Piece of My Heart

"Piece of My Heart" is a song written by Jerry Ragovoy and Bert Berns and originally recorded by Erma Franklin in 1967. The song came to greater mainstream attention when Big Brother and the Holding Company (featuring Janis Joplin on lead vocals) covered the song in 1968 and had a hit with it. The song has since been remade by several singers, including hit versions by Faith Hill in 1994 and Melissa Etheridge in 2005.

In 2004, the Big Brother and the Holding Company version of this song was ranked Number 344 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time. The song is also included among The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll.

Chart versions

Erma Franklin's original recording: 1967

The original version of "Piece of My Heart" was recorded by Aretha Franklin's older sister Erma in 1967. The song was a top ten R&B hit in the U.S., and also peaked at number sixty-two on the U.S. Pop Singles chart. In the UK, the single was re-released in 1992, due to a successful Levi's jeans commercial, when it peaked inside the UK Singles Chart at number nine.

Big Brother and the Holding Company version: 1968

The song became a bigger pop hit when recorded by Big Brother and the Holding Company in 1968, with lead singer Janis Joplin.^[1] The song was taken from the group's album Cheap Thrills, recorded in 1968 and released on Columbia Records. This rendition made it to number twelve on the U.S. pop chart.

Franklin said in an interview that when she first heard Joplin's version on the radio, she didn't recognize it because of the vocal arrangement.^[2] Noted cultural writer Ellen Willis wrote of the difference: "When Franklin sings it, it is a challenge: no matter what you do to me, I will not let you destroy my ability to be human, to love. Joplin seems rather to be saying, surely if I keep taking this, if I keep setting an example of love and forgiveness, surely he has to understand, change, give me back what I have given". In such a way, Joplin used blues conventions not to transcend pain, but "to scream it out of existence".^[3]

Dusty Springfield version: 1968

British female vocalist Dusty Springfield released the song as Take Another Little Piece of my Heart on her 1968 album Dusty... Definitely. It later featured in an advertisement for Cadbury's Dairy Milk chocolate.

Sammy Hagar version: 1981

A rocker rendition of the song was recorded by Sammy Hagar, and included on his 1981 album, Standing Hampton. Released as a single, it hit #73 in the United States.

Jenny Morris version: 1990

New Zealand singer Jenny Morris covered the song in 1990, and it was a hit in Australia peaking at number twenty-four.

Faith Hill version: 1993

Country artist Faith Hill included the song on her debut album, Take Me as I Am (1993). It was a Number One hit for her in 1994. Hill's version took on a more passive tone coupled with traditional country instrumentation. Prior to recording the track, Hill had never heard Janis Joplin's rendition. Hill's producers refused to allow her to listen to the Joplin version until she had completed her own recording. This was done to allow Hill to provide her own take, based on the original demo, and not emulate Joplin.

Hill has since completely re-recorded the track for the international pressing of her third album, Faith (which was re-titled "Love Will Always Win" outside the U.S.), released in 1998. This edgier version can also be found on her 2001 international greatest hits album There You'll Be, as well as the soundtrack to the show King of the Hill. Her original version was included in her 2007 greatest hits album The Hits.

Future Survivor contestant Jerri Manthey had a part in the video as one of Faith's girlfriends.

Chart positions

Melissa Etheridge/Joss Stone version: 2005

A live medley of this song with Janis Joplin & the Full Tilt Boogie Band's 1971 song "Cry Baby" became a hit duet for American rock singer Melissa Etheridge and English soul singer Joss Stone when it was released to iTunes Store after they performed it at the 47th Grammy Awards on February 13, 2005, in tribute to Joplin. The lively event reached number thirty-two on the Billboard Hot 100 and number two on the Hot Digital Tracks in April 2005. The performance also signaled Etheridge's first public return from her battle with breast cancer; appearing with her head bald from the effects of chemotherapy.^[4] Etheridge also recorded a solo version of "Piece of My Heart" on her 2005 greatest hits album Greatest Hits: The Road Less Traveled.

Beverley Knight version: 2006

The most recent remake of "Piece of My Heart" to chart was by English soul singer Beverley Knight in 2006.

On her 2005 Affirmation Tour, Beverley performed the song to great critical acclaim and her fans along with Ronnie Wood, who asked her to perform it with him, encouraged her to make a studio recording of the song. The result was that Piece of My Heart became the lead single from her 2006 best-of compilation Voice - The Best of Beverley Knight.

Knight's version became one of her biggest hit singles to date, peaking inside the top ten of the UK radio airplay chart. The physical single was released on 13 March 2006, however, due to a change in the UK chart rules allowing singles to chart purely on downloads a week before their physical release, "Piece of My Heart" became one of the first ever singles to do so, entering the UK chart at number ninety-three on downloads alone before making number sixteen after its physical commercial release. "Piece of My Heart" was also her first single to be released on a DVD format. Knight's version became her longest-running single to date on the UK Singles Chart, spending eleven weeks inside the top seventy-five. It was her thirteenth top forty entry and her seventh top twenty hit on the UK Singles Chart.

Track listings and formats

CD single

1. "Piece of My Heart" (album version)
2. "Keep This Fire Burning" (live)

DVD single

1. "Piece of My Heart" (album version)
2. "Let It Be" (live)
3. "Come as You Are" (live)
4. "Piece of My Heart" (video)

12" single

1. "Piece of My Heart" (album version)
2. "Made It Back" (featuring Redman) (original version)

Download-only versions

• "Piece of My Heart" (radio edit)
• "Piece of My Heart" (live)
• "Piece of My Heart" (remix)

Charts

Personnel

• Written by Bert Berns and Jerry Ragovoy
• Produced by Jimmy Hogarth
• Engineered by Pom (Pierre-Olivier Magerand)
• Mixed by Phillip Bodger
• Lead vocals by Beverley Knight
• Backing vocals by Bryan Chambers, Billie Godfrey, Louise Marshall
• Wurlitzer & Hammond organ by Martin Slatterty
• Bass by Sam Dixon
• Drums by Jeremy Stacey
• Guitars & percussion by Jimmy Hogarth

Notes