"Just Like That" is a song by American singer and multi-instrumentalist Bonnie Raitt and is the title track of her eighteenth studio album, Just Like That..., which was released on April 22, 2022, by Redwing Records.
[1] The song was written and produced by Raitt and lyrically details the story of a woman who is visited by the recipient of her son's heart, which he received in a life-saving organ donation operation.
[5][4] In an interview with American Songwriter, Raitt explained that her initial inspiration for the song came after she saw a human interest piece on the news in 2018 about a woman who donated her deceased child's organs and was meeting the man who received his heart.
Every time I hear about a family donating organs when their child has been killed, or there's some sort of sudden death — as if you're not in grief and shock enough — to have the view and the compassion and the love to be able to pay it forward like that is so incredible".
[8] Raitt stated that the song was inspired by the death of her longtime friend and fellow performer John Prine, who passed away in 2020 after complications from COVID-19.
"[10] While reviewing Just Like That…, critic Robert Christgau commented that both the title track and "Down the Hall" suggested that "Raitt is missing John Prine even more than the rest of us".
[5] The song also experienced gains in airplay, with Raitt releasing a shortened radio edit, which received 144 spins in the two weeks following the win.