Little Anthony & The Imperials, Hurt So Bad | Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶

In the 123rd edition of Throwback Vibez (2024), we recollect and reflect on “Hurt So Bad” by Little Anthony & The Imperials.   

The vibes, the vibes, those Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶! Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 is a column that celebrates awesome songs from the past.  The records that grace this column are older, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they’re ancient – no fossils 🦴! All genres of music are welcome. In the 123^rd edition of Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 (2024), we recollect and reflect on “Hurt So Bad” performed by Little Anthony & The Imperials.

“I know you / Don’t know what I’m going through,” Jerome Anthony (“Little Anthony”) Gourdine sings in the first verse of “Hurt So Bad”. The Little Anthony & The Imperials’ high-voiced lead singer continues, “Standing here / Looking at you / Well, let me tell you that it…” Fill in the ellipsis! It “Hurt,” of course! “Hurt So Bad” is a brief but potent classic by the renowned doo-wop, vintage R&B collective. It is the seventh track on their 1964 album, Goin’ Out Of My Head.  “Hurt So Bad,” not to be confused with “Hurt” in the same album, was written by Bobby Hart, Robert Weinstein, and Teddy Randazzo. Randazzo produced.  Covered by others many times, Little Anthony & The Imperials were the first to release this top 10 pop hit (peaked at no. 10 on the Billboard Hot 100).

What makes “Hurt So Bad” sound so good? From an instrumental perspective, dramatic production, superb orchestration, and a compelling palette of sounds. The piano shines, the orchestra (especially the strings), and the drums are bombastic.  The instrumental accompaniment is fuel for The Imperials’ fire.  Little Anthony delivers a top-notch vocal.  He’s confident, expressive, and refined as he conveys the hurt.  “Like needles and pins, people say,” he sings in the second verse, continuing, “You’ve been making out okay / She’s in love, don’t stand in her way.” The Imperials support him with big background vocals, selling the H-U-R-T.  The chorus is the crème de la crème – the moment of hurt! It receives variation throughout.

“Please don’t go, please don’t go

Oh, hurts so bad (Hurt, hurts so bad)

Come back, it hurts so bad (Hurt, hurts so bad)

Don’t make it hurt so bad (Hurt, hurts so bad)

I’m beggin’ you please.”

“Hurt So Bad” is an oldie but a goodie.  Little Anthony & The Imperials gifted us a surefire, unforgettable classic.

Little Anthony & The Imperials // Goin’ Out Of My Head // Capitol // 1964

Little Anthony & The Imperials, Hurt So Bad: Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 No. 124 (2024) [📷: Brent Faulkner / The Musical Hype; Capitol; OpenClipart-Vectors, Speedy McVroom from Pixabay]