Released August 2, 2010 Length 3:46 | Genre Country Label Big Machine | |
Writer(s) Neil Thrasher
Tom Shapiro
Jimmy Yeary Producer(s) Dann Huff, Rascal Flatts | ||
"Why Wait" is a song written by Neil Thrasher, Tom Shapiro, and Jimmy Yeary and recorded by American country music band Rascal Flatts. It was released in August 2010 as the first single from their seventh studio album Nothing Like This, released on November 16, 2010. It is also their first single released by Big Machine Records.
Contents
Music video
The music video, directed by Billy Zabka, was shot in Las Vegas, Nevada, following a story reminiscent of the comedy film The Hangover. David Arquette plays the man in the video who proposes to his girlfriend. Rick Harrison, owner of the Gold & Silver Pawn Shop and star of the History Channel original show Pawn Stars, makes a cameo appearance in the video when the Flatts and Arquette stop at the pawn shop to buy an engagement ring. Also in the video are cameos by Ron White, Carrot Top, Victoria Justice, Wayne Newton, and Penn and Teller.
Reception
Matt Bjorke of Roughstock gave the song four stars out of five, saying the lyrics "may be 'cheesy' to some, but it fits right where we'd expect a Rascal Flatts song to go." Giving it a "thumbs up," Jim Malec of American Twang thought that it was a return in sound to the band's earlier albums, also praising the "great details and images" of the lyrics as well as Gary LeVox's vocals. Tara Seetharam gave the song a B+ rating, referring to it as "a tasteful, vintage-Flatts track marked by an infectious rush of joy." She positively commented on the production, lyrics, and LeVox's vocals, stating that "the song gets everything right." Ben Foster of "The 1-to-10 Country Music Review" gave it ten stars out of ten, saying, "this is the best that the boys' voices have sounded in years and their signature three-part harmonies are fully intact and sounding great."
Chart performance
"Why Wait" debuted at No. 34 on the U.S. Billboard Hot Country Songs charts for the week of August 14, 2010, and became the group's eleventh Number One hit for the week of December 18, 2010.