Hurt (Christina Aguilera song)
Encyclopedia
"Hurt" is a power ballad written by Christina Aguilera
, Linda Perry
and Mark Ronson
for Aguilera's third studio album, Back to Basics
(2006). The song's lyrical content describes how one deals with the loss of a loved one, and it has received praise from pop music critics. Aguilera premiered the song at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards
, and released it as the second single
from Back to Basics in late 2006 (see 2006 in music
).
. Its slow melody is paced at 72 beats per minute and set in common time
. Aguilera's voice range spans from G3 to E5. Its instrumentation comes from bass
, cello
, contrabass
, drums
, guitar
, piano
, viola
and violin
. String instruments used in the melody
were arranged by Eric Gorfain. The song makes an homage to Rachmaninoff's Vocalise
towards its conclusion.
Originally Aguilera did not want "Hurt" to be the second single from Back to Basics. Prior to this decision, "Candyman
" was planned as the second single and even was confirmed by Aguilera during several different interviews. However, RCA
felt that, with the holiday season coming up, it would be safer to release "Hurt", as it would become a big holiday power ballad, comparable to how Aguilera's "Beautiful
" performed commercially back in late 2002. "Hurt" was released to radio airplay in the United States
on September 19, 2006. The single debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at #100 in the October 14, 2006 edition. The single would peak on the Hot 100 at #19 in mid-December. "Hurt" had its biggest success on Adult Contemporary radio, where it reached #6 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. Aguilera promoted the single during the holidays by performing on the TV special Christmas at Rockefeller Center, on November 29, 2006 on NBC.
contender" has "a melody and lush production that carries [the song] into the clouds. Blogcritics claims that song's "slow opening to a soft piano
all the way to the spine-tingling bridge" is "one weeper of a ballad", and that Aguilera's "power-belting" vocals were "better than ever". Jody Rosen of Entertainment Weekly
said that the song's "self-help bromides Aguilera delivers with melodrama that would make Barbra Streisand
shudder; fewer still could make it so compelling." Top 40 reviewer Bill Lamb gave the song five stars, saying "a single piano with the backing of strings gives way to one of the most technically stunning voices in pop music singing words of pain, guilt, and grief in the loss of a loved one." He continues on, predicting the song would edge near to "the top of the pop singles chart by Christmas 2006." Some reviews, however, were less positive. In the Rolling Stone magazine review for Back to Basics, the reviewer, Jenny Eliscu
, called "Hurt" an "incongruous schmaltzfest". It was performed live at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards
on August 31, 2006.
The single debuted on the Billboard Hot 100
chart on October 5, 2006 at number 100. The single peaked at #19 in its tenth week. While the song had moderate success in the U.S., it became a huge hit across Europe. It reached #1 in Switzerland
and peaked at #3 in France
, where it became her highest peaking song since "Genie In A Bottle". It also went top 3 in Germany
, Sweden
, the Netherlands
, Austria
and Belgium
, making it her biggest hit in Europe since 2002's ballad "Beautiful". On initial release "Hurt" peaked at number 11 on the UK Singles Chart
for two consecutive weeks, and has to date spent 15 weeks inside the UK top 100 Singles Chart (longer than her top 3 singles "Dirrty", "Beautiful", "What A Girl Wants" and "Fighter"). The song has re-entered the chart on three separate occasions since, once even reaching a peak of number 39 in December 2007 after being performed by Hope, contestants on popular talent show, The X Factor
. Hurt re-entered the chart again in October 2009 at #25, three years after its original release, and this time due to exposure of the song by 2009 X Factor finalist Jamie Archer. Hurt showed great longevity in Switzerland, remaining 40 weeks in the Top 100 and re-entering the charts on the week of 19 August 2007 and 13 March 2008. Additionally Hurt managed to chart 26 weeks in the German Single Top 100 Chart, the longest-charting single of Christina on German Charts. The single, which peaked there at number 2, showed great longevity too, re-entering the chart in the 34th week of 2007 and in the 11th, 13th and 14th of 2008. Also, in Canada
, 'Hurt' remained within the top 50 airplay chart for nearly eight months, and peaked at #6 in January, as well staying at #1 in Indonesia
for 2 weeks. It was a top 10 airplay hit in Thailand
, Singapore
, Denmark
, Romania
and top 5 airplay hit in Greece
, France
, Finland
, Slovakia
, Netherlands
, Sweden
and Switzerland
, while it was a number 1 airplay hit in Portugal
, Germany
and Philippines
. It received certifications in the US (more than 600,000 digital downloads), Germany (150.000 copies shipped), in Austria (15.000 copies shipped), in Australia (35.000 copies shipped), Belgium (20.000), Switzerland (15.000), and in Canada (40.000 digital downloads).
