| "It Hurts Me Too" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single by Tampa Red | |
| B-side | "Tired of Your Reckless Ways" |
| Released | 1940 |
| Recorded | May 10, 1940 [1] |
| Studio | Chicago |
| Genre | Blues |
| Length | 2:28 |
| Label | Bluebird |
| Songwriter(s) | Unknown |
"It Hurts Me Too" is a blues standard, regarded as one of the most interpreted songs in the genre. [2] First recorded in 1940 by Tampa Red, the song is a mid-tempo eight-bar blues that features slide guitar. It borrows from earlier blues songs and has been recorded by many artists.
"It Hurts Me Too" is based on "Things 'Bout Comin' My Way", the latter recorded by Tampa Red in February 1931. [1] [3] The melody lines are nearly identical and instrumentally they are similar, although the latter has an extra bar in the turnaround, giving it nine bars. "Sam Hill from Louisville", one of several pseudonyms of Walter Vinson (or Vincson), recorded "Things 'Bout Coming My Way" in 1931 shortly before Tampa Red. [4] Vinson's version is based on his 1930 recording with the Mississippi Sheiks, "Sitting on Top of the World". [5] Both songs share several elements with "You Got to Reap What You Sow", recorded by Tampa Red in 1929 [6] and by Leroy Carr and Scrapper Blackwell in 1928. [7] The melody lines, played on slide guitar by Tampa Red and sung by Carr, are similar to those in the later songs. Carr and Blackwell's song has elements of their own earlier 1928 song "How Long, How Long Blues". [8] "How Long, How Long Blues" has been described as one of the first blues standards and the inspiration for many blues songs of the era. [9]
In March 1949, Tampa Red recorded a variation of "It Hurts Me Too", titled "When Things Go Wrong with You". [1] [10] It was recast in the style of a Chicago blues, with electric guitar and a more up to date backing arrangement. The song was a hit and reached number nine on Billboard's Rhythm & Blues Records chart in 1949. [11] (The original "It Hurts Me Too" was released before Billboard or a similar reliable service began tracking such releases, so it is difficult to gauge which version was more popular, although the former's title won out over the latter's). Although the song retained the refrain "When things go wrong, so wrong with you, it hurts me too", Tampa Red varied the rest of the lyrics somewhat. This would become the pattern for future versions, in which succeeding artists would interpret the song with some of their own lyrics.
Several versions of "It Hurts Me Too" were recorded in the 1940s and 1950s, including those by Stick McGhee and Big Bill Broonzy. When Elmore James recorded it in 1957, [12] he (or Chief's owner, Mel London, who is credited on the release) supplied some of the lyrics that are most familiar today:
You say you hurting, you almost lost your mind
The man you love, he hurts you all the time
When things go wrong, go wrong with you
It hurts me too
James' 1957 Chief version did not appear in the charts, but after he recorded the song again in late 1962 or early 1963 for the Fire/Fury/Enjoy group of labels, it became a hit. The song used the same lyrics as his earlier version, but featured more prominent slide guitar work. When it was released in 1965, [13] two years after James' death, "It Hurts Me Too" spent eight weeks on the Hot Rhythm & Blues Singles chart, where it reached number 25. [14] The song also appeared on Billboard's Bubbling Under Hot 100 Singles chart at number 106, which was James' only single to do so. [14] Subsequent versions of "It Hurts Me Too" often showed Elmore James' influences, either in the lyrics or guitar parts.
Junior Wells made the song one of his standards and often used James' lyrics. He recorded it several times, including as a single in 1962, [15] for the 1966 compilation album Chicago/The Blues/Today! Volume 1, [16] and in 1979 for his Pleading the Blues album with Buddy Guy. [17]
The Grateful Dead began covering "It Hurts Me Too" in 1966, with Ron "Pigpen" McKernan singing the lead vocal. [18] A live recording appeared on the album Europe '72 . [19] It was retired after McKernan left the group in 1972. [20]
In 2012, Tampa Red's 1940 "It Hurts Me Too" was inducted into the Blues Foundation Hall of Fame as a "Classic of Blues Recording". [21] The Foundation noted: "Tampa Red proved himself a master of many moods during his long recording career, and with the classic line 'When things go wrong, go wrong with you, it hurts me too,' he showed how the blues can be an expression of empathy and tenderness." [21]
Slide guitar is a technique for playing the guitar that is often used in blues music. It involves playing a guitar while holding a hard object against the strings, creating the opportunity for glissando effects and deep vibratos that reflect characteristics of the human singing voice. It typically involves playing the guitar in the traditional position with the use of a slide fitted on one of the guitarist's fingers. The slide may be a metal or glass tube, such as the neck of a bottle, giving rise to the term bottleneck guitar to describe this type of playing. The strings are typically plucked while the slide is moved over the strings to change the pitch. The guitar may also be placed on the player's lap and played with a hand-held bar.
