"I Can't Make Music" is a song written, performed and recorded by Randy Edelman for his album The Laughter and the Tears (1972).
The writer of "I Can't Make Music" was Randy Edelman, an emerging New Jersey songwriter who was also an occasional opening act for The Carpenters before Now & Then.
[7]: 262 The instrumental backing is a climax to a complete arrangement of piano, pipe organ and strings, preceding a calm ending led by a harmonica and violin.
[11] In a review of Now & Then for The Pittsburgh Press, Tony Polermo called "I Can't Make Music" a beautiful close to the A-side, highlighting the contrast in tone from Edelman's typically "bright, cheerful" material.
[13] Lincoln Journal Star's Holly Spence highlighted the "happy feeling" on "I Can't Make Music" as well as "Sing".
[14] Conversely, Lester Bangs summarized "I Can't Make Music" as a "hymn of despair" a la "Sometimes I Feel So Uninspired" by Traffic.
[2]: 103 A 2014 deep dive into The Carpenters' discography by Richard Havers claimed "I Can't Make Music" was "almost hidden away" on the first side, but was "a great pop song, with lovely lyrics, expertly done".
[19] In The Carpenters: The Untold Story, Ray Coleman interpreted it as foreshadowing for the struggles she would face two years after Now & Then's release, being about the loss of creative spark.