That Don't Impress Me Much

Album

Come On Over

Label

Mercury Records

Genre

Country pop

Composer(s)

Shania Twain;Robert John "Mutt" Lange

Entered Chart

Jan 23, 1999

Peak Date

Jun 12, 1999

Released

December 7, 1998

Recorded

Studio Masterfonics (Nashville, Tennessee)

Catalog #

Mercury (Nashville) 172118

This sassy single was written by Shania Twain and her producer/husband Robert John "Mutt" Lange. It finds Shania singing about various guys who are full of themselves - for good reason. But despite their exceptional talents and attributes, they don't impress her. She's looking for a guy who will keep her "warm in the middle of the night." Twain had seven #1 Country hits by the time this song was released, but it proved more popular to pop audiences, stalling at #8 on the Country chart but reaching #7 on the Hot 100. Much of this can be attributed to Mutt Lange's production, which retained only a hint of twang but filled the spectrum with lots of hooky background vocals. The subject matter also helped - women could relate to the guys she sings about no matter where they live. Shania namechecks both Elvis and Brad Pitt in this song. Her selections held up well, as Elvis' legend has only grown with time, and Brad Pitt stood up as a male sex symbol. Tom Cruise would have been a shakier choice. Shania Twain's reference to Brad Pitt was inspired by nude photos of the actor being published in Playgirl magazine. OK, so you're Brad Pitt? That don't impress me much Twain explained to Billboard magazine: "I remember I had a girlfriend visiting me and it was near Christmas and we were baking cookies. I was writing this album and there was a scandal of [Pitt] and Gwyneth [Paltrow] where there was naked photos of him. And this was like all the rage. I just thought, 'I don't know what all the fuss is about.' I'm like, 'Well that don't impress me much, I mean what is all the fuss. We see people naked every day.' That's really what I thought. I wasn't picking on Brad Pitt. But that was just the association in that moment and things we make fusses about and whatever. Of course, it could have been any gorgeous guy." Twain said about the writing of Come On Over: "Sometimes we would literally go two or three days at a time where we'd sit by the fire and start writing in the morning, go for a walk later in the afternoon, go for a horseback ride or eat, then write, go to bed really late, get up early in the morning and start all over again." (Source: Tommy's #1 Shania Twain Supersite). Report this ad In retrospect, this song was peak Shania. The Come On Over album was released in November 1997, and six singles were issued before "That Don't Impress Me Much" came out in December 1998. Five more singles followed, saturating the airwaves throughout 1999. Shania fatigue set in, and her next album, Up!, didn't fare nearly as well when it was released in 2002. She never landed another Top 10 on the Hot 100. This is Twain's third-biggest single on the Hot 100, following two other Come On Over tracks: "You're Still the One" (#2) and "From This Moment On" (#4). It was her biggest hit in the UK, where it sold 763,000 copies, and also topped the singles charts in Belgium, Ireland, Norway and the Netherlands. Twain would sometimes change the Brad Pitt line to suit the occasion. When she performed at the People's Choice Awards in 2022, she sang, "OK, so you're Ryan Reynolds," as the actor, who was honored that night, looked on.

Ow
Uh-huh, yeah, yeah

I've known a few guys who thought they were pretty smart
But you've got being right down to an art
You think you're a genius, you drive me up the wall
You're a regular original, a know-it-all

Oh-oh, you think you're special
Oh-oh, you think you're something else
Okay, so you're a rocket scientist

That don't impress me much
So you got the brain, but have you got the touch?
Now, don't get me wrong, yeah, I think you're alright
But that won't keep me warm in the middle of the night
That don't impress me much
Uh-huh, yeah, yeah

I never knew a guy who carried a mirror in his pocket
And a comb up his sleeve, just in case
And all that extra hold gel in your hair oughta lock it
'Cause Heaven forbid it should fall outta place

Oh-oh, you think you're special
Oh-oh, you think you're something else
Okay, so you're Brad Pitt

That don't impress me much (oh, oh, ooh)
So you got the looks, but have you got the touch?
Now, don't get me wrong, yeah, I think you're alright
But that won't keep me warm in the middle of the night
That don't impress me much
And yeah

You're one of those guys who likes to shine his machine
You make me take off my shoes before you let me get in
I can't believe you kiss your car good night
Now come on, baby, tell me, you must be jokin', right?

Oh-oh, you think you're something special
Oh-oh, you think you're something else
Okay, so you got a car

That don't impress me much (oh, oh, ooh)
So you got the moves, but have you got the touch?
Now, don't get me wrong, yeah, I think you're alright
But that won't keep me warm in the middle of the night

That don't impress me much (that don't impress me)
Oh, oh no, you think you're cool, but have you got the touch?
Now, now, don't get me wrong, yeah, I think you're alright
But that won't keep me warm on the long, cold, lonely nights
That don't impress me much
Uh-huh, yeah, yeah

Okay, so what do you think, you're Elvis or something?
Whatever
That don't impress me