Every Little Bit Hurts
| "Every Little Bit Hurts" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Brenda Holloway | ||||
| from the album Every Little Bit Hurts | ||||
| Released | April 1964 | |||
| Recorded | 1964; Los Angeles | |||
| Genre | Soul | |||
| Length | 3:17 | |||
| Label | Tamla | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Ed Cobb | |||
| Producer(s) | Hal Davis, Marc Gordon | |||
| Brenda Holloway singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| "Every Little Bit Hurts" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Spencer Davis Group | ||||
| from the album Their First LP | ||||
| B-side | "It Hurts Me So" | |||
| Released | 5 February 1965 | |||
| Genre | Pop, rock | |||
| Label | Fontana Records | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Ed Cobb | |||
| Producer(s) | Hal Davis, Marc Gordon | |||
| Spencer Davis Group singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Every Little Bit Hurts" was originally a 1964 hit single for Motown soul singer Brenda Holloway, written by Ed Cobb.[1]
Though she was against recording the song again (she recorded it a couple of years before signing with Motown), she reluctantly recorded the song [citation needed] and the label released it in the summer of the year. Becoming a big hit peaking at No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100,[2][3] the song would become one of Holloway's trademark singles and would spark remakes by acts like Small Faces and the Spencer Davis Group (with lead vocals by Steve Winwood).
Covers
- The Spencer Davis Group version reached #41 in the UK and #9 in Canada in early 1965.
- Released in October 1976, it was covered by Graeme "Shirley" Strachan (lead singer of Skyhooks) as his debut solo release and peaked at No. 3 on the Australian Kent Music Report Singles Charts.[4]
- Teena Marie recorded the song for her 1979 Motown Records debut Wild and Peaceful however it remained unreleased until the 1994 compilation I Need Your Lovin': The Very Best Of Teena Marie.
Chart history
- Brenda Holloway
| Chart (1964) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100[5] | 13 |
| U.S. Cash Box Top 100[6] | 18 |
- Spencer Davis Group
| Chart (1965) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada RPM Top Singles | 9 |
| UK | 41 |
- Graeme "Shirley" Strachan
| Chart (1976) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Australia (Kent Music Report)[4] | 3 |
Alicia Keys version
| "Every Little Bit Hurts" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Alicia Keys | ||||
| from the album Unplugged | ||||
| Released | January 2006 | |||
| Recorded | July 4, 2005; Brooklyn Academy of Music | |||
| Genre | R&B | |||
| Length | 4:01 | |||
| Label | J | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Ed Cobb | |||
| Producer(s) | Alex Coletti | |||
| Alicia Keys singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Every Little Bit Hurts" on YouTube | ||||
"Every Little Bit Hurts" was included by American recording artist Alicia Keys on her live album, Unplugged (2005). It was released as the album's second and last single in 2006. It failed to enter the US and international charts.
Critical reception
Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine felt that Keys treated the song "like [a] vocal audition[...] and not the blank canvas[...] of an interpretive artist".[7]
Music video
Directed by Justin Francis, the video premiered on January 17, 2006 on BET's 106 & Park.
Track listing
- US promo CD single
- "Every Little Bit Hurts" (radio edit) – 3:58
- "Every Little Bit Hurts" (call out hook) – 0:10
References
- ^ The Complete Motown Singles Vol 4: 1964 [CD liner notes]. New York: Hip-O Select/Motown/Universal Records.
- ^ Whitburn, Joel (2004). The Billboard Book of Top 40 Hits, 8th Edition (Billboard Publications), page 289.
- ^ Every Little Bit Hurts at AllMusic
- ^ a b Kent, David (1993). Australian Chart Book 1970–1992. St Ives, NSW: Australian Chart Book Ltd. ISBN 0-646-11917-6.
- ^ Joel Whitburn's Top Pop Singles 1955–1990 - ISBN 0-89820-089-X
- ^ "Cash Box Top 100 Singles, June 20, 1964". Archived from the original on February 7, 2019. Retrieved February 4, 2019.
- ^ Cinquemani, Sal (2005-10-13). "Alicia Keys: Unplugged". Slant Magazine. Retrieved 2015-10-24.
