"He Hit Me (And It Felt Like a Kiss)" is a song written by
Gerry Goffin
Gerald Goffin (February 11, 1939 – June 19, 2014) was an American lyricist. Collaborating initially with his first wife, Carole King, he co-wrote many international pop hits of the early and mid-1960s, including the List of Billboard number-one ...
and
Carole King
Carole King Klein (born Carol Joan Klein; February 9, 1942) is an American singer, songwriter, and musician who has been active since 1958, initially as one of the staff songwriters at 1650 Broadway and later as a solo artist. Regarded as one ...
for
girl group
A girl group is a music act featuring several female singers who generally harmonize together. The term "girl group" is also used in a narrower sense in the United States to denote the wave of American female pop music singing groups, many of who ...
the Crystals
The Crystals are an American vocal group that originated in New York City. Considered one of the defining acts of the girl group era in the first half of the 1960s, their 1961–1964 chart hits – including "There's No Other (Like My Baby)", " ...
under the guidance of
Phil Spector
Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...
in 1962. Goffin and King wrote the song after discovering that their babysitter and singer
"Little Eva" Boyd was being regularly
beaten
Battery is a criminal offense involving unlawful physical contact, distinct from assault which is the act of creating apprehension of such contact.
Battery is a specific common law offense, although the term is used more generally to refer to ...
by her boyfriend.
When they inquired why she tolerated such treatment, Eva replied, with complete sincerity, that her boyfriend's actions were motivated by his love for her.
Production
Phil Spector
Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...
's arrangement was ominous and ambiguous.
Release
Upon its initial release, "He Hit Me" received some airplay, but then there was a widespread protest of the song, with many concluding that the song was an endorsement of spousal abuse.
Soon, the song was played only rarely on the radio, as now.
The 1930
Frank Borzage
Frank Borzage (; April 23, 1894 – June 19, 1962) was an Academy Award-winning American film director and actor, known for directing '' 7th Heaven'' (1927), '' Street Angel'' (1928), '' Bad Girl'' (1931), '' A Farewell to Arms'' (1932), ''Man's ...
film ''
Liliom
''Liliom'' is a 1909 play by the Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár. It was well known in its own right during the early to mid-20th century, but is best known today as the basis for the Rodgers and Hammerstein 1945 musical ''Carousel''.
P ...
'' contains the line "He hit me and it felt like a kiss" in its final scene. The film was not a success and nothing suggests that Goffin or King had seen it. ''
Liliom
''Liliom'' is a 1909 play by the Hungarian playwright Ferenc Molnár. It was well known in its own right during the early to mid-20th century, but is best known today as the basis for the Rodgers and Hammerstein 1945 musical ''Carousel''.
P ...
'', originally a play by Hungarian playwright
Ferenc Molnár
Ferenc Molnár ( , ; born Ferenc Neumann; 12 January 18781 April 1952), often anglicized as Franz Molnar, was a Hungarian-born author, stage-director, dramatist, and poet, widely regarded as Hungary’s most celebrated and controversial play ...
, was the basis for the
Rodgers and Hammerstein
Rodgers and Hammerstein was a theater-writing team of composer Richard Rodgers (1902–1979) and lyricist-dramatist Oscar Hammerstein II (1895–1960), who together created a series of innovative and influential American musicals. Their popular ...
musical classic, ''
Carousel
A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (List of sovereign states, international), roundabout (British English), or hurdy-gurdy (an old term in Australian English, in South Australia, SA) is a type of amusement ...
''. While King and Goffin may not have seen ''Liliom'', it is possible that they were familiar with the successful 1956 film version of ''
Carousel
A carousel or carrousel (mainly North American English), merry-go-round (List of sovereign states, international), roundabout (British English), or hurdy-gurdy (an old term in Australian English, in South Australia, SA) is a type of amusement ...
'', which contains essentially the same line. However, King has stated that Little Eva, their babysitter who inspired the song, had used that exact phrase to them.
Carole King, in that same radio interview, said that she was sorry she had ever had anything to do with the song. She was a survivor of repeated domestic abuse (but not from Goffin, who had been her husband from 1959 to 1969).
