Can We Still Be Friends

"Can We Still Be Friends" is a song written and originally performed by Todd Rundgren.

"Can We Still Be Friends"
Single by Todd Rundgren
from the album Hermit of Mink Hollow
B-side"Out of Control" (US), "Determination" (UK)
ReleasedMay 1978
Recorded1978
GenreSoft rock
Length3:34
LabelBearsville
Songwriter(s)Todd Rundgren
Producer(s)Todd Rundgren
Todd Rundgren singles chronology
"Good Vibrations"
(1976)
"Can We Still Be Friends"
(1978)
"Bang the Drum All Day"
(1983)

Todd Rundgren version

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Todd Rundgren released his version on his 1978 album Hermit of Mink Hollow. This was the only hit single on the album, reaching #29 on the US Billboard Hot 100,[1] and also peaking at #8 in Australia. The lyrics describe a relationship to which Rundgren and the woman to whom he is singing have made great efforts to fix, but simply cannot make it work. Rundgren explains this, but wishes to part amicably, asking several times if he and his partner can "still be friends." The song is generally assumed to be about Rundgren's breakup with long-time companion Bebe Buell in 1977. Rundgren played all the instruments and performed all the vocals on the track, as he did with the rest of the album.

In 1994, the song made a prominent appearance in the film Dumb and Dumber, for which Rundgren had composed the score. It also appears on the soundtrack for the 2001 film Vanilla Sky, and the TV series Nip/Tuck.

Charts

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Weekly charts

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Weekly chart performance for "Can We Still Be Friends"
Chart (1978) Peak
position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[2] 8
United States (Billboard 100) 29

Year-end charts

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Year-end chart performance for "Can We Still Be Friends"
Chart (1978) Position
Australia (Kent Music Report)[3] 54

Robert Palmer version

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"Can We Still Be Friends"
 
Single by Robert Palmer
from the album Secrets
B-side"Too Good To Be True"
Released9 November 1979[4]
Genre
LabelIsland
Songwriter(s)Todd Rundgren
Producer(s)Robert Palmer
Robert Palmer singles chronology
"Bad Case of Loving You (Doctor, Doctor)"
(1979)
"Can We Still Be Friends"
(1979)
"Johnny and Mary"
(1980)
Audio video
"Can We Still Be Friends?" on YouTube

In 1979, "Can We Still Be Friends" became a hit again when Robert Palmer recorded a version for his album Secrets.

Chart performance

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Chart (1979-80) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[6] 52
Dutch Top 40[7] 32

Mandy Moore version

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"Can We Still Be Friends"
Song by Mandy Moore
from the album Coverage
Released2003
GenreR&B
Length3:38
LabelEpic
Songwriter(s)Todd Rundgren
Producer(s)John Fields
Audio
"Can We Still Be Friends" on YouTube

In 2003, Mandy Moore recorded her own version of the song from her third studio album Coverage, composed entirely of cover songs.

Other versions

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References

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  1. ^ "Billboard Hot 100, Chart Listing For The Week Of sep 02 1978". Billboard. Retrieved November 19, 2008.
  2. ^ Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992 (illustrated ed.). St Ives, N.S.W.: Australian Chart Book. p. 261. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
  3. ^ "Kent Music Report No 236 – 1 January 1979 > National Top 100 Singles for 1978". Kent Music Report. Retrieved 8 January 2022 – via Imgur.com.
  4. ^ "Music Week" (PDF). p. 32.
  5. ^ Deggans, Eric (January 1, 1998). "Robert Palmer". In Graff, Gary; du Lac, Josh; McFarlin, Jim (eds.). MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide. Detroit: Visible Ink Press. p. 439.
  6. ^ "Billboard Hot 100, Chart Listing For The Week Of feb 16 1980". Billboard. Retrieved November 19, 2008.
  7. ^ "De Nederlandse Top 40, week 51, 1979". Retrieved September 25, 2022.