Announcements
The Spotify Stars Program: Celebrating Values Week!

Help Wizard

Step 1

NEXT STEP

Can't play current track?

Solved!

Can't play current track?

Keep getting 'Can't play current track' message randomly when I am listening to music. Stops my playlists dead (as in does not skip to the next tune) and also someitmes tunes that dont work one minute work the next. Becoming very frustrating, don't understand why this is happening. 

 

I am premium member.

Reply

Accepted Solutions
Marked as solution

I found a solution that worked for me! After reading through many of the suggestions here and elsewhere, this option finally did the trick:

 

Source: http://community.spotify.com/t5/Help-Desktop-Linux-Mac-and/Can-t-play-the-current-track/m-p/642284#M...

 

The fix for me was to go to Edit > Preferences > Local Files and uncheck everything. Fixed it immediately! I understand this might not be a workable solution for those using the Spotify client to listen to other music... but I suppose it's something.

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

This was my problem too. I had downgraded to free from Premium subscription, but still had "High Quality Streaming" checked. 

 

The "can't play" message popped up but didn't indicate why. Unchecking high quality option fixed it.

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

The clean re-install fixed my problem.  

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

In Spotify desktop, I was using premium trial but when it went back to free version high quality streaming did not turn off. (only avalable to premium users)

If you're using a free account  then make sure the high quality streaming is turned off in preferences 

 

It worked for me.

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

@Gods88angels - Have you unselected the "Enable High Quality Streaming" option in the Edit > Preferences menu as suggested above?

Peter
Spotify Community Mentor and Troubleshooter

Spotify Last.FM Twitter LinkedIn Meet Peter Rock Star Jam 2014


If this post was helpful, please add kudos below!

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

If you just cancealled your premium subsciption and now using the  free subsciption Then just follow these few steps

 

Just go to Edit > preference and untick  "High quality streaming" 

 

It shoud be working now 🙂

 

 

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

Hello: @driver49

Did you make sure after unchecking high quality streaming that you logged out and back into the app again?

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

I had the same issue "Can't play current track" Error message.

 I tried the following

  • Switched off high qulaity streaming
  • Uninstal re-instal spotify
  • Clearing the spotify cache
  • installing older version of spotify
  • deleting connections to local library
  • turning off hardware acceleration

all without success. Many hours scanning through this community. 

 

I did find  my problem. It was the audio driver on my HP computer. It had a tab marked "enhancements" I disabled all of the enhancements and everythng was working again.

 

So if you have tried all of the above, and still have issues have a look at the settings on your computers audio driver.

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

There's a fair few reports of people seeing the error message "Can't play the current track".

 

This can be confusing because the message can pop up in a number of instances.

 

Here are the reasons for the message, and the troubleshooting that can be tried:

  1. Playback fails to start on all tracks (PC and Mac).
  2. Playback fails on local files.
  3. Playback fails on some, but not all non-local files.
  4. Playback stops mid-song (PC only).
  5. Playback fails, and all tracks skip through to the end of a playlist with no audio (PC only).

For all instances, the first thing to try is a reinstall. This often helps the error go away.

 

For 2 and 3, you can try removing all local file sources, then add them again.

To do this in-app:

  • Click Edit (PC) or Spotify (Mac).
  • Select Preferences.
  • Scroll down to Local Files.
  • Deselect all sources.
  • Close, and restart the app.
  • Select all local file sources once again.

 

For instance 5, try out this suggestion in your PC's settings. 

 

 

 

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

Oh Boy...!
You saved my life.
This is exactly what happened to me and your advice helped fix it.
Thanks a stack!

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

@morgybabe thank you! Would mind clicking accept as solution on the post too, helps with moving up the ranks 😉

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

I was having the same problem getting can't play current track, and songs were moving randomly.  I followed your advice with Option 5 and it fixed the problem.  Thanks!

View solution in original post

Marked as solution

Try installing the new update. Worked for me.

View solution in original post

221 Replies

I'm having the same issue, on PC and Mac

I'm also getting this issue 'Can't play current track' - I'm an Unlimited member. Is anyone able to help?

I'm having the same problem. It's really starting to annoy me.

 

Quite often it'll say can't play the current track, then suddenly work after a few tries.

Yep, me too, on 2 different laptops - keeps happening - any suggestions?

I think this a problem a lot of ppeople are having.....

 

https://getsatisfaction.com/spotify/topics/spotify_cant_play_the_current_track_why

 

Do not understand why they do not answer the forum posts? People seem to be very unhappy and rightly oon, is very annoying when a tune you have listened to a hundred times just won't play randomly and then works the next minute.

 

Please answer the question Spotify, I am paying £9.99 a month so only fair the service works as advertised.

I'm having this problem too, amongst others.  I don't know what the devs have done to the programming, but suddenly Spotify is hugely unreliable, and the customer service is abysmal.  

 

If these issues aren't sorted this month I'm switching to Deezer.

This may be related somewhat some some connection issues we had recently. Should be fine now, however. Are you still encountering this message at all?
Airhorn Enthusiast

I'm no longer getting the 'Can't play current track' message but its still not playing tracks, then suddenly it is again.  I've noticed that if I select a track it won't play then any other track it will also not work.  Then if I play a song from my local computer in the 'Local files' collcetion (which works) then go back to the song that wouldn't play it works fine.  I am having to do this at least every 30mins 😞  I'm a premium member. 

I'm also been having this problem and I'm still encountering this every day.

Anyone else still seeing this?

 

I'm currently using the mac client.

I am haveing the same problem. I am a premium user.  Help? 

think the severs are overloaded, to many free users.Smiley Indifferent

I have this problem too. Some tracks does not start at all, and some is beeing paused och then I get the message "can't play the current track". Annoying!

I am also getting this.  Very frustrating - happened on Mr Brightside and Somebody Told me by The Killers.

 

What te hell?  Is this what I pay for?

Same here. Aprox. every third song stops few seconds after it has begun. When I restart the song it works until next time. I am worried that there is no official statement from Spotify about this.

This has been happening since I started using this program. It plays fifteen seconds of a song, and then says it can't play the current track, but if I start the track again, it'll play just fine. It's really tough to get through a playlist, or when I'm trying to get in the groove while working with the music on.

 

 

This error certainly is a little odd. Try popping into the Preferences menu and turning off "Enable Hardware Acceleration" under the Playback tab.
Airhorn Enthusiast

That seems to have worked for me! Thanks!

Spotify updated today. Right now it works. Tried to turn of hardware accelleration, and turned it back on on, doesn't make a difference. I have will have it in mind. Thanks. 🙂

Doesn't wotk here.

I'm having the same issue with "Dance Yourself to Death" (Alice Cooper, Flush the Fashion album).  This problem is only occurring with this track, and it started this morning around 0900CDT.  I tried deselecting "Enable hardware acceleration" but that didn't work.  I also just updated my Spotify software last week.

 

This is really quite frustrating.

 

~Aq.

Suggested posts