In popular culture
*In 2005, the
English
English usually refers to:
* English language
* English people
English may also refer to:
Peoples, culture, and language
* ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England
** English national ide ...
band
Spiritualized
Spiritualized (stylised as Spiritualized®) are an English rock band formed in 1990 in Rugby, Warwickshire, by Jason Pierce (often known as J. Spaceman), formerly of Spacemen 3. After several line up-changes, in 1999, the band centered on Pi ...
recorded a song called
"She Kissed Me (It Felt Like a Hit)".
*The
My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult
My Life with the Thrill Kill Kult (often shortened to Thrill Kill Kult or TKK) is an American electronic industrial rock band originally based in Chicago and founded by Groovie Mann (born Frankie Nardiello) and Buzz McCoy (born Marston Daley). ...
song "Glamour Is a Rocky Road" quotes the song's title.
*The song was played in its entirety on the September 26, 2007, episode of
The Tom Leykis Show titled 'The One They Won't Play'. The subject of the show's hour was in relation to
Phil Spector
Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...
's writing and production of the song, and the fact that he got married in the period between being accused of the murders and the end of his trial.
*
Amy Winehouse
Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer and songwriter. She was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including soul, rhythm and blues and jazz.
A membe ...
frequently mentioned the song as one of her all-time favourite tracks and biggest influences.
*In 2008,
Glasvegas
Glasvegas are a Scottish indie rock band from Glasgow. The band consists of James Allan (vocals), Rab Allan (lead guitar) and Paul Donoghue (bass guitar), with Swedish drummer Jonna Löfgren joining the group in 2010 until her departure in 2020 ...
released a Christmas EP titled "A Snowflake Fell and It Felt Like a Kiss," the title track being an homage to The Crystals.
*
The Cardigans
The Cardigans is a Swedish rock band formed in Jönköping, Sweden, in 1992 by guitarist Peter Svensson, bassist Magnus Sveningsson, drummer Bengt Lagerberg, keyboardist Lars-Olof Johansson and lead singer Nina Persson. Post-hiatus shows sin ...
song "And Then You Kissed Me" rewrites and reinterprets "He Hit Me".
*
Amy Rigby
Amy Rigby (born Amelia McMahon, January 27, 1959) is an American singer-songwriter. After playing with several New York bands she began a solo career, recording several albums which had only modest sales despite enthusiastic reviews. She settled ...
's song "Dancing With Joey Ramone" lists "He Hit Me (and It Felt Like a Kiss)" as one of the songs they danced to in her dream.
*''
Mad Men
''Mad Men'' is an American period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on the cable network AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, lasting for seven seasons and 92 episodes. Its fict ...
'' used the song as the closing credit bump on the April 8, 2012, episode titled "
Mystery Date."
*
The Nation of Ulysses
The Nation of Ulysses was an American punk rock band from Washington, D.C., formed in spring 1988 with four members. Originally known as simply "Ulysses," the first mark of the group consisted of Ian Svenonius on vocals and trumpet, Steve Kron ...
song "The Sound of Jazz to Come" reworks the song's title into "she hit me it felt like a kiss" after riffing on John Coltrane's "A Love Supreme."
*
Lana Del Rey
Elizabeth Woolridge Grant (born June 21, 1985), known professionally as Lana Del Rey, is an American singer-songwriter. Her music is noted for its cinematic quality and exploration of tragic romance, glamour, and melancholia, with frequent ...
uses the line "Hit me and it felt like a kiss" in her 2014 song "
Ultraviolence" from the album of the same name. Prior to this, she used it in her unreleased song "Beautiful Player."
* The first season finale of ''
Sex Education
Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including emotional relations and responsibilities, human sexual anatomy, Human sexual activity, sexual acti ...
'' on Netflix in 2019, plays The Grizzly Bear cover in underscoring the unexpected make-out session between bully Adam and the out Eric.
*
Hozier credits the song as being very similar in sentiment to his song, "Cherry Wine".
Cover versions
*1982 –
The Motels
The Motels are an American new wave band from Berkeley, California, that is best known for the singles "Only the Lonely" and "Suddenly Last Summer", each of which peaked at No. 9 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, in 1982 and 1983, respectively. In ...
, ''
All Four One''
*1994 –
Courtney Love
Courtney Michelle Love (née Harrison; born July 9, 1964) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, and actress. A figure in the alternative and grunge scenes of the 1990s, her career has spanned four decades. She rose to prominence as ...
