Tainted Love
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| "Tainted Love" | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Gloria Jones | |||||
| B-side | "My Bad Boy Is Coming Home" | ||||
| Format | 7", 45 rpm | ||||
| Recorded | 1964 | ||||
| Length | 2:12 | ||||
| Label | Champion Records (distributed by Vee-Jay) | ||||
| Writer(s) | Ed Cobb | ||||
| Producer | Ed Cobb | ||||
| Gloria Jones singles chronology | |||||
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| "Tainted Love" | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Soft Cell | |||||
| from the album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret | |||||
| B-side | "Where Did Our Love Go?" | ||||
| Released | July 7, 1981 | ||||
| Format | 12 inch single | ||||
| Genre | Synthpop | ||||
| Length | 2:43 | ||||
| Writer(s) | Ed Cobb | ||||
| Producer | Mike Thorne | ||||
| Soft Cell singles chronology | |||||
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"Tainted Love" is a song composed by Ed Cobb, formerly of The Four Preps, which was originally recorded by Gloria Jones. It attained worldwide fame after being covered by Soft Cell in 1981, reaching number one in the UK Singles Chart,[1] and has since been covered by numerous other groups and artists. There are even covers in other languages, including the Spanish version called "Falso Amor" performed by La Unión.
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[edit] Soft Cell version
Soft Cell's record label chose to release "Tainted Love" on July 7, 1981 as the band's second single (their first was "Memorabilia", which did not chart). The label implied that this single would be Soft Cell's final release if the single did not sell. Produced by Mike Thorne, the track was recorded in a day and a half with the first vocal take being ultimately used on the record. Buoyed by the then-dominant Synthpop sound of the time and a memorable performance on Top of the Pops it rapidly reached number one on the UK singles chart, eventually repeating the feat in 17 territories.
The following year it charted in the US. Although it took a record-breaking 19 weeks to crack the US Top 40, the song eventually reached #8 and spent a then-record breaking 43 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100.
A video for the track was recorded specially for their video album 'Non Stop Exotic Video' and features band members Marc Almond and David Ball in togas on Mount Olympus; another was made to promote the 1991 remixed re-release and involves a male pacing at night and dancing with starry apparitions while Almond sings amongst the stars.
In 2006, Soft Cell's version of "Tainted Love" was sampled on "SOS", a song by Rihanna.
Soft Cell's version ranked #5 on VH1's 100 Greatest One Hit Wonders of the 80s.
[edit] My Ruin cover
The female-fronted metal band My Ruin released a version which was celebrated at the time for sounding more like the original than most of the versions based on the SoftCell version.[2]
[edit] Marilyn Manson cover
| "Tainted Love" | |||||
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| Single by Marilyn Manson | |||||
| from the album Not Another Teen Movie soundtrack | |||||
| Released | 2001 | ||||
| Genre | Alternative metal | ||||
| Label | Interscope | ||||
| Marilyn Manson singles chronology | |||||
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Marilyn Manson covered "Tainted Love" and released it as a single from the Not Another Teen Movie soundtrack. It was released in 2001. It was later re-released on his following album The Golden Age Of Grotesque as a bonus track.
Released in the UK in May 2002, it is Manson's biggest hit to date in that country, reaching a position of #5 in the UK Top 75 charts.
The video for Manson's cover shows Manson bringing several gothic friends to a high school party. It features several characters from the film Not Another Teen Movie. It also features Joey Jordison, the drummer from Slipknot.
[edit] Track listing
- "Tainted Love"
- "I Melt with You" (Mest)
- "Suicide Is Painless"
- "Bizarre Love Triangle" (New Order)
[edit] Selective list of recorded versions
- 1964: Gloria Jones, original version
- 1976: Gloria Jones with Marc Bolan, on the album Vixen
- 1981: Soft Cell, on the album Non-Stop Erotic Cabaret
- 1985: Coil, on the 12" single Panic/Tainted Love
- 1992: The Flying Pickets, on the album The Warning
- 1992: Inspiral Carpets, on the album Ruby Trax
- 1995: Shades Apart, on the album Save It
- 1997: Atrocity, on the album Werk 80
- 1998: Country Teasers, on the album Back to the Future, or Brideshead Revisited Revisited
- 1998: The Living End, as a B-side to the single "All Torn Down"
- 1999: My Ruin, on the album Speak and Destroy
- 2000: Wild Strawberries, on the album Twist as an unnumbered track
- 2000: La Unión, spanish cover named "Falso Amor", on the album Grandes Exítos
- 2001: Marilyn Manson, on the album Not Another Teen Movie Soundtrack
- 2002: Prozac+, on the album Miodio
- 2005: The Pussycat Dolls, on the album PCD
- 2006: Rihanna, as the single SOS
- 2007: Killwhitneydead, on the album Nothing Less Nothing More
- 2008: Danny Noriega performed the song on American Idol
- 2009: My Brightest Diamond, on the album Guilt by Association Vol. 2
[edit] References
- ^ Black, Johnny (2008-01-16). "The Greatest Songs Ever: Soft Cell, "Tainted Love"". Blender. http://www.blender.com/TheGreatestSongsEverSoftCellTaintedLove/articles/11264.aspx. Retrieved on 2009-01-03.
- ^ Speak & Destroy Album
[edit] External links
- Producer Mike Thorne discusses Soft Cell's cover of "Tainted Love"
- Danny Noriega sings "Tainted Love" on Amerian Idol (season 7)
| Preceded by "Japanese Boy" by Aneka |
UK number-one single (Soft Cell version) 5 September 1981 - 12 September 1981 |
Succeeded by "Prince Charming" by Adam & the Ants |
| Preceded by "Trouble" by Lindsey Buckingham |
Australian Kent Music Report number-one single (Soft Cell version) February 22, 1982 - March 8, 1982 |
Succeeded by "Centerfold" by The J. Geils Band |
