"Hangin' Tough" is a 1989 single from New Kids on the Block

New Kids on the Block

New Kids on the Block are an American boy band from Boston, Massachusetts, assembled in 1984 by producer Maurice Starr. The band currently consists of brothers Jordan and Jonathan Knight, Joey McIntyre, Donnie Wahlberg, and Danny Wood.New Kids on the Block enjoyed success in the late 1980s and...

. The lead vocals were sung by Donnie Wahlberg

Donnie Wahlberg

Donald Edward "Donnie" Wahlberg, Jr. is an American singer, actor and film producer. He is a member of the popular 1980s and 1990s boy band New Kids on the Block. His work background includes music, feature films, and television...

. The fourth single from the group's second album

Hangin' Tough

-Production:*Executive Producer: Cecil Holmes*Arranged & Produced By Maurice Starr*Associate Producers: Jordan Knight, Donnie Wahlberg & Danny Wood*Recorded, Engineered & Mixed By Phil Greene, Richard Mendelson, Maurice Starr, Hediki Sunada & Danny Wood...

 of the same name, it peaked at number one on the Billboard Hot 100

Billboard Hot 100

The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...

 Singles Chart on September 9, 1989. It also topped the UK singles chart

UK Singles Chart

The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...

 and the song also became the first number one single of the 1990s.

There are two distinct versions of the song: The original album version which includes a keyboard

Keyboard instrument

A keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...

 solo and the remixed version, which is arguably more recognizable and commonly appears on Greatest Hits albums, which includes a guitar

Guitar

The guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...

 solo. The song was used in the 1989 film The Wizard

The Wizard (film)

The Wizard is a 1989 adventure dramedy film starring Fred Savage, Luke Edwards, and Jenny Lewis...

as well as the Regular Show

Regular Show

Regular Show is an American animated television series created by J. G. Quintel...

episode "High Score". Alvin and the Chipmunks

Alvin and the Chipmunks

Alvin and the Chipmunks is an American animated music group created by Ross Bagdasarian, Sr. in 1958. The group consists of three singing animated anthropomorphic chipmunks: Alvin, the mischievous troublemaker, who quickly became the star of the group; Simon, the tall, bespectacled intellectual;...

 covered the song for their 1991 album The Chipmunks Rock the House

The Chipmunks Rock the House

The Chipmunks Rock the House is a music album by Alvin and the Chipmunks, released in 1991 by Quality Special Products.- Side one :# "Cradle of Love" # "Freedom! '90" # "Roam" ...

.

Track listings

US /UK / Netherlands Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM

• A Hangin' Tough [7 Remix] 3:51
• B Didn't I (Blow Your Mind) 4:24

UK Vinyl, 12", 45 RPM

• A Hangin' Tough [Tougher Mix] 3:32
• B1 Hangin' Tough [LP Version] 4:16
• B2 Didn't I (Blow Your Mind) 4:24

UK Maxi-CD

1. Hangin' Tough [7 Remix] 3:51
2. Hangin' Tough [Tougher Mix] 3:32
3. Didn't I (Blow Your Mind) 4:24

UK Vinyl, 12"

• A1 Hangin' Tough [Tougher Mix] 3:32
• A2 What'cha Gonna Do (About It) 3:54
• B1 Hangin' Tough [LP Version] 4:16
• B2 Didn't I (Blow Your Mind) 4:24

http://www.discogs.com/New-Kids-On-The-Block-Hangin-Tough/master/74431

Charts

Chart (1989)	Peak position
Australian Singles Chart	8
Canadian Singles Chart Canadian Singles Chart The Canadian Singles Chart is currently compiled by the U.S.-based music sales tracking company, Nielsen SoundScan . The chart is compiled every Wednesday, and is published by Jam! Canoe on Thursdays....	4
Dutch Singles Chart	31
German Singles Chart	29
Irish Singles Chart Irish Singles Chart The Irish Singles Chart is Ireland's music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by the Irish Recorded Music Association and compiled on behalf of the IRMA by Chart-Track. Chart rankings are based on sales, which are compiled through over-the-counter retail data captured...	1
New Zealand Singles Chart	7
Norwegian Singles Chart	5
UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...	1
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 Billboard Hot 100 The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...	1

Trivia

The New Kid's producer and writer Maurice Starr wrote this with the tough time the boy band had getting things off the ground in mind. He recalled in 1000 UK #1 Hits by Jon Kutner and Spencer Leigh: "We needed a song that symbolized what we had been through, so I came up with this title, Hangin' Tough."

This flopped in the UK when it was first released and only reached the top after being re-released the following year in lieu of the success of "You Got It (The Right Stuff)

You Got It (The Right Stuff)

"You Got It " is a 1988 single from New Kids on the Block. The lead vocals were sung by Jordan Knight and Donnie Wahlberg. The second single from the group's second album Hangin' Tough, it peaked at #3 on the Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart in early 1989, while topping the UK charts in November 1989...

".

Most recently, in 2010, Matthew Wilkening of AOL Radio

AOL Radio

AOL Radio powered by Slacker, , is an online radio service available only in the United States.- Roots :...

 ranked the song at #24 on the list of the 100 Worst Songs Ever, stating, "As badass as [these boys] are, remember when they went all street and became NKOTB?" while featuring the music video for their next song called "Games

Games (New Kids on the Block song)

"Games" is a single released by New Kids on the Block as the first single from their remix album No More Games/The Remix Album.Employing hip-hop samples with jazz riffs sung by Jordan Knight, and defensive rhymes by Donnie Wahlberg, "Games" was a dramatic departure from their previously clean cut...

" and calling it "[e]ven tougher".