's band,
Hole
A hole is an opening in or through a particular medium, usually a solid body. Holes occur through natural and artificial processes, and may be useful for various purposes, or may represent a problem needing to be addressed in many fields of en ...
, released a cover of the song as a b-side to their single "Softer, Softest". In 1995 the band played a cover of the song as part of their ''
MTV Unplugged
''MTV Unplugged'' is an American television series on MTV showcasing musical artists usually playing acoustic instruments. The show aired regularly from 1989 to 1999 and less frequently from 2000 to 2009, when it was usually billed as ''MTV Un ...
'' performance. Love introduced the song by saying, "This is a really sick song. It's one of those Spector songs and it was written by Carole King, which… you have to think." At the end of the song, Love commented "Nice feminist anthem."
*2007 –
The Blackeyed Susans ''For the American band with a similar name, see Blackeyed Susan.''
The Blackeyed Susans are an Australian rock band, which formed in Perth in 1989. Long serving members are Phil Kakulas on bass guitar, guitar and vocals; and Rob Snarski on vo ...
, ''
Dedicated to the Ones We Love
''Dedicated to the Ones We Love'' is the fifth studio album by the Australian folk rock group The Blackeyed Susans and was released on 23 April 2001. It is the first issued on their own label, Teardrop, and was distributed through Shock Records. ...
'' ("She Hit Me (and It Felt Like a Kiss)")
*2007 –
Grizzly Bear
The grizzly bear (''Ursus arctos horribilis''), also known as the North American brown bear or simply grizzly, is a population or subspecies of the brown bear inhabiting North America.
In addition to the mainland grizzly (''Ursus arctos horri ...
, during the headlining tour for their album ''
Yellow House''. They also recorded the song during a
Daytrotter
Daytrotter is a recording studio, music venue and subscription-based music discovery website located in Atlanta, United States. It hosts recording sessions with indie music acts.
The original studio in Rock Island, Illinois, was founded in 2006 ...
session in February 2007, to be made available online for download. A studio version of the song was released on the band's ''
Friend
Friendship is a relationship of mutual affection between people. It is a stronger form of interpersonal bond than an "acquaintance" or an "association", such as a classmate, neighbor, coworker, or colleague.
In some cultures, the concept of ...
'' EP while a live take was released as the B-side to "While You Wait for the Others" on the ''Live on KCRW'' 7".
*2008 –
Ruby and the Rednecks
Ruby and the Rednecks is an American Rock and roll band from New York City, inspired by New York Dolls, created by the singer, songwriter, playwright and actress Ruby Lynn Reyner with collaborating musical artists in 1970 and active until toda ...
released a cover of the song live at CBGB's.
*2012 –
Kramer, ''
The Brill Building'' (Tzadik Records) singing this song in a gender-reversed rendition swaying wildly between the heart-felt and the satirical.
*2013 –
Anika
Anika (Devanagari: ) is a female given name of Sanskrit, German, Arabic, Swedish, Dutch, Hebrew, and Māori origin and is also an alternative spelling of the name Annika or Anikha
Meanings
The meaning of the name "Anika" is different in several ...
, ''Anika EP''
*2013 –
Nicole Dollanganger
Nicole Ann Bell (born September 8, 1991), known professionally as Nicole Dollanganger, is a Canadian singer-songwriter and artist.
Dollanganger's music is characterized by a feminine, high-pitched vocal style, minimal instrumentation, and lyrica ...
on the album ''Ode to Dawn Weiner: Embarrassing Love Songs''.
*2021 –
Veronica Swift
Veronica Swift (born May 14, 1994) is an American jazz and bebop singer.
Early life
Swift was raised in Charlottesville, Virginia, as part of a family of musicians. Her parents are late jazz pianist Hod O'Brien and singer Stephanie Nakasian. ...
, ''This Bitter World'' (Mack Avenue Records)
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:He Hit Me (It Felt Like A Kiss)
1962 singles
Song recordings produced by Phil Spector
Philles Records singles
The Crystals songs
Songs written by Carole King
Songs with lyrics by Gerry Goffin
Songs about domestic violence
Songs about kissing
1962 songs
Songs based on actual events
Obscenity controversies in music