It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry
Encyclopedia
"It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry" is a song by Scottish Indie rock
band Glasvegas
. The song was written and composed by the band's singer and guitarist James Allan.
The song is a ballad featuring singing
, electric guitar
, bass guitar
, and drum kit
. The lyrics explore the concepts of inevitable guilt and regret resulting from infidelity
within an interpersonal relationship
. The genre
employed in the song is heavily guitar-based, making use of delay
and reverb
effects; and produced using the Wall of Sound
technique.
"It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry" was originally released as a download
single through Sane Man on 7 February 2008, and a limited edition 7"
one week later. The song received mostly positive reception from music journalists, with single reviews praising its lyrical content and production and likening it to the work of The Jesus and Mary Chain
.
, Scotland, where the band recorded their previous two singles, "Go Square Go!
" and "Daddy's Gone
". Kevin Burleigh, who co-produced "Go Square Go!" with James Allan and engineered "Daddy's Gone", also engineered "It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry". James Allan handled production duties whilst recording the song, as well as on the B-side to the single—a cover version of The Ronettes
' "Be My Baby
".
was also released. The artwork featured on the sleeve of the 7" is by Rob Biddulph, and was designed in the style of singles from the 1960s. Biddulph also designed the artwork for the previous single, "Daddy's Gone," in the same style.
7" single (SAN002); digital download
Promo CD
named it Track of the Week, and praised the song, stating that it "stirs more emotion than a million candle-lit meals" and compares it to previous single, "Daddy's Gone
", as well as the work of fellow Glasgow band The Jesus and Mary Chain, stating it "shimmers in the kind of elegiac-yet-filthy Wall of Sound thrum [reminiscent of Psychocandy
] [...] only this time even more dark, dolorous and redolent." John Murphy of musicOHM praised the song's composition, stating "[broad] Scottish brogues, lashings of feedback and multi-layered guitars and a massive dosage of self-loathing all combine here to produce one of the most compelling singles in months." Murphy hailed Glasvegas the "sound of young Scotland" and also compared the song to The Jesus and Mary Chain, stating "at times [it] sounds like a throwback to the days of The Jesus and Mary Chain." In February 2008, Q
magazine listed the single at number 10 in their list of the 50 essential tracks you need to download.
Production
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band Glasvegas
Glasvegas
Glasvegas are a Scottish indie rock band from Glasgow. The band consists of James Allan , Rab Allan , Paul Donoghue and Jonna Löfgren . The band received critical acclaim for their debut album Glasvegas which was released in September 2008, reaching No...
. The song was written and composed by the band's singer and guitarist James Allan.
The song is a ballad featuring singing
Singing
Singing is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, electric guitar
Electric guitar
An electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, and drum kit
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 ....
. The lyrics explore the concepts of inevitable guilt and regret resulting from infidelity
Infidelity
In many intimate relationships in many cultures there is usually an express or implied expectation of exclusivity, especially in sexual matters. Infidelity most commonly refers to a breach of the expectation of sexual exclusivity.Infidelity can occur in relation to physical intimacy and/or...
within an interpersonal relationship
Interpersonal relationship
An interpersonal relationship is an association between two or more people that may range from fleeting to enduring. This association may be based on limerence, love, solidarity, regular business interactions, or some other type of social commitment. Interpersonal relationships are formed in the...
. The genre
Genre
Genre , Greek: genos, γένος) is the term for any category of literature or other forms of art or culture, e.g. music, and in general, any type of discourse, whether written or spoken, audial or visual, based on some set of stylistic criteria. Genres are formed by conventions that change over time...
employed in the song is heavily guitar-based, making use of delay
Delay (audio effect)
Delay is an audio effect which records an input signal to an audio storage medium, and then plays it back after a period of time. The delayed signal may either be played back multiple times, or played back into the recording again, to create the sound of a repeating, decaying echo.-Early delay...
and reverb
Reverberation
Reverberation is the persistence of sound in a particular space after the original sound is removed. A reverberation, or reverb, is created when a sound is produced in an enclosed space causing a large number of echoes to build up and then slowly decay as the sound is absorbed by the walls and air...
effects; and produced using the Wall of Sound
Wall of Sound
The Wall of Sound is a music production technique for pop and rock music recordings developed by record producer Phil Spector at Gold Star Studios in Los Angeles, California, during the early 1960s...
technique.
"It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry" was originally released as a download
Digital distribution
Online distribution, digital distribution, or electronic software distribution is the practice of delivering content without the use of physical media, typically by downloading via the internet directly to a consumer's device. Online distribution bypasses conventional physical distribution media,...
single through Sane Man on 7 February 2008, and a limited edition 7"
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
one week later. The song received mostly positive reception from music journalists, with single reviews praising its lyrical content and production and likening it to the work of The Jesus and Mary Chain
The Jesus and Mary Chain
The Jesus and Mary Chain are a Scottish alternative rock band formed in East Kilbride, Glasgow in 1983. The band revolves around the songwriting partnership of brothers Jim and William Reid...
.
Origins and recording
James Allan wrote and composed the song prior to the album recording sessions at Central Sound Studios in GlasgowGlasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, Scotland, where the band recorded their previous two singles, "Go Square Go!
Go Square Go!
"Go Square Go!" is a song by Scottish Indie rock band Glasvegas. The song was written by the band's singer and guitarist James Allan. It was released as the band's debut 7" single through WaKS on October 30, 2006, as well as a download....
