I Just Can't Wait


"I Just Can't Wait" is the debut single by the English singer Mandy Smith, produced by Stock Aitken Waterman, and was the first release by Pete Waterman's new label, PWL in January 1987. Despite intense publicity in the wake of Smith's relationship with Bill Wyman, the song charted poorly in the UK — a result the producers blamed on the hostility of the British media. It proved, however, to be a substantial hit in a number of European countries. Remixed versions of the song were released in the UK in 1992 and 1995, but did not chart.

Critical reception

While "I Just Can't Wait" missed the top 40 in her home country, the track's Balearic beat version, the "Cool and Breezy Jazz Mix", was critically well received, and has been called "one of the coolest records SAW ever made". Smash Hits Australia slated the song as "awful mildly suggestive", though songwriter Mike Stock denied that the title was a reference to the scandal surrounding Smith's underage relationship with Wyman.
In 2023, Alexis Petridis of The Guardian listed the Cool and Breezy Jazz Version at number 15 in his "Stock Aitken Waterman's 20 greatest songs – ranked!", adding: "It expunges almost all of Smith's vocal in favour of an acoustic guitar solo, and sounds suitably sun-drenched and blissful".

Chart performance

"I Just Can't Wait" was a commercial failure in the UK and Australia, where it peaked at number 91 in both countries, with three weeks of charting in the UK in February and March 1987. The song, however, did better in Continental Europe, particularly in Norway, the only nation in which it entered the top ten, attaining number nine. It was also a top 20 hit in Germany where it reached number 14 with a 12-week chart run, Switzerland where it culminated at number 16 and charted for eight weeks, and Italy where it peaked at number 19 and totaled 11 weeks on the chart. In addition, it spent two weeks in the top 50 of the New Zealand Singles Chart, with number 37 as highest position, and was present for two weeks on the Music & Medias Pan-Eurochart Hot 100 singles chart, peaking at number 90 in its first week.

Track listings

UK 7-inch singleUK 12-inch singleUK 12" single - 1992 mixes
  • '''UK 12" single - 1995 mixes'''

Credits and personnel

Credits and personnel adapted from the Mandy album and 7-inch single liner notes: