“Everything You Want” by Vertical Horizon

"Everything You Want" is the title track of Vertical Horizon's third album, and it went out to alternative radio in October 1999, then kept building until it sat on top of the Billboard Hot 100 in July 2000. It stands as the band's biggest single.

Matt Scannell wrote it about unrequited love: he had fallen for a woman who was hurting and kept looking for comfort from everyone but him, and he wanted to be the one who could give her what she needed. The song turns that frustration into polished, chiming guitar pop, with a chorus that sounds bright even as the story underneath it aches. Years later, Scannell said he still enjoyed singing it, because it came from somewhere true.

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.