"Every Little Bit Hurts" was originally a 1964 hit single for Motown soul singer Brenda Holloway, written by Ed Cobb.

Background

Though she was against recording the song again (she recorded it a couple of years before signing with Motown), she reluctantly recorded the song and the label released it in the summer of the year. "Every Little Bit Hurts" was a big hit peaking at No. 13 on the Billboard Hot 100, and became one of Holloway's trademark singles.

Covers

Chart history

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Alicia Keys version

"Every Little Bit Hurts" was included by American recording artist Alicia Keys on her live album, Unplugged (2005). It was released as the album's second and last single in 2006. It failed to enter the US and international charts.

Critical reception

Sal Cinquemani from Slant Magazine felt that Keys treated the song "like [a] vocal audition[...] and not the blank canvas[...] of an interpretive artist".

Music video

Directed by Justin Francis, the video premiered on January 17, 2006 on BET's 106 & Park.

Track listing