Additionally, "Hurt" was certified silver in France, with 100,000 copies sold. The single has sold over 4 millions copies worldwide.
, who worked on "Fighter
" (2003). The circus
-themed video for "Hurt" was shot over five days in September and the video premiered on October 17 on TRL
. It is the first video Aguilera has directed. The video reached number one on TRL fourteen times and retired at number 1 on January 11, 2007. It's her eighth video to retire on that show. Furthermore, the video swept the 2007 MVPA awards winning Best Video and Best Direction of a Female Artist. The video begins with the ending instrumental to "Enter the circus"/"Welcome", over which a carnival barker (voiced by Linda Perry
) introduces a spectacular circus, and begins in black and white. The transition to colour begins when Aguilera appears in an old fashioned dressing room, receiving flowers and then an important telegram. A flashback then shows young Aguilera, played by Laci Kay, with her father, played by Timothy V. Murphy, raptured by the sight of the tightrope walker, played by Elizabeth Glassco. With her father's encouragement, Aguilera begins to train herself to do the same. When the video switches to older Aguilera, we see her descending from the top of a circus tent on a rope, onto the back of an elephant, in point shoes and a structured jeweled outfit, with her father watching adoringly in the audience. She later attempts to greet him but is pulled away by fans and photographers keen to meet the star. The content of the telegram is then revealed to be a message of her father's death, and as Aguilera realizes that she was too wrapped up in her stardom to deal with what matters, she races through the circus in a belated attempt to find her father. The video ends with a shot of Aguilera sitting on a circus box, singing and crying, before fading out to Aguilera's grief-stricken form on the ground outside the circus tent. The camera then zooms out and Aguilera is seen on the ground.
Released October 2, 2006
Released November 10, 2006
Released November 10, 2006
Unofficial and official remixes
Christina Aguilera
Christina María Aguilera is an American recording artist and actress. Aguilera first appeared on national television in 1990 as a contestant on the Star Search program, and went on to star in Disney Channel's television series The Mickey Mouse Club from 1993–1994...
, Linda Perry
Linda Perry
Linda Perry is an American rock musician, songwriter, and record producer. Once best known as the lead singer and primary songwriter of 4 Non Blondes, Perry has founded two record labels and has become a major songwriter and producer...
and Mark Ronson
Mark Ronson
Mark Daniel Ronson is an English DJ, guitarist, music producer, artist and co-founder of Allido Records. He currently works with his band under the music alias of Mark Ronson & The Business Intl....
for Aguilera's third studio album, Back to Basics
Back to Basics (Christina Aguilera album)
Back to Basics is the third studio album by American recording artist Christina Aguilera, first released on August 10, 2006 by RCA Records...
(2006). The song's lyrical content describes how one deals with the loss of a loved one, and it has received praise from pop music critics. Aguilera premiered the song at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards
2006 MTV Video Music Awards
The 2006 MTV Video Music Awards aired live on August 31, 2006, honoring the best music videos from the previous year. The show was hosted by Jack Black at Radio City Music Hall in New York City....
, and released it as the second single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
from Back to Basics in late 2006 (see 2006 in music
2006 in music
This is a list of notable events in music that took place in the year 2006.-January:*January 10 – Eric Burdon releases his album Soul of a Man and begins touring with a new band....
).
Background and composition
"Hurt" is a ballad song set in the key of E minorE minor
E minor is a minor scale based on the note E. The E natural minor scale consists of the pitches E, F, G, A, B, C, and D. The E harmonic minor scale contains the natural 7, D, rather than the flatted 7, D – to align with the major dominant chord, B7 .Its key signature has one sharp, F .Its...
. Its slow melody is paced at 72 beats per minute and set in common time
Common Time
"Common Time" is a science fiction short story written by James Blish. It first appeared in the August 1953 issue of Science Fiction Quarterly and has been reprinted several times: in the 1959 short-story collection Galactic Cluster; in The Testament of Andros ; in The Penguin Science Fiction...
. Aguilera's voice range spans from G3 to E5. Its instrumentation comes from bass
Bass (instrument)
Bass describes musical instruments that produce tones in the low-pitched range. They belong to different families of instruments and can cover a wide range of musical roles...
, cello
Cello
The cello is a bowed string instrument with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is a member of the violin family of musical instruments, which also includes the violin, viola, and double bass. Old forms of the instrument in the Baroque era are baryton and viol .A person who plays a cello is...
