B-side "Reputation" Format 7" single Length 02:15 | Released February 1965 (1965) Genre Soul, pop Label DCP | |
"Hurt So Bad" is a song written by Teddy Randazzo, Bobby Weinstein, and Bobby Hart. It is a classic 1965 Top 10 hit ballad originally recorded by Little Anthony & The Imperials. Linda Ronstadt also had a Top 10 hit with her cover version in 1980. The song has been re-recorded by numerous artists including The Lettermen.
Contents
Background
Little Anthony & The Imperials' original version was taken from their album, Goin' out of My Head. It was the follow-up to that album's smash-hit title song, and like that song, also became a Billboard Top 10 hit as well as a Top Five R&B hit. It was also performed by the group on their first appearance on The Ed Sullivan Show. It was written especially for The Imperials by Teddy Randazzo, a long-time friend of the group, along with Bobby Weinstein and Bobby Hart (Harshman), and was produced by Don Costa for his DCP record label, later absorbed by United Artists Records and re-released on its Veep Records subsidiary. A powerful, dramatic ballad recording, it has become one of The Imperials' best-known songs, and has inspired numerous cover versions.
Re-released version
Little Anthony and the other Imperials, Sammy Strain, Ernest Wright and Clarence Collins, reunited in 1992 after a 17-year hiatus, and performed the song as part of a "greatest hits" medley on Dick Clark's American Bandstand 40th Anniversary Special and also on two PBS specials: Rock, Rhythm and Doo-Wop, and Soul Spectacular: 40 Years of R&B, in 2002 and 2003, respectively.
Personnel
Background
El Chicano released a cover of "Hurt So Bad" on their 1970 debut album Viva Tirado. It was one of 9 songs on the album, including their first hit single "Viva Tirado".
Background
Linda Ronstadt recorded a cover of "Hurt So Bad" for her Platinum-certified album, Mad Love, in 1980. Produced by Peter Asher on Asylum Records, it was released as the disc's second single. Linda's version of the song featured a scorching guitar solo by Danny Kortchmar. It stands as the most successful version ever recorded of the song, which peaked at #8 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #9 on the Cash Box Top 100 chart in the spring of 1980.
Other versions
The song was covered by the following artists: