"All I Really Want" is a song written by Canadian singer-songwriter Alanis Morissette and Glen Ballard, and produced by Ballard for Morissette's third album, Jagged Little Pill (1995). It was released by Maverick Records as the album's sixth and final single in the United Kingdom in November 1996, and in Australia in February 1997. The song is also the opening track of Jagged Little Pill. It was the last song written for Jagged Little Pill but originated from a song called "The Bottom Line", which was the first song Morissette wrote with Glen Ballard. The single peaked at number 14 on the US Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart in December 1995, number 40 on the ARIA Charts in Australia and number 59 on the UK Singles Chart in December 1996.

Lyrics

Alanis compares herself to Estella from Charles Dickens' novel Great Expectations while having a confrontation with her partner about their uncomfortable relationship.

Critical reception

Helen Lamont from Smash Hits gave "All I Really Want" five out of five and named it Best New Single, writing, "Aww, wow! This is fantastic! This is definitely the strangest Single of the Fortnight — and the best. Alanis growls her way through from start to finish, squealing over a dancebeat and tripping over her words. Her vocals are—uh—distinctive (the closest thing is Dolores from The Cranberries), but when you get past all the gimmicky fancy bits, what you've left with is still a brilliant, original tune. There's not many bands who can do both, because having both makes a top song indeed."

Music video

The song has no official video, but there was a promo video that contained footage from concerts and the videos for "You Oughta Know" and "Hand in My Pocket".

Track listing

Charts

Covers