[1] Written and produced by Miracles lead singer Smokey Robinson, "If You Can Want" was the most successful of the three singles included on the group's 1968 album Special Occasion.
The song's lyrics portray the narrator as a man in love with a woman who only views him as a casual friend.
Cash Box called it a "sure-fire hit in this throbbing track loaded with the familiar team sound," saying it had "mid-speed tempo with a hard-hitting ork push and vocals at once fragile and emotionally taut.
The B-side, "When The Words From Your Heart Get Caught Up In Your Throat", was never released on a Miracles album and was only issued on CD in 1994, on The 35th Anniversary Collection.
The Funk Brothers The Miracles' original hit recording of "If You Can Want" has inspired cover versions by the following artists: