Hard to Forget
| "Hard to Forget" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single by Sam Hunt | ||||
| from the album Southside | ||||
| Released | March 20, 2020 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length |
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| Label | MCA Nashville | |||
| Songwriter(s) |
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| Producer(s) | Zach Crowell | |||
| Sam Hunt singles chronology | ||||
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"Hard to Forget" is a song by American country music singer Sam Hunt. It is the fourth single from his second studio album Southside. Hunt wrote the song with Ashley Gorley, Josh Osborne, Luke Laird, and Shane McAnally. The song contains a sample of Webb Pierce's 1953 hit "There Stands the Glass", whose writers Russ Hull, Audrey Grisham, and Mary Jean Shurtz are also credited.
Content
The song's concept began when Luke Laird presented Hunt with the idea of sampling older country music songs, something which Laird had done in his spare time but had never publicly released. Laird then heard "There Stands the Glass" and presented the idea to Hunt. The two had attempted to fit the sample to a song they were working on titled "One Whiskey Away", but had no success. The two then presented the idea to Shane McAnally and Josh Osborne, who were working with Hunt on a song titled "Hard to Forget". All of the writers then took the partially-formed ideas from "One Whiskey Away" and "Hard to Forget", and worked to incorporate new lyrics around the sample. Laird then assembled a demo which was given to Hunt's producer Zach Crowell. Crowell adjusted the tempo of the song and added instrumentation from session musicians such as Ilya Toshinsky and Jenee Fleenor. The final recording also features vocal ad-libs from Hunt's road band, as well as Gorley's daughter and her friends.[1]
Wendy Hermanson and Billy Dukes of Taste of Country wrote of the song that "the overall result isn't 100 percent a traditional country song. Rather, it's a brilliant meld of old-school country with a distinctly modern, multi-groove tone." She also noted a "rollicking pop, almost reggae vibe".[2] Webb Pierce's son, Webb Pierce Jr., praised the song for bringing his father's music to a younger audience.[3]
Chart performance
| Chart (2020) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada (Canadian Hot 100)[4] | 32 |
| Canada Country (Billboard)[5] | 2 |
| US Billboard Hot 100[6] | 26 |
| US Country Airplay (Billboard)[7] | 1 |
| US Hot Country Songs (Billboard)[8] | 3 |
| US Rolling Stone Top 100[9] | 20 |
References
- ^ Tom Roland (April 7, 2020). "Makin' Tracks: Sam Hunt's 'Hard to Forget,' A Combination of Something Old & Something New". Billboard. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
- ^ Wendy Hermanson, Billy Dukes (March 2, 2020). "Sam Hunt's 'Hard to Forget' Nods to (Really) Old School County". Taste of Country. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
- ^ Jonathan Bernstein (February 25, 2020). "How a 67-Year-Old Honky-Tonk Sample Ended Up on Sam Hunt's New Banger 'Hard to Forget'". Rolling Stone. Retrieved May 5, 2020.
- ^ "Sam Hunt Chart History (Canadian Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved July 7, 2020.
- ^ "Sam Hunt Chart History (Canada Country)". Billboard.
- ^ "Sam Hunt Chart History (Hot 100)". Billboard. Retrieved June 30, 2020.
- ^ "Sam Hunt Chart History (Country Airplay)". Billboard.
- ^ "Sam Hunt Chart History (Hot Country Songs)". Billboard.
- ^ "Top 100 Songs, June 26, 2020 - July 2, 2020". Rolling Stone. Retrieved July 7, 2020.