" and "Daddy's Gone
Daddy's Gone
"Daddy's Gone" is a song by Scottish Indie rock band Glasvegas. The song was written and composed by the band's singer and guitarist James Allan....
". Kevin Burleigh, who co-produced "Go Square Go!" with James Allan and engineered "Daddy's Gone", also engineered "It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry". James Allan handled production duties whilst recording the song, as well as on the B-side to the single—a cover version of The Ronettes
The Ronettes
The Ronettes were a 1960s girl group from New York City, best known for their work with producer Phil Spector. The group consisted of lead singer Veronica Bennett ; her older sister, Estelle Bennett; and their cousin Nedra Talley...
' "Be My Baby
Be My Baby
"Be My Baby" is a 1963 single written by Phil Spector, Jeff Barry, and Ellie Greenwich, performed by The Ronettes and produced by Spector. When released as a single, the song reached #2 on the U.S. Billboard Pop Singles Chart and #4 on the UK's Record Retailer...
".
Formats
The song was first released as a digital download through Sane Man on 7 February 2008, and received a physical release one week later as a 7" single, limited to 2000 copies. A promo CDPromotional recording
A promotional recording, or promo, is an audio or video recording distributed for free, usually in order to promote a recording that is or soon will be commercially available...
was also released. The artwork featured on the sleeve of the 7" is by Rob Biddulph, and was designed in the style of singles from the 1960s. Biddulph also designed the artwork for the previous single, "Daddy's Gone," in the same style.
Track listings
All songs written by James Allan, except where noted.7" single (SAN002); digital download
- "It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry" – 4:45
- "Be My Baby" (BarryJeff BarryJeff Barry is an American pop music songwriter, singer, and record producer.-Early career:...
/GreenwichEllie GreenwichEleanor Louise "Ellie" Greenwich was an American pop music singer, songwriter, and record producer. She wrote or co-wrote "Be My Baby", "Christmas ", "Da Doo Ron Ron", "Leader of the Pack", "Do Wah Diddy Diddy", and "River Deep, Mountain High", among many others...
/SpectorPhil SpectorPhillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
) – 4:12
Promo CD
- "It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry" – 4:45
- "Be My Baby" (BarryJeff BarryJeff Barry is an American pop music songwriter, singer, and record producer.-Early career:...
/GreenwichEllie GreenwichEleanor Louise "Ellie" Greenwich was an American pop music singer, songwriter, and record producer. She wrote or co-wrote "Be My Baby", "Christmas ", "Da Doo Ron Ron", "Leader of the Pack", "Do Wah Diddy Diddy", and "River Deep, Mountain High", among many others...
/SpectorPhil SpectorPhillip Harvey "Phil" Spector is an American record producer and songwriter, later known for his conviction in the murder of actress Lana Clarkson....
) – 4:12 - "It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry" (Clean Version) – 4:41
Critical reception
"It's My Own Cheating Heart That Makes Me Cry" received a positive reception in the music press. Mark Beaumont of NMENME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
named it Track of the Week, and praised the song, stating that it "stirs more emotion than a million candle-lit meals" and compares it to previous single, "Daddy's Gone
Daddy's Gone
"Daddy's Gone" is a song by Scottish Indie rock band Glasvegas. The song was written and composed by the band's singer and guitarist James Allan....
", as well as the work of fellow Glasgow band The Jesus and Mary Chain, stating it "shimmers in the kind of elegiac-yet-filthy Wall of Sound thrum [reminiscent of Psychocandy
Psychocandy
Psychocandy is the debut album by the Scottish alternative rock band The Jesus and Mary Chain, released in November 1985. Psychocandy combined the concepts of pop songs and searing guitar chords....
] [...] only this time even more dark, dolorous and redolent." John Murphy of musicOHM praised the song's composition, stating "[broad] Scottish brogues, lashings of feedback and multi-layered guitars and a massive dosage of self-loathing all combine here to produce one of the most compelling singles in months." Murphy hailed Glasvegas the "sound of young Scotland" and also compared the song to The Jesus and Mary Chain, stating "at times [it] sounds like a throwback to the days of The Jesus and Mary Chain." In February 2008, Q
Q (magazine)
Q is a popular music magazine published monthly in the United Kingdom.Founders Mark Ellen and David Hepworth were dismayed by the music press of the time, which they felt was ignoring a generation of older music buyers who were buying CDs — then still a new technology...
magazine listed the single at number 10 in their list of the 50 essential tracks you need to download.
Personnel and credits
Glasvegas- James Allan – vocalsSingingSinging is the act of producing musical sounds with the voice, and augments regular speech by the use of both tonality and rhythm. One who sings is called a singer or vocalist. Singers perform music known as songs that can be sung either with or without accompaniment by musical instruments...
, electric guitarElectric guitarAn electric guitar is a guitar that uses the principle of direct electromagnetic induction to convert vibrations of its metal strings into electric audio signals. The signal generated by an electric guitar is too weak to drive a loudspeaker, so it is amplified before sending it to a loudspeaker...
, productionRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music... - Rab Allan – electric guitar
- Paul Donoghue – bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Caroline McKay – drum kitDrum kitA 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 ....
Production
- Kevin Burleigh – engineeringAudio engineeringAn audio engineer, also called audio technician, audio technologist or sound technician, is a specialist in a skilled trade that deals with the use of machinery and equipment for the recording, mixing and reproduction of sounds. The field draws on many artistic and vocational areas, including...