, contrabass
Contrabass
Contrabass refers to a musical instrument of very low pitch; generally those pitched one octave below instruments of the bass register...
, drums
Drum kit
A drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, 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...
, piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
, viola
Viola
The viola is a bowed string instrument. It is the middle voice of the violin family, between the violin and the cello.- Form :The viola is similar in material and construction to the violin. A full-size viola's body is between and longer than the body of a full-size violin , with an average...
and violin
Violin
The violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
. String instruments used in the melody
Melody
A melody , also tune, voice, or line, is a linear succession of musical tones which is perceived as a single entity...
were arranged by Eric Gorfain. The song makes an homage to Rachmaninoff's Vocalise
Vocalise (Rachmaninoff)
Vocalise, Op. 34, No. 14 is a song by Sergei Rachmaninoff, published in 1912 as the last of his Fourteen Songs, Op. 34. Written for voice with piano accompaniment, it contains no words, but is sung using any one vowel...
towards its conclusion.
Originally Aguilera did not want "Hurt" to be the second single from Back to Basics. Prior to this decision, "Candyman
Candyman (Christina Aguilera song)
"Candyman" is a swing jazz song written by Christina Aguilera and Linda Perry for Aguilera's third studio album, Back to Basics. It was released as the album's third and final American single in early 2007. It received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance at 2008 Grammy...
" was planned as the second single and even was confirmed by Aguilera during several different interviews. However, RCA
RCA
RCA Corporation, founded as the Radio Corporation of America, was an American electronics company in existence from 1919 to 1986. The RCA trademark is currently owned by the French conglomerate Technicolor SA through RCA Trademark Management S.A., a company owned by Technicolor...
felt that, with the holiday season coming up, it would be safer to release "Hurt", as it would become a big holiday power ballad, comparable to how Aguilera's "Beautiful
Beautiful (Christina Aguilera song)
"Beautiful" is a song written by Linda Perry and recorded by American singer Christina Aguilera for Aguilera's fourth studio album, Stripped...
" performed commercially back in late 2002. "Hurt" was released to radio airplay in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
on September 19, 2006. The single debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 at #100 in the October 14, 2006 edition. The single would peak on the Hot 100 at #19 in mid-December. "Hurt" had its biggest success on Adult Contemporary radio, where it reached #6 on the Billboard Adult Contemporary chart. Aguilera promoted the single during the holidays by performing on the TV special Christmas at Rockefeller Center, on November 29, 2006 on NBC.
Critical reception
"Hurt" was generally very well-received by contemporary pop music critics. Billboard commented that Aguilera's "[vocals] relate the pain of moving past a relationship in ruins is daunting", and that "this potential Grammy AwardGrammy Award
A Grammy Award — or Grammy — is an accolade by the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences of the United States to recognize outstanding achievement in the music industry...
contender" has "a melody and lush production that carries [the song] into the clouds. Blogcritics claims that song's "slow opening to a soft piano
Piano
The piano is a musical instrument played by means of a keyboard. It is one of the most popular instruments in the world. Widely used in classical and jazz music for solo performances, ensemble use, chamber music and accompaniment, the piano is also very popular as an aid to composing and rehearsal...
all the way to the spine-tingling bridge" is "one weeper of a ballad", and that Aguilera's "power-belting" vocals were "better than ever". Jody Rosen of Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
said that the song's "self-help bromides Aguilera delivers with melodrama that would make Barbra Streisand
Barbra Streisand
Barbra Joan Streisand is an American singer, actress, film producer and director. She has won two Academy Awards, eight Grammy Awards, four Emmy Awards, a Special Tony Award, an American Film Institute award, a Peabody Award, and is one of the few entertainers who have won an Oscar, Emmy, Grammy,...
shudder; fewer still could make it so compelling." Top 40 reviewer Bill Lamb gave the song five stars, saying "a single piano with the backing of strings gives way to one of the most technically stunning voices in pop music singing words of pain, guilt, and grief in the loss of a loved one." He continues on, predicting the song would edge near to "the top of the pop singles chart by Christmas 2006." Some reviews, however, were less positive. In the Rolling Stone magazine review for Back to Basics, the reviewer, Jenny Eliscu
Jenny Eliscu
Jenny Eliscu is a contributing editor and music critic for Rolling Stone magazine. She also had a recurring presence on the TV program I'm From Rolling Stone, and has been on other music programs, including Behind the Music...
, called "Hurt" an "incongruous schmaltzfest". It was performed live at the 2006 MTV Video Music Awards
MTV Video Music Awards
An MTV Video Music Award , is an award presented by the cable channel MTV to honor the best in music videos...
on August 31, 2006.
