I Can't Make You Love Me - Sam Harris - MP3 instrumental karaoke

Perhaps one of the saddest and most heartbreaking songs in the pop music canon, the emotionally devastating ballad "I Can't Make You Love Me" was written by the Nashville-based songwriting duo of Mike Reid and Allen Shamblin in the early 1990s. Inspired by a man's allegation in court after getting arrested for getting drunk and shooting at her girlfriend's car, the song was initially conceived as an uptempo bluegrass number and was reworked several times before reaching its final version. Upon its completion, the pair considered offering the song to Bette Middler and Linda Ronstadt, but it was finally given to Bonnie Raitt, who recorded it in just one take. A poignant story about unrequited love, "I Can't Make You Love Me," quickly became one of Bonnie Raitt's biggest hits, reaching Number 6 on the Adult Contemporary chart. In the years that followed, the song was covered multiple times by artists like George Michael, Boyz II Men, and Adele. In 2014, former Star Search alumni Sam Harris included it in his covers album Suitcase of Memories, featuring guest vocals by Mai Bloomfield.