Bringin' On the Heartbreak

Def Leppard versions

Def Leppard recorded the song for their second album, High 'n' Dry. Its working title had been "A Certain Heartache," and the track (along with the others on the album) was produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange. Lange said he thought the band was intending to make the song's verse "jangley" and "a kind of 'Stairway to Heaven' thing; Steve [Clark] likes that long wrangled guitar jangle." Cliff Burnstein, the manager of Def Leppard and an A&R representative for Mercury Records, later said that Peter Willis was embarrassed to play the song for him because it was a ballad. Burnstein originally thought it only had potential to be a hit single if it was recorded by an artist such as Bonnie Tyler.

High 'n' Dry was released in the U.S. in summer 1981. "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" was commercially released in the U.S. on 13 November, with "Me and My Wine" (a non-album track) and "You Got Me Runnin'" included as B-sides. It did not appear on the U.S. charts, but its music video was picked up by the recently launched television channel MTV and received heavy rotation. The popularity of the video and the exposure the band received caused a resurgence in sales of High 'n' Dry, which subsequently sold over two million copies. It was released in Mexico as "Llevarlo en la Desilusión" with "Yo y mi Vino" ("Me and My Wine") featuring the cover art from the single of "Too Late for Love".

High 'n' Dry was re-issued in May 1984 with two new tracks, one of which was a synthesizer-heavy remix of "Bringin' On the Heartbreak". Featuring Phil Collen on guitar, the remix was released as a single with a newly filmed video and peaked at 61 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. The original version of the song was later included on three of their compilation albums: Vault: Def Leppard Greatest Hits (1980–1995) (1995) Best of Def Leppard (2004) and Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection (2005). The latter compilation ends with the instrumental "Switch 625," as it does in High 'n' Dry. Steve Huey of Allmusic has characterised the song as an "unabashedly dramatic rock ballad."

Music video

The first music video was directed by Doug Smith, and is a live recording of Def Leppard performing the song at the Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool, England on 22 July 1981. It was originally filmed (along with clips for "Let It Go" and "High 'n' Dry") as part of Don Kirshner's Rock Concert television series on the U.S. network ABC. The second music video, directed by David Mallet, was shot in February 1984 in Jacob's Biscuit Factory in Lake, Dublin, Ireland. The original version of the second video featuring the remix is only available on the VHS and LaserDisc versions of the band's video compilation release Historia. DVD reissues of Historia, and the band's subsequent video compilations Best of the Videos and Rock of Ages - The DVD Collection replace the remix soundtrack with the original High 'n' Dry LP recording.

Track listing

1. "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" (remix)
2. "Me & My Wine" (remix)

Charts

¹ Remix.

Background and composition

Mariah Carey co-produced her cover of the song with Randy Jackson for her ninth album, Charmbracelet (2002). Carey cited the original song as one of her favorites when she was growing up, and she said that she first came up with the idea of covering it when listening to Def Leppard's album Vault during the album photo shoot for Charmbracelet—"I just put on the music and started listening to it, and I said, 'You know what? I could do this my own way'," she said. The song was produced in a rock ballad style and features guitar-playing by Rob Bacon. (The single version also featured a newly recorded solo and extra guitar overdubs performed by Dave Navarro.) One of Carey's few songs with a heavy rock influence, it was released as the album's third single in 2003. Her vocal range spans from C³ to C⁷.

Critical reception

The cover was met with positive reviews from a variety of critics. Rolling Stone described the song as "the catchiest cut [on Charmbracelet]...a fascinatingly overblown orchestral remake." Phil Collen praised Carey's cover as a "genuine version of our song" and defended it from Def Leppard's more critical fans: "The fans really get it wrong sometimes. She's on our side and it's an honour she's done it. Really, that's the only way we're getting played." Carey's version was number 24 on VH1's "Least Metal Moments"—in a segment subtitled "Bringin' On the Headache"—because many metal fans and musicians did not like the remake. At the same time, Mark Edward Nero of About.com ranked it at number 2 on his list of "Top 5 R&B/Pop Crossover Cover Songs" and said Carey's version is "superior to the original." Asked about Carey's cover version, Joe Elliott told the Las Vegas Sun, "I think she's done a very good job. It's faithful to the arrangement, but not done like a rock song." Referring to Carey's whistle register vocals at the end, Elliot commented that her "astonishing vocal gymnastics toward the end...make Minnie Riperton sound like Tom Waits Billboard was favorable by naming it "set's crowning glory." The New York Times also reviewed this song favorably: "Another high point is her version of the Def Leppard song Bringin' On the Heartbreak. It starts out as a piano-driven slow jam; then the chorus is interrupted by a dramatic chord progression, and soon Ms. Carey's precise, fluttery voice is turning a power ballad into something more delicate." Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine called this cover "daring" and praised its "surprising amount of live instrumentation, which contributes to an overall sense of warmth that's been otherwise missing from Carey's recent work." Rich Juzwiak of Stylus called Mariah's version of the song "epic." In the exception of AllMusic whom gave mixed reviews, stated that its best song on album but also noting that it "isn't even covered all that well."

Chart performance

Similar to the commercial performance of "Boy (I Need You)," the album's second single, "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" failed to enter the US Billboard Hot 100, or the Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart because it was only an airplay single. It reached the top 40 in Switzerland but peaked outside the top 40 in Austria. Junior Vasquez, Mike Rizzo and Ruanne produced club remixes of the song, which received a wider release on promotional singles than commercial singles and received spins in nightclubs worldwide—the song reached the top five on the US Billboard Hot Dance Club Play.

Promotion

The song's video, set to the RJ Jammen remix, was shot in Los Angeles on March 8, 2003 by director Sanaa Hamri, and features cameo appearances by Randy Jackson, Dave Navarro, Evan Marriott (as a helicopter pilot/bodyguard) and model Damon Willis. The single's video is based on the 1979 film The Rose, which featured a rock star (played by Bette Midler) who struggles to find happiness as she goes from her rough "rock and roll" lifestyle to her final high-profile concert.

On December 7, 2002, Carey performed the song along with "Through the Rain" and "My All" in front of a crowd of 50,000 people, at the closing concert of the Mexican Teletón, which took place in the country's Azteca Stadium. Announced as the concert's "star", she performed in a black dress. While with "Through the Rain" and "My All" she did not attract the audience, the performance of "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" was seen as the highlight of her act.

Formats and track listings

European CD single

1. "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" (Mainstream Edit)
2. "Miss You" (featuring Jadakiss)

European CD maxi-single

1. "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" (Mainstream Edit)
2. "Miss You" (featuring Jadakiss)
3. "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" (Live)
4. "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" (Video)