It hurts me too

This article is about Tampa Red's blues song. For Eric Clapton's EP, see It Hurts Me Too (EP) .

It Hurts Me Too is a blues song that Tampa Red recorded for Bluebird (Bluebird 8635) on May 10, 1940 in Chicago . Today it is one of the blues standards that have probably been interpreted most often. The original recording is an 8 bar blues medium tempo with slide guitar. The song is based on "Things 'Bout Comin' My Way", which Tampa Red recorded in 1931 (OKeh 1637).

In 1949 Tampa Red recorded a variation of the title ("When Things Go Wrong with You" Victor 22-0035), this time approximating the Chicago blues with an electric guitar and a changed accompanying arrangement . The refrain "When things go wrong, so wrong with you, it hurts me too" remained the same, but the artist changed the text slightly. This version became the model for future performers, who also added their own lyrics to the song.

The song became a hit, peaking at number 9 on the Billboard R&B chart. It is not possible to determine which of the two versions was more commercially successful, as there was no institution comparable to the R&B charts in 1940.

Of all the cover versions, Elmore James is the best known and most successful. He recorded it for the first time in 1957 for Chief (Chief 7004), but it left no trace in the charts. In this version the owner of Chief, Mel London, is named as the author. This recording contains the verses most familiar to blues fans today:

You said you were hurting You almost lost your mind Now the man you love he hurts you all the time but when things go wrong go wrong with you It hurts me too

Original version: I can't be happy, mom For bein 'so blue When ya keep on a-worryin ' The way you do (When things go wrong) (So ​​wrong, wit 'you) (It hurts me, too)

It was not until the version from 1962, which was only published after James' death in 1965, that it reached the R&B charts for eight weeks with 25th place as the highest ranking. The single also hit the pop charts, where it reached number 109.

Cover versions

The song was interpreted frequently. In addition to the version by Elmore James, there are also covers by Stick McGhee and Big Bill Broonzy from the 1940s and 1950s. Blues and blues rock groups and artists particularly enjoyed recording the song, such as The Paul Butterfield Blues Band , John Mayall and the Bluesbreakers , Rory Gallagher , Eric Clapton , Canned Heat , The Moody Marsden Band and Savoy Brown .

Other versions exist among others by Bob Dylan (1970), Eric Burdon (1982), Susan Tedeschi (1998), Keb Mo (2000), Karen Dalton , Foghat , Grateful Dead , Eric Clapton , Mule, Chuck Berry , The Animals , Luther Allison , Dr. John , Marvin Gaye , John P. Hammond , Big Walter Horton , Kenny Neal , Tracy Nelson , Snooky Pryor , Angela Strehli , Hound Dog Taylor, and The Rolling Stones .

Web links

Text:

• Lyrics Elmore James
• Lyrics Tampa Red

Versions:

• Tampa Red
• Eric Clapton

Individual evidence

1. ^ Encyclopedia of the Blues. University of Arkansas Press S. 513. ISBN 1557282528 .
2. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1988). Top R&B singles 1942–1988. Record Research, Inc. p. 613. ISBN 0898200687 .
3. ↑ Lyrics Elmore James
4. ↑ Lyrics Tampa Red ( Memento of the original from July 1, 2010 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.  
5. ^ Whitburn, Joel (1988). Top R&B singles 1942–1988. Record Research, Inc. p. 613. ISBN 0898200687 .
6. ↑ All Music Guide ( Memento of the original from April 28, 2012 in the Internet Archive ) Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.