‘I Can’t Stop’ was a welcome return to some modicum of chart success for Gary Numan in the summer of 1986 after a period in the wilderness for his solo releases. A stomping rocker of a number, it’s ostentatious female vocals repeating the title over and over perhaps don’t charm many a Numan fan more accustomed to his moodier work, but this mid-’80s period saw Gary embrace far more mainstream tastes in order to stay afloat in a musical world that was increasingly forgetting his place in it. Well documented in Numan’s autobiographies, this period was one of survival. And as you can see from the selection of releases pictured here, the multi-format ’80s madness was catered for with this release.

In the UK, the single was released on Numan’s own label, NUMA on 7″, 12″, 12″ ‘Picture Mix’ picture disc, 10″ ‘Club Mix’ and a shaped picture disc 7″. Spread across these singles were a number of unique mixes – and when the song appeared in November of 1986 on its parent album, ‘Strange Charm’, it was in yet another mix.

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7″ single:

Side A: ‘I Can’t Stop’ (7″ Mix) (3’23”) / Side B: ‘Faces’ (4’42”)

As you would expect, the 7” mix is the shortest of the lot and clocks in at classic single length duration of just under three and a half minutes. If you were familiar with the song back in the day from appearances on television courtesy of the promo video, it’s this version you’ll likely know. It starts with a heavy rhythm track with sampled synth lead guitar (similar to what is also to b found on the Club Mix) then has lead guitar soloing from 0’15” to 0’35” at which point Numan’s lead vocal for verse 1 comes in. So, on this 7” mix there are NO female chorus backing vocals at the start at all, they don’t appear until after verse 1 at 0’47”. This mix also has a relatively unique end compared to all of the other mixes fades out while the ‘I can’t stop it, I can’t stop it again….’ chorus is still in full flow. (By comparison, of the other mixes fade out with just a heavily echoed drum pattern.)

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12″ single:

Side A: ‘I Can’t Stop’ (Extended Mix) (6’48”) / Side B: ‘Faces’ (4’42”)

The 12″ single contains a 6’48” Extended Mix on the A side (as described on the rear of the picture sleeve, the label doesn’t note this). BTW, when digitised from my vinyl copy, I find that this mix actually has a duration of 6’55”.

Found on the 12” vinyl single only to date – it appears that this mix has never found its way onto any CD re-issues as yet, somewhat surprisingly.

This Extended Mix starts with the chorus female vocals like the album mix but only to 0’08” at which point heavy rhythm and guitar lick comes in and it then all proceeds instrumentally, including a nice extended instrumental break of what would otherwise be one of the verses from 0’28” through till 0’50” – this gives a better idea of how the song is built instrumentally. At that 0’50” mark the female chorus vocals rejoin and repeat until 1’39” which is when Numan’s own first verse vocal comes in – but that first verse is immediately followed by an instrumental passage quite unlike either of the mixes so far. Numan’s second verse starts 2’41” and is then followed by the chorus and guitar solo break as per album mix. From 3’46” there is then a much longer female only chorus vocals repeating until 4’41” when Numan’s third verse comes in. From 4’53” it’s back to the full Numan and female backing vocals chorus in full force, though at 5’10” it drops to the female only chorus vocals kick drum and then slowly builds back up from there adding the driving synth bass then guitar before Numan rejoins the chorus at 5’41” and that repeats with some variations, such some extra guitar soloing, til near the end, where like the album mix, the last thirteen seconds or so are that same heavily echoed pounding drum beat fading out.

As noted above, the Extended Mix has not been re-released at any point so far. However, it was meant to be included on the ‘Babylon 4’ Numan fan club released CD compilation and it certainly is listed as being the Extended Mix on the packaging, but the CD actually includes the Club Mix version (and, unfortunately, mastered at a slightly slower speed playback).

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12″ Picture Disc:

Side A: ‘I Can’t Stop’ (Picture Mix) (5’50”) / Side B: ‘Faces’ (4’42”)

The first 32 seconds of the ‘Picture Mix’ are the same as LP mix but the female backing vocals then differ – on the Picture Mix they start with one female BV then are joined by the second ‘response’ BV – whereas the LP mix starts with both vocals.

At approx 1’05” there is where you would expect the Numan vocal for the first verse to come in (“I’ve been there and seen it, I’ve been up and down…”) [NB: That comes in at 0’50” on the LP mix] but instead it is instrumental and it’s not until 1’44” before Numan lead vocals come in. The ‘Picture Mix’ ending is same as album mix.

