Can't Change Me

Album: Euphoria Morning (1999)
Charted: 62 102
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • After the breakup of Soundgarden in 1997, Chris Cornell released his first album, Euphoria Morning, in 1999. "Can't Change Me" leads off the album and was the only single released from the set.

    Cornell explained the meaning of the song on MTV's Making the Video: "It's kind of a sad discovery that this singer is involved with this person that has amazing powers to help people and change things positively, and he's realizing that none of it is really rubbing off on him."
  • Cornell sings:

    She's going to change the world
    But she can't change me


    He told MTV News that this could be interpreted as either defiance or discovery. "Maybe there are things he'd like to change about himself," he said of the character in the song.
  • Johan Renck, whose credits include "Love At First Sight" for Kylie Minogue and "Blackstar" by David Bowie, directed the music video, where the Portuguese actress Ana Cristina de Oliveira plays a human torch, setting fire to whatever she touches. When Cornell catches fire, he douses the flames by taking a dip in a pool of water, since she can't change him.

    Visual effects software wasn't very good with fire at the time, so the flames were essentially composited onto the shots.
  • Two members of the band Eleven, Alain Johannes and Natasha Shneider, played on the song and worked on the recording. Johannes and Shneider co-produced the Euphoria Morning album with him.
  • The song placed at #102 on the Hot 100 but made #5 on the Mainstream Rock Songs chart and #7 on the Alternative Songs chart.
  • This earned a Grammy nomination for Best Male Rock Vocal Performance but lost to "American Woman" by Lenny Kravitz.
  • Cornell recorded a French version of the song that was included on the deluxe version of Euphoria Morning.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Pam Tillis

Pam TillisSongwriter Interviews

The country sweetheart opines about the demands of touring and talks about writing songs with her famous father.

Rock Stars of Horror

Rock Stars of HorrorMusic Quiz

Rock Stars - especially those in the metal realm - are often enlisted for horror movies. See if you know can match the rocker to the role.

Frankie Valli

Frankie ValliSong Writing

An interview with Frankie Valli, who talks about why his songs - both solo and with The Four Seasons - have endured, and reflects on his time as Rusty Millio on The Sopranos.

Part of Their World: The Stories and Songs of 13 Disney Princesses

Part of Their World: The Stories and Songs of 13 Disney PrincessesSong Writing

From "Some Day My Prince Will Come" to "Let It Go" - how Disney princess songs (and the women who sing them) have evolved.

Kip Winger

Kip WingerSongwriter Interviews

The Winger frontman reveals the Led Zeppelin song he cribbed for "Seventeen," and explains how his passion for orchestra music informs his songwriting.

Stephen Christian of Anberlin

Stephen Christian of AnberlinSongwriter Interviews

The lead singer/lyricist for Anberlin breaks down "Impossible" and covers some tracks from their 2012 album Vital.