The crossover success of "She Drives Me Crazy" in the United States was considered unusual; initially, the song was only successful on college radio and alternative radio, following in the footsteps of "Suspicious Minds" and "Johnny Come Home" from the band's first album; however, the song soon became very popular on urban radio, "in between Bobby Brown and Tone-Lõc." Rob Tannenbaum of "Rolling Stone" said that, in doing so, "the Cannibals achieved the rare trick of bridging these two formats as a result of the transitions that took place in the band between albums." The song's multi-format compatibility and MTV airplay ultimately landed the single at number 1 in the United States in mid-April where it resided for one week. The song also reached number 1 in Australia, Austria, Canada, New Zealand, and Spain, and number 5 on the UK Singles Chart.