Chart performance
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...
chart on October 5, 2006 at number 100. The single peaked at #19 in its tenth week. While the song had moderate success in the U.S., it became a huge hit across Europe. It reached #1 in Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
and peaked at #3 in France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, where it became her highest peaking song since "Genie In A Bottle". It also went top 3 in Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
, the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Austria
Austria
Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the...
and Belgium
Belgium
Belgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
, making it her biggest hit in Europe since 2002's ballad "Beautiful". On initial release "Hurt" peaked at number 11 on 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 ...
for two consecutive weeks, and has to date spent 15 weeks inside the UK top 100 Singles Chart (longer than her top 3 singles "Dirrty", "Beautiful", "What A Girl Wants" and "Fighter"). The song has re-entered the chart on three separate occasions since, once even reaching a peak of number 39 in December 2007 after being performed by Hope, contestants on popular talent show, The X Factor
The X Factor (UK)
The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. Created by Simon Cowell, it began in September 2004 and is contested by aspiring singers drawn from public auditions. It is the originator of the international X Factor franchise. The seven series of the show to date...
. Hurt re-entered the chart again in October 2009 at #25, three years after its original release, and this time due to exposure of the song by 2009 X Factor finalist Jamie Archer. Hurt showed great longevity in Switzerland, remaining 40 weeks in the Top 100 and re-entering the charts on the week of 19 August 2007 and 13 March 2008. Additionally Hurt managed to chart 26 weeks in the German Single Top 100 Chart, the longest-charting single of Christina on German Charts. The single, which peaked there at number 2, showed great longevity too, re-entering the chart in the 34th week of 2007 and in the 11th, 13th and 14th of 2008. Also, in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, 'Hurt' remained within the top 50 airplay chart for nearly eight months, and peaked at #6 in January, as well staying at #1 in Indonesia
Indonesia
Indonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
for 2 weeks. It was a top 10 airplay hit in Thailand
Thailand
Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the...
, Singapore
Singapore
Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the...
, Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
, Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
and top 5 airplay hit in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Finland
Finland
Finland , officially the Republic of Finland, is a Nordic country situated in the Fennoscandian region of Northern Europe. It is bordered by Sweden in the west, Norway in the north and Russia in the east, while Estonia lies to its south across the Gulf of Finland.Around 5.4 million people reside...
, Slovakia
Slovakia
The Slovak Republic is a landlocked state in Central Europe. It has a population of over five million and an area of about . Slovakia is bordered by the Czech Republic and Austria to the west, Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east and Hungary to the south...
, Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
, Sweden
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
and Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, while it was a number 1 airplay hit in Portugal
Portugal
Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and Philippines
Philippines
The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam...
. It received certifications in the US (more than 600,000 digital downloads), Germany (150.000 copies shipped), in Austria (15.000 copies shipped), in Australia (35.000 copies shipped), Belgium (20.000), Switzerland (15.000), and in Canada (40.000 digital downloads).
Additionally, "Hurt" was certified silver in France, with 100,000 copies sold. The single has sold over 4 millions copies worldwide.
Music video
During MTV's red-carpet pre-show, Aguilera revealed that she would co-direct the music video alongside Floria SigismondiFloria Sigismondi
Floria Sigismondi is an Italian, naturalised Canadian, photographer and director.Apart from her art exhibitions, she is best known for writing and directing The Runaways, starring Kristen Stewart and Dakota Fanning...
, who worked on "Fighter
Fighter (song)
"Fighter" is a song recorded by American recording artist Christina Aguilera. The song was written by Aguilera and Scott Storch, and produced by Storch for Aguilera's fourth studio album, Stripped. The song was released on June 3, 2003 as the third single. The song peaked at number twenty on the...
" (2003). The circus
Circus
A circus is commonly a travelling company of performers that may include clowns, acrobats, trained animals, trapeze acts, musicians, hoopers, tightrope walkers, jugglers, unicyclists and other stunt-oriented artists...
-themed video for "Hurt" was shot over five days in September and the video premiered on October 17 on TRL
Total Request Live
Total Request Live is a television series on MTV that featured popular music videos. TRL was MTV's prime outlet for music videos as the network continues to concentrate on reality-based programming. In addition to music videos, TRL featured daily guests...
. It is the first video Aguilera has directed. The video reached number one on TRL fourteen times and retired at number 1 on January 11, 2007. It's her eighth video to retire on that show. Furthermore, the video swept the 2007 MVPA awards winning Best Video and Best Direction of a Female Artist. The video begins with the ending instrumental to "Enter the circus"/"Welcome", over which a carnival barker (voiced by Linda Perry
Linda Perry
Linda Perry is an American rock musician, songwriter, and record producer. Once best known as the lead singer and primary songwriter of 4 Non Blondes, Perry has founded two record labels and has become a major songwriter and producer...