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10″ single:

Side A: ‘I Can’t Stop’ (Club Mix) (6’32”) / Side B: ‘Faces’ (4’42”)

The ‘Club Mix’ starts with heavy rhythm pattern, followed by instrumental sections + female BVs. Numan lead box comes in at 1’17” and is followed immediately by period of female backing vocals + bass + rhythm then full chorus. Proceeds on to second verse as usual. At 3’58” it breaks down to just rhythm + bass and at 4’16” sampled lead guitar is reintroduced. Third verse starts at 4’51” (“I’m back and I’m proven, I’m back and I’m strong…”). Like the Extended Mix, the ending fades out similar to LP mix but is preceded by longer chorus repeat period with some unique guitar and backing vocal elements?

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LP: ‘Strange Charm’

This is probably the most familiar mix by now, since it’s the one that as well as having been used on the ‘Strange Charm’ album is also the version to be found when the song is included on many of the various compilation albums out there.

This mix goes in heavy with the ‘I can’t stop it, I can’t stop it again….’ female chorus vocals – they are there on their own from the very beginning, joined by kick dr at 0’07” before dropping out to make way for the music at 0’16”, but they join back in with the music from 0’32” until 0’50” which is when Numan’s lead vocal for verse 1 enters play. In general, this mix focuses on the vocal sections, with Numan’s solo verses and the Numan/female backing vocals tending to follow one another with only minimal instrumental breaks between, e.g. there is the guitar solo section from from approx. 2’24 through 2’57” and then those female chorus vocals are straight back in after that for another extended shift till 3’45” when Numan’s voice joins the chorus too and that chorus goes on till approx. 4’19” At that point we get Numan’s verse 3 till 4’31” and then straight after that the by now very familiar chorus comes back and repeats on until 5’35”, when the last 15 seconds or so are a fade out with just a heavily echoed drum pattern.

So, this is by far the most vocal heavy mix with hardly any instrumental breaks. If you are not a fan of the female backing vocals on the chorus, this is probably not the mix you want to hear!

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CD: ‘Strange Charm’ (NUMA)

This CD version on Numa records is just like the vinyl LP, but at least the label credits get the correct duration timings.

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CD EP: ‘Babylon 4’ (Salvation)

As noted above, the Salvation Records ‘Babylon 4’ CD should include the Extended Mix of ‘I Can’t Stop’, but it doesn’t – it’s actually the ‘Club Mix’ and even that has been transferred so that it plays back at a slightly slower speed than the original vinyl.

CD: ‘Strange Charm’ (Eagle)

1998 saw Numan’s deal with Eagle Records re-issue  ‘Strange Charm’ on CD in a new sleeve design and with a number ox extra bonus tracks. But once again it is the Album Mix of ‘I Can’t Stop’ that is to be found on the CD.

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CD: ‘Strange Charm’ (Cleopatra)

The American re-issue on Cleopatra Records of ‘Strange Charm’ CD differed quite a bit from its UK equivalent when it emerged in 1999 by way of a different selection of bonus tracks, one of which was the ‘Club Mix’ of ‘I Can’t Stop’, though listed as ‘10” Version’. Sadly, like the ‘Babylon 4’ CD, it plays back at a slower speed than the original vinyl issue.

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Summary

So, in the end, there appear to be five unique mixes of ‘I Can’t Stop’ released, as far as I’m aware – the timings I list are those as published on the original record labels – and I list where they can be sourced on CD subsequent to the original released – these mixes being;

• ‘I Can’t Stop’ (7″ Mix) (3’23”) – released on CD on the ‘New Dreams For Old’ compilation.
• ‘I Can’t Stop’ (Extended Mix) (6’48”) – never released on CD. The ‘Babylon 4’ CD claims to contain this version, but it doesn’t, it contains the 10″ Club Mix (with an error, as it plays at a slower speed). When digitised from vinyl, I find that it actually has a duration of 6’55”.
• ‘I Can’t Stop’ (Picture Mix) (5’50”) – never released on CD. The ‘I Can’t Stop’ double compilation CD from 2003 claims to contain this version, but it doesn’t – it contains the Album Mix).
• ‘I Can’t Stop’ (Club Mix) (6’32”) – it has been released on CD on the ‘Babylon 4’ CD (though credited wrongly as the 12″ Extended Mix) and it is also a bonus track on the 1999 US Cleopatra Records ‘Strange Charm’ CD – but – and its a BIG but – in both of these cases there is an error with the mastering as it plays at a slower speed.
• ‘I Can’t Stop’ (Album Mix) (5’45”) – it’s not referred to as ‘album mix’, I am just calling it that to differentiate it. But it is a different version from all of the single mixes. It is included on the various CD editions of the album.
  • Of note, the labels for the LP have an error and mix up the track durations for the first two tracks on side two – so, although on the label it states that ‘I Can’t Stop’ is only 5’00”, that is actually the track duration for the title track, ‘Strange Charm’, instead.