Hard to Handle (song)

Last updated
"Hard to Handle"
Song by Otis Redding
from the album The Immortal Otis Redding
ReleasedJune 1968
Recorded1967
Genre
Length2:17
Label Atco
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) Steve Cropper
Official audio
Hard To Handle (Official Lyric Video) on YouTube

"Hard to Handle" is a 1968 song written by American soul singer Otis Redding along with Al Bell and Allen Jones. Originally recorded by Redding, it was released in 1968 as the B-side to "Amen" (shortly after the singer's sudden death in 1967). The song also appears on the 1968 album The Immortal Otis Redding . Redding's version reached number 38 on the Billboard R&B chart and number 51 on the pop chart. [2]

Contents

American rock band the Black Crowes covered the song for their 1990 debut album, Shake Your Money Maker , reaching number 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 with their rendition.

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [3] Silver200,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

The Black Crowes version

"Hard to Handle"
HardtoHandle.jpg
Single by the Black Crowes
from the album Shake Your Money Maker
B-side
ReleasedAugust 13, 1990 (1990-08-13)
Genre Hard rock [4]
Length3:08
Label Def American
Songwriter(s)
Producer(s) George Drakoulias
The Black Crowes singles chronology
"Jealous Again"
(1990)
"Hard to Handle"
(1990)
"Twice As Hard"
(1990)

American rock band the Black Crowes covered the song for their 1990 debut album, Shake Your Money Maker . Two versions of the song exist: the original album version and the hit single remixed with an overdubbed brass section, available on the 30th Anniversary edition of Shake Your Money Maker. [5] The album version was first released as a single in the United Kingdom in August 1990 and was issued in the United States later the same year.

The song peaked at number 45 on the US Billboard Hot 100, number one on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart, and number 45 on the UK Singles Chart. Following the success of the band's first top-40 hit, "She Talks to Angels", the song re-entered the Hot 100 and peaked at number 26 in August 1991, becoming the Black Crowes' highest position on the chart. The same month, the song was re-released in the UK and reached a new peak of number 39.

Track listings

US 7-inch and cassette single (1990) [6] [7]

A. "Hard to Handle" (album version) – 3:08
B. "Waitin' Guilty" – 3:02

International 7-inch and cassette single (1990) [8] [9]

A. "Hard to Handle" (album version) – 3:06
B. "Jealous Again" (acoustic version) – 4:37

UK 12-inch single and Japanese maxi-CD single (1990) [10] [11]

  1. "Hard to Handle"
  2. "Jealous Again" (acoustic version)
  3. "Twice As Hard" (live at the Paradiso, June 5, 1990)
  4. "Stare It Cold" (live at the Paradiso, June 5, 1990)

UK CD single (1990) [13]

  1. "Hard to Handle"
  2. "Jealous Again" (acoustic version)
  3. "Twice as Hard" (remix)

UK 7-inch single (1991) [14]

A. "Hard to Handle" (album version)
B. "Sister Luck" (live at the Greek Theatre)

UK 7-inch picture disc (1991) [15]

A. "Hard to Handle" (album version)
B. "Stare It Cold" (live at the Greek Theatre)

UK 12-inch single (1991) [16]

A1. "Hard to Handle"
B1. "Dreams" (live at the Greek Theatre)
B2. "Stare It Cold" (live at the Greek Theatre)

UK CD single (1991) [17]

  1. "Hard to Handle"
  2. "Sister Luck" (live at the Greek Theatre)
  3. "Stare It Cold" (live at the Greek Theatre)

Japanese mini-CD single (1991) [18]

  1. "Hard to Handle"
  2. "Jealous Again" (acoustic version)

Charts

Certifications

RegionCertification Certified units/sales
United Kingdom (BPI) [27] Silver200,000

Sales+streaming figures based on certification alone.

Release history

Release history and formats for "Hard to Handle"
RegionDateFormat(s)Label(s)Ref.
United KingdomAugust 13, 1990
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • cassette
Def American [28]
August 28, 199012-inch picture disc [29]
United States1990
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • cassette
JapanNovember 25, 1990Maxi-CD [30]
May 25, 1991Mini-CD [31]
United KingdomAugust 12, 1991
  • 7-inch vinyl
  • 12-inch vinyl
  • CD
[32]

Other versions

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References

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  7. Hard to Handle (US cassette single cassette notes). The Black Crowes. Def American Recordings. 1990. 19245-4.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  8. Hard to Handle (UK 7-inch single vinyl disc). The Black Crowes. Def American Recordings. 1990. DEFA 6, 878 132–7.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  9. Hard to Handle (UK cassette single sleeve). The Black Crowes. Def American Recordings. 1990. DEFAM 6.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  10. Hard to Handle (UK 12-inch single sleeve). The Black Crowes. Def American Recordings. 1990. DEFA 612, 878 133-1.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  11. Hard to Handle (Japanese maxi-CD single liner notes). The Black Crowes. Def American Recordings. 1990. PHCR-8004.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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  17. Hard to Handle (UK CD single liner notes). The Black Crowes. Def American Recordings. 1991. DEFAC10, 868 839-2.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
  18. Hard to Handle (Japanese mini-CD single liner notes). The Black Crowes. Def American Recordings. 1990. PHDR-21.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
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