"Darling It Hurts" is a song by Australian rock group Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls released in September 1986 as the second single from their first double album, ''

Gossip Gossip is idle talk or rumour, especially about the personal or private affairs of others; the act is also known as dishing or tattling. Gossip is a topic of research in evolutionary psychology, which has found gossip to be an important means ...

''. The song, written by Kelly with lead guitarist Steve Connolly, reached No. 25 on the Australian

Kent Music Report The Kent Music Report was a weekly record chart of Australian music singles and albums which was compiled by music enthusiast David Kent from May 1974 through to January 1999. The chart was re-branded the Australian Music Report (AMR) in July ...

Singles Chart in October. It was issued in 1987 on

A&M Records A&M Records was an American record label founded as an independent company by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss in 1962. Due to the success of the discography A&M released, the label garnered interest and was acquired by PolyGram in 1989 and began distr ...

in the United States, where it reached No. 19 on the ''Billboard'' Mainstream Rock Chart. Due to possible racist connotations the band changed its name, for international releases, to Paul Kelly and the Messengers. According to

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

's Mike Gagne, "Kelly's pain can be felt as he describes an ex-girlfriend of his who has turned to prostitution."

Background

After recording his solo album, ''

Post Post or POST commonly refers to: *Mail, the postal system, especially in Commonwealth of Nations countries **An Post, the Irish national postal service **Canada Post, Canadian postal service **Deutsche Post, German postal service **Iraqi Post, Ira ...

'' in early 1985, Kelly established a full-time band in Sydney. It included

Michael Armiger Michael William Armiger is an English-born Australian guitarist and teacher. He has been a member of various groups including Paul Kelly Band (1983–84), Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls (1985–86), John Kennedy's Love Gone Wrong (1987– ...

(bass guitar, rhythm guitar), Michael Barclay (drums, later in

Weddings, Parties, Anything Weddings, Parties, Anything. was an Australian folk rock band formed in 1984 in Melbourne and continuing until 1999. Their name came from The Clash song "Revolution Rock". Musicologist Billy Pinnell described their first album as the best Austr ...

) and Steve Connolly (lead guitar). Bass guitarist Jon Schofield and the

keyboard player A keyboardist or keyboard player is a musician who plays keyboard instruments. Until the early 1960s musicians who played keyboards were generally classified as either pianists or organists. Since the mid-1960s, a plethora of new musical instr ...

Peter Bull soon joined.Spencer et al, (2007), Kelly, Paul and the Coloured Girls entry. Retrieved 21 March 2010. Through a joke based on

Lou Reed Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician, songwriter, and poet. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. ...

's song " Walk on the Wild Side", the band became known as Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls.McFarlane, , retrieved 14 March 2010. Armiger left and the Coloured Girls line-up stabilised in late 1985 as Barclay, Bull, Connolly and Schofield. By May 1986, the band entered Trafalgar Studios and released their debut 24-track double LP, ''

'' in September. It included remakes of four songs from ''Post''. ''Gossip'' peaked at No. 15 on the Australian

Albums Chart. Singles from the album were "

Before Too Long "Before Too Long" is a song by Australian rock group Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls, released as the first single from their debut double album, ''Gossip''. It was released in June 1986 on the original White Label Records, a subsidiary of Mushr ...

" which peaked at No. 15 on the related Singles Chart and "Darling It Hurts" which reached No. 25. The song was written by Kelly with lead guitarist, Steve Connolly. A trimmed version of ''Gossip'', featuring 15 tracks on a single LP, was released in the United States by

in July 1987.

's Mike DeGagne noted that " tbursts at the seams with blustery, distinguished tunes captivating both the somberness and the intrigue thrown forward from this fine Australian storyteller". "Darling It Hurts" was described as "more intricate" where "Kelly's pain can be felt as he describes an ex-girlfriend of his who has turned to prostitution". The album was co-produced by Kelly with Alan Thorne (

Hoodoo Gurus Hoodoo Gurus are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1981, by the mainstay Dave Faulkner (songwriter, lead singer and guitarist) and later joined by Richard Grossman (bass), Mark Kingsmill (drums), and Brad Shepherd (guitar, vocals, ha ...

The Stems The Stems are a garage punk (fusion genre), garage punk band formed in Perth, Western Australia in late 1983. They were founded by Dom Mariani in late 1983. The Stems are heavily influenced by 1960s garage rock and 1970s power pop. The band ini ...

