t so violent, and “Just Can’t Get Enough” became one of those. We had a group of friends at the time who would go to these different clubs, dressed like we were in the video, sort of leather-y stuff.
EW: Was that your first real music video? It’s hard to tell if those are your real girl friends, or just good casting.
Dave Gahan: I think it was, yeah. The girls, one was Budgie’s girlfriend from Siouxsie and the Banshees, then a couple were models, and they were a little older than us, so it was kind of exciting to have them dance around us. The video leaves a lot to be desired. When I look at it I’m like, [covering his eyes] “Oh my God.” But that’s kind of what videos were then — low budget. And the little performance parts are kind of cool. The acting stuff’s terrible of course. [Laughs]
EW: How did you feel when the Gap used the song for that ad in the late ’90s?
Dave Gahan: The thing is, the song is written by Vince Clarke, who was in the band for like five minutes, and went on to be part of Yaz and Erasure. But that album [Speak & Spell] was very much a Vince Clarke album, and he owns the rights to that song of course, so it’s been in so many commercials and it pops up. I remember we went to his publisher’s at the time and they sat us all down and they said, “You know, Vince, you’re going to be driving a Rolls Royce when these lot are still on a tandem,” pointing to me and [bandmates] Martin [Gore] and Fletch [Andy Fletcher]. And it probably was true! I think that song has kept him in cornflakes for many years. [Laughs][1]
Lyrics
Just Can't Get Enough
When I'm with you baby
I go out of my head
And I just can't get enough
And I just can't get enough
All the things you do to me
And everything you said
I just can't get enough
I just can't get enough
We slip and slide as we fall in love
And I just can't seem to get enough of
We walk together
We're walking down the street
And I just can't get enough
And I just can't get enough
Every time I think of you
I know we have to meet
And I just can't get enough
I just can't get enough
It's getting hotter
It's a burning love
And I just can't seem to get enough of
And when it rains
You're shining down for me
And I just can't get enough
And I just can't get enough
Just like a rainbow
You know you set me free
And I just can't get enough
And I just can't get enough
You're like an angel
And you give me your love
And I just can't seem to get enough of
Songwriter: Vince Clarke
Publishing Information: ©1981 Musical Moments Ltd./Sony Music Publishing Ltd.. All rights reserved.
Music video
Live performances
- Main article: Available recordings of "Just Can't Get Enough"
- Main article: List of dates where "Just Can't Get Enough" was played
Trivia
- One of the girls featured in the music video is dancer and artist Jeanette Landray, who would later perform lead vocals with The Glove, a 1983 musical collaboration and recording project between The Cure's Robert Smith and Siouxsie and the Banshees co-founder Steven Severin.
- Musician Perry Bamonte, the older brother of longtime Depeche Mode associate and tour manager Daryl Bamonte, was a member of The Cure from 1990 to 2005.
- 'Just Can't Get Enough' has featured in a variety of films, including 1998 romantic comedy The Wedding Singer (starring Adam Sandler Drew Barrymore, and Billy Idol as himself), 2017 documentary Dare to Be Different, 2007 British comedy film Son of Rambow, 2001 film Me Without You, and 1982 romantic comedy Summer Lovers.
- 'Just Can't Get Enough' has also featured in many television series, including season one episode ten of Netflix comedy Master of None, season three episode fourteen of ITV cooking game show Who's Doing the Dishes?, season one episode four of British comedy/travel series An Idiot Abroad, season five episode five of FX horror series American Horror Story, season one episode two of Channel 4 science fiction series Electric Dreams, season two episode one of HBO comedy drama The Comeback starring Lisa Kudrow of Friends fame, and season two episode twenty-four of The CW teen drama Gossip Girl.
- Actress Celeste Octavia, who plays the bartender smitten by Martin Gore (much to Dave Gahan's annoyance) in the 2001 Exciter tour black and white screen projection for 'It's No Good', also appears in season one episode four of Gossip Girl.
- In addition to its many appearances in film and television, the song (and its many covers) have also featured in numerous advertisements and commercials, including a 2014 television commercial for Churchill Insurance; an advertisement for 2011 romantic comedy Crazy, Stupid, Love starring Steve Carell (of The Office fame), Marisa Tomei, Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, and Kevin Bacon; a 2013 commercial for a Samsung four-door refrigerator; a 2012 commercial for American office retailer Staples; a 2014 commercial for American retail store Target's "RedCard" promotion featuring the song played on children's instruments; a 2018 commercial for American multinational retailer Walmart's "Easy Reorder" promotion; two 2014 commercials for General Mills/Sodiaal franchise yogurt brand Yoplait's "Greek 100" promotion; and a January 2020 Discover advertisement for its 'Cashback' credit card service.
- The Office was co-created by comedian Ricky Gervais, who also pursued an ill-fated music career with Depeche Mode-esque new wave group Seona Dancing prior to achieving international success in comedy. Gervais would join Dave Gahan, Martin Gore, and Andrew Fletcher in a 30 March 2017 interview for Norwegian-Swedish television talk show Skavlan to discuss their careers and mutual admiration for the late musician David Bowie.
- The music video was lampooned by Jimmy Fallon in a 2019 live performance on NBC's The Tonight Show.
References