) introduces a spectacular circus, and begins in black and white. The transition to colour begins when Aguilera appears in an old fashioned dressing room, receiving flowers and then an important telegram. A flashback then shows young Aguilera, played by Laci Kay, with her father, played by Timothy V. Murphy, raptured by the sight of the tightrope walker, played by Elizabeth Glassco. With her father's encouragement, Aguilera begins to train herself to do the same. When the video switches to older Aguilera, we see her descending from the top of a circus tent on a rope, onto the back of an elephant, in point shoes and a structured jeweled outfit, with her father watching adoringly in the audience. She later attempts to greet him but is pulled away by fans and photographers keen to meet the star. The content of the telegram is then revealed to be a message of her father's death, and as Aguilera realizes that she was too wrapped up in her stardom to deal with what matters, she races through the circus in a belated attempt to find her father. The video ends with a shot of Aguilera sitting on a circus box, singing and crying, before fading out to Aguilera's grief-stricken form on the ground outside the circus tent. The camera then zooms out and Aguilera is seen on the ground.
Formats and track listings
These are the formats and track listings of major single releases of "Hurt".- Promo CD Single
Released October 2, 2006
| # | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Hurt" (Radio Edit) | 3:47 |
| 2. | "Hurt" (Album Version) | 4:03 |
- International CD single
Released November 10, 2006
| # | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Hurt" | 4:03 |
| 2. | "Ain't No Other Man" (Shapeshifters Mixshow Mix) | 5:24 |
- CD maxi-single (premium)
Released November 10, 2006
| # | Title | |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Hurt" | 4:03 |
| 2. | "Hurt" (Jake Ridley remix) | 5:47 |
| 3. | "Ain't No Other Man" (Shapeshifters Mixshow Mix) | 5:24 |
| 4. | "Hurt" (Video) | 4:53 |
- iTunes maxi-single
# Title 1. "Hurt" (Deeper-Mindset Tight Mix) 7:04 2. "Hurt" (Jack Shaft Edit) 7:02 3. "Hurt" (Chris Cox Club Mix) 9:56 4. "Hurt" (JP & BSOD Electro Mix) 6:01 5. "Hurt" (Jonathan Peters Classic Mix) 9:30 6. "Hurt" (Jake Ridley Chillout Club) 5:47
- Promotional maxi-single
# Title 1. "Hurt" (Deeper-Mindset Mixshow) 5:54 2. "Hurt" (Deeper-Mindset Tight Mix) 7:04 3. "Hurt" (Deeper-Mindset Full On Club Mix) 9:30 4. "Hurt" (Deeper-Mindset Pad a Pella) 7:16 5. "Hurt" (J.P. & BSOD Electro Mix) 6:01 6. "Hurt" (Jack Shaft Mixshow) 5:41 7. "Hurt" (Jack Shaft Main) 7:02 8. "Hurt" (Jack Shaft Extended) 8:30 9. "Hurt" (Jack Shaft Dub) 6:32 10. "Hurt" (Jack Shaft Dub a Pella) 1:53
Unofficial and official remixes
- "Ander Standing Dub Intro Mix" - 8.24
- "Ander Standing Hard Dub" - 8.07
- "Edson Pride Radio Mix"
- "Edson Pride Synth-A-Dub" - 8.48
- "Edson Pride Nervous Club Mix" - 9.47
- "Jack Shaft Radio Mix"
- "Jack Shaft Mixshow" - 5:41
- "Jack Shaft Dub-A-Pella" - 1:53
- "Jack Shaft Dub" - 6:32
- "Jack Shaft Main" - 7:02
- "Jack Shaft Extended" - 8:30
- "Los Angeles Remix" - 7:02
Charts
| Chart (2006) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Canada (Hot Digital Singles 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 |
Certifications
Year-end charts
| Chart (2006) | Rank |
|---|---|
| Australia | 68 |
| Austria | 50 |
| Netherlands | 49 |
| Switzerland | 24 |
| UK | 150 |
| Chart (2007) | Rank |
| Austria | 20 |
| France | 17 |
| Germany | 3 |
| Netherlands | 35 |
| Switzerland | 22 |
Release history
| Country | Date | Format |
|---|---|---|
| United States | September 29, 2006 | Digital download Music download A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment... |
| Australia | November 4, 2006 | |
| United Kingdom | November 13, 2006 |