) who, according to music journalist

Robert Forster Robert Wallace Forster Jr. (July 13, 1941 – October 11, 2019) was an American actor, known for his roles as John Cassellis in ''Medium Cool'' (1969), Captain Dan Holland in ''The Black Hole'' (1979), Abdul Rafai in ''The Delta Force'' (1986), ...

(former

The Go-Betweens The Go-Betweens were an Australian indie rock band formed in Brisbane, Queensland, in 1977. The band was co-founded and led by singer-songwriters and guitarists Robert Forster and Grant McLennan, who were its only constant members throughout it ...

singer-songwriter), helped the band create "a sound that will not only influence future roots-rock bands but, through its directness, sparkle and dedication to the song, will also come to be seen as particularly Australian. Ultimately, it means the records these people made together are timeless". Due to possible racist connotations the band changed its name for international releases to Paul Kelly and the Messengers. They made a US tour, initially supporting

Crowded House Crowded House are a rock band, formed in Melbourne, Victoria, Australia, in 1985. Its founding members were New Zealander Neil Finn (vocalist, guitarist, primary songwriter) and Australians Paul Hester (drums) and Nick Seymour (bass). Later ban ...

and then headlining, travelling across the US by bus. "Darling It Hurts" peaked at No. 19 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Mainstream Rock chart Mainstream Rock is a music chart in '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States, a category that combines the formats of active rock and heritage rock. The chart was launched i ...

in 1987. ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' rock critic

Jon Pareles Jon Pareles (born October 25, 1953) is an American journalist who is the chief popular music critic in the arts section of ''The New York Times''. Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls' second album, '' Under the Sun'', was released in late 1987 in Australia and New Zealand; and early 1988 in North America and Europe (under the name Paul Kelly and the Messengers). On the Kent Music Report Albums Chart it reached No. 19 with the lead single "

To Her Door "To Her Door" is a song by Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls, released as a single ahead of their second album, '' Under the Sun'' (released in North America and Europe as by Paul Kelly and the Messengers). The single was released in September ...

", written by Kelly, peaking at No. 14 on the related singles chart.

Music and lyrics

"Darling It Hurts" is about a man who realises that his former lover is a

prostitute Prostitution is the business or practice of engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, non-penet ...

. The chorus, "Darling it hurts to see you down Darlinghurst tonight", refers to Darlinghurst Road, Kings Cross – at the time – a

red-light district A red-light district or pleasure district is a part of an urban area where a concentration of prostitution and sex-oriented businesses, such as sex shops, strip clubs, and adult theaters, are found. In most cases, red-light districts are particu ...

. The reference to "that man with the glad hands" relates to patrons slowing as they drive-by looking for a sex worker. Whilst "man with the glad bags" refers to dealers who sell drugs in zip-lock glad bags. Kelly indicated the title is based on artist Toby Zoates' infamous

graffiti Graffiti (plural; singular ''graffiti'' or ''graffito'', the latter rarely used except in archeology) is art that is written, painted or drawn on a wall or other surface, usually without permission and within public view. Graffiti ranges from s ...

which he saw in Darlinghurst when living in Sydney. The video, directed by Claudia Castle, is shot in black-and-white showing the band performing in front of a dancing couple. Castle directed several of the band's videos, including the 1988 ARIA Music Award winning video for "

". The song was covered by

Magic Dirt Magic Dirt are an Australian rock band, which formed in 1991 in Geelong, Victoria, with Daniel Herring on guitar, Adam Robertson on drums, Adalita Srsen on vocals and guitar, and Dean Turner (musician), Dean Turner on bass guitar. Initially for ...

on the 2002 compilation album, ''The Women at the Well: The Songs of Paul Kelly''.

Track listing

Australian release

# "Darling It Hurts" ( Paul Kelly, Steve Connolly) – 3:18 # "Preaching to the Converted" (Kelly) – 4:31

US release

# "Darling It Hurts" (Kelly, Connolly) – 3:18 # "Down on My Speedway" (Kelly) – 3:22

Personnel

Paul Kelly and the Coloured Girls * Paul Kelly – acoustic guitar, lead vocals * Steve Connolly – lead guitar, backing vocals * Michael Barclay – drums, backing vocals * Peter Bull – keyboards, backing vocals * John Schofield – bass guitar, vocals Additional musicians * Chris Coyne – saxophone * Wayne Freer – trombone Recording details * Producer – Alan Thorne, Paul Kelly * Engineer – Alan Thorne

Charts

References

;General * Note: Archived nlinecopy has limited functionality. * * ;Specific {{Authority control 1986 singles Paul Kelly (Australian musician) songs Songs written by Paul Kelly (Australian musician) Mushroom Records singles 1986 songs Songs about Australia