Ronald Charles McKernan, known as Pigpen, was an American musician. He was a founding member of the San Francisco band the Grateful Dead and played in the group from 1965 to 1972.
Hudson Whittaker, known as Tampa Red, was an American Chicago blues musician.
Dick's Picks Volume 22 is a two-CD album by the rock group the Grateful Dead, the 22nd installment of the live archival release series. It documents portions of the concerts on February 23 and 24, 1968, at the Kings Beach Bowl in Kings Beach, California. It was released in June 2001.
Rockin' the Rhein with the Grateful Dead is a Grateful Dead triple live album released in 2004. It was recorded April 24, 1972, at "Rheinhallen", in the German town of Düsseldorf, during the band's European tour of 1972. The complete concert is included, but the order of the tracks on the CD was altered to fit the show on three discs, while preserving groups of segued tracks.
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"Big Boss Man" is a blues song first recorded by Jimmy Reed in 1960. It became one of his most popular songs, although the songwriting is credited to Luther Dixon and Al Smith. Chicago-based Vee-Jay Records released it as a single, which became one of Reed's last appearances on the record charts. The song has been recorded by artists in diverse styles, including Elvis Presley, B.B. King, and Hope Sandoval, who also had chart successes with the song.
"I'm a King Bee" is a swamp blues song written and first recorded by Slim Harpo in 1957. It has been performed and recorded by numerous blues and other artists since. In 2008, Slim Harpo's original recording received a Grammy Hall of Fame Award.
"Worried Life Blues" is a blues standard and one of the most recorded blues songs of all time. Originally recorded by Big Maceo Merriweather in 1941, "Worried Life Blues" was an early blues hit and Maceo's most recognized song. An earlier song inspired it and several artists have had record chart successes with their interpretations of the song.
"Crawling King Snake" is a blues song that has been recorded by numerous blues and other artists. It is believed to have originated as a Delta blues in the 1920s and be related to earlier songs, such as "Black Snake Blues" by Victoria Spivey and "Black Snake Moan" by Blind Lemon Jefferson.
"Key to the Highway" is a blues standard that has been performed and recorded by several blues and other artists. Blues pianist Charlie Segar first recorded the song in 1940. Jazz Gillum and Big Bill Broonzy followed with recordings in 1940 and 1941, using an arrangement that has become the standard.
"Black Angel Blues", also known as "Sweet Black Angel" or "Sweet Little Angel", is a blues standard that has been recorded by numerous blues and other artists. The song was first recorded in 1930 by Lucille Bogan, one of the classic female blues singers. Bogan recorded it as a mid-tempo, twelve-bar blues, featuring her vocal with piano accompaniment.
"Baby What You Want Me to Do" is a blues song that was written and recorded by Jimmy Reed in 1959. It was a record chart hit for Reed and, as with several of his songs, it has appeal across popular music genres, with numerous recordings by a variety of musical artists.
"You've Got to Love Her with a Feeling", or "Love with a Feeling" as it was originally titled, is a blues song first recorded by Tampa Red in 1938. Numerous blues artists have interpreted and recorded the song, making it a blues standard. When Freddie King adapted it in 1961, it became his first single to appear in the record charts.
"Don't You Lie to Me" is a song recorded by Tampa Red in 1940. It became popular with blues artists, leading it to become a blues standard. The song was also interpreted by rock and roll pioneers Fats Domino and Chuck Berry.
"Next Time You See Me" is a blues song written by Earl Forest and Bill Harvey, originally recorded in 1956 by Junior Parker. The song was Parker's first record chart appearance after joining Duke Records and one of his most successful singles in both the R&B and pop charts. "Next Time You See Me" has been performed and recorded by various artists, such as the Grateful Dead.
"Sugar Mama" or "Sugar Mama Blues" is a blues standard. Called a "tautly powerful slow blues" by music journalist Charles Shaar Murray, it has been recorded by numerous artists, including early Chicago bluesmen Tampa Red, Sonny Boy Williamson I, and Tommy McClennan. John Lee Hooker and Howlin' Wolf later adapted "Sugar Mama" for electric blues and rock group Led Zeppelin reworked it during early recording sessions.
"Early in the Morning" is a blues song that was recorded by Sonny Boy Williamson I in 1937. Identified as one of his most successful and influential tunes, it was inspired by earlier blues songs. "Early in the Morning" has been recorded by various musicians, including Junior Wells, who made it part of his repertoire.
