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Hurt (Nine Inch Nails song)

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For other songs with the same name, see Hurt (song).
"Hurt"
Song

"Hurt" is a song written by Trent Reznor, first released on Nine Inch Nails' 1994 album The Downward Spiral. In 2002, "Hurt" was covered by Johnny Cash to critical acclaim; it was one of Cash's final hit releases before his death. Its accompanying video, featuring images from Cash's life and directed by Mark Romanek, was named the best video of the year by the Grammy Awards and Country Music Awards.

Single

Nine Inch Nails' "Hurt" was never produced as a commercial single for the public. However, a promotional single was distributed in April 1995, containing censored and uncensored mixes. The disc, Interscope Records PRCD 6179, is labeled "Halo Ten," like the earlier "Piggy" promotional disc. Neither is considered an official Halo, Further Down the Spiral being the official Halo Ten.

Track listing

  1. "Hurt" (Quiet version) Clean – 5:04
  2. "Hurt" (Live version) Clean – 5:15
  3. "Hurt" (Album version) Clean – 6:20
  4. "Hurt" (Quiet version) Soiled – 5:21
  5. "Hurt" (Live version) Soiled – 5:15
  6. "Hurt" (Album version) Soiled – 6:14

Chart performance

Chart (1995) Peak
position
Canada RPM Alternative Songs 8
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 8
U.S. Billboard Radio Songs 54

Music video

The music video for "Hurt" is a live performance that appears on Closure and the DualDisc re-release of The Downward Spiral. The audio portion appears on the UK version of Further Down the Spiral.

A scrim had been dropped in front of the band on stage, onto which various images, such as war atrocities, a nuclear bomb test, survivors of the Battle of Stalingrad, a snake staring at the camera, and a time-lapse film of a fox decomposing in reverse, were projected to add visual symbolism (depicting various images of death, destruction and loss) to the song's subject matter. A spotlight was cast on Reznor so he could be seen through the images. Compared to the live renditions performed on future tours, this version most resembles the studio recording with its use of the song's original samples.

There are also official live recordings on the later releases And All that Could Have Been and Beside You in Time. Each version features distinct instrumentation by the varying members of the band in the respective eras.

Live performance

During the Dissonance tour in 1995, when Nine Inch Nails opened for David Bowie, Bowie sang "Hurt" in a duet with Reznor, backed by an original melody and beat. This served as the conclusion to the dual act that began each Bowie set.

During the Fragility tours, the progression was performed by Robin Finck on acoustic guitar rather than on piano.

Since the 2005–06 Live: With Teeth tour, Nine Inch Nails has been playing "Hurt" in a more toned-down style, featuring only Reznor on keyboard and vocals until the final chorus, when the rest of the band joins in.

The song was brought back to its original form during the Lights In The Sky tour in 2008, before returning to the toned down style on the 2009 Wave Goodbye Tour.

Johnny Cash's cover

"Hurt"
Song
B-side"Personal Jesus"
"Wichita Lineman"

Johnny Cash's cover of "Hurt" was released on his 2002 album, American IV: The Man Comes Around. Rick Rubin, producer of Cash's American series and a friend of Reznor, suggested the song to Cash. {{citation}}: Empty citation (help) The line "crown of shit" was changed to "crown of thorns", like Reznor's censored-for-radio version, not only removing profanity from the lyrics, but also more directly referencing Christ. The cover was released on a single with the B-side "Personal Jesus", a cover of the Depeche Mode single. In September 2010, the song achieved to re-enter the German Singles Chart at number 96, more than 7 years after the song's original release.[1]

Music video

The music video was directed by Mark Romanek[2] who sought to capture the essence of Cash, both in his youth and in his frail older years. In a montage of shots of Johnny's early years as an icon, twisted imagery of fruit and flowers in various states of decay, seem to capture both his past and the stark reality of the present.

Romanek had this to say about his decision to focus on the House of Cash museum in Nashville.

"It had been closed for a long time; the place was in such a state of dereliction. That's when I got the idea that maybe we could be extremely candid about the state of Johnny's health, as candid as Johnny has always been in his songs."

71 years of age at the time of filming, Cash had serious health problems and his frailty is starkly evident in the video. He died 5 months later.[3] "Hurt" is considered by many to be Cash's epitaph.[4]

When Rubin asked if Cash could cover his song, Reznor said he was "flattered" but worried that "the idea sounded a bit gimmicky." He became a fan of Cash's version, however, once he saw the music video.

I pop the video in, and wow… Tears welling, silence, goose-bumps… Wow. [I felt like] I just lost my girlfriend, because that song isn't mine anymore… It really made me think about how powerful music is as a medium and art form. I wrote some words and music in my bedroom as a way of staying sane, about a bleak and desperate place I was in, totally isolated and alone. [Somehow] that winds up reinterpreted by a music legend from a radically different era/genre and still retains sincerity and meaning — different, but every bit as pure.[5]

Awards

  • The cover was given the Country Music Award for "Single of the Year" in 2003. It ranked as CMT's top video for 2003, #1 on CMT's 100 Greatest Country Music Videos the following year, and #1 on the Top 40 Most Memorable Music Videos on MuchMoreMusic's Listed in October 2007. As of January 2010, the single occupies the number one spot on Rate Your Music's Top Singles of the 2000s.[6] The song is also Cash's sole chart entry on the Billboard Modern Rock Tracks chart, where it hit #33 in 2003.[7] In June 2009, the song was voted #1 in UpVenue's Top 10 Best Music Covers.[8]
  • In July 2009, Cash's version of "Hurt" was voted in at number 60 on Triple J's Hottest 100 of all time, Australia's largest music poll.
  • Rolling Stone ranked Johnny Cash's "Hurt" as number 15 of the 50 best songs of the decade (RS 1094/1095).
  • In May 2010, "Hurt" was voted the 5th most influential video of all time by MySpace.[10]

Track listing

  1. "Hurt" – 3:38
  2. "Personal Jesus" – 3:21
  3. "Wichita Lineman" – 3:06

Chart performance

Chart (2003) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles 56
U.S. Billboard Modern Rock Tracks 33
UK Singles Chart 39

References

  1. ^ http://www.mtv.de/charts/germany
  2. ^ "Director Mark Romanek Tackles 'Never Let Me Go'". Fresh Air. 23 September 2010. Retrieved 27 October 2010.
  3. ^ http://www.stagepassnews.com/articles/vox/johnnycash_hurt.html
  4. ^ Webb, Robert (2008-10-10). "Story of the song: 'Hurt', Johnny Cash (2002)". The Independent. London.
  5. ^ Alternative Press #194. September 2004.
  6. ^ "Top Singles of the 2000s". Rate Your Music. Retrieved 2009-09-17.
  7. ^ Billboard - Artist Chart History - Johnny Cash
  8. ^ "UpVenue's Top 10 Best Music Covers". Retrieved 2009-08-23.
  9. ^ "Fire destroys Johnny Cash home". BBC News. 2007-04-11. Retrieved 2009-08-23.
  10. ^ http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Showbiz-News/Michael-Jacksons-Thriller-Tops-Online-Groundbreaking-Music-Video-Poll-For-MySpace-UK/Article/201005115624057?f=rss Sky News 03/05/2010

Further reading

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