"How Can You Mend a Broken Heart" is a song released by the

Bee Gees The Bee Gees were a musical group formed in 1958 by brothers Barry, Robin, and Maurice Gibb. The trio were especially successful in popular music in the late 1960s and early 1970s, and later as prominent performers in the disco music era in ...

in 1971. It was written by

Barry Barry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name * Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 19 ...

and

Robin Gibb Robin Hugh Gibb (22 December 1949 – 20 May 2012) was a British singer and songwriter. He gained worldwide fame as a member of the Bee Gees pop group with elder brother Barry and fraternal twin brother Maurice. Robin Gibb also had his o ...

and was the first single on the group's 1971 album ''

Trafalgar Trafalgar most often refers to: * Battle of Trafalgar (1805), fought near Cape Trafalgar, Spain * Trafalgar Square, a public space and tourist attraction in London, England It may also refer to: Music * ''Trafalgar'' (album), by the Bee Gees Pl ...

''. It was their first US No. 1 single and also reached No. 1 in '' Cashbox'' magazine for two weeks. In the US

Atco Records ATCO Records is an American record label founded in 1955. It is owned by Warner Music Group and operates as an imprint of Atlantic Records. After several decades of dormancy and infrequent activity under alternating Warner Music labels, the comp ...

issued both mono and stereo versions of the song on each side as a promo single. The B-side was a

Maurice Gibb Maurice Ernest Gibb (; 22 December 1949 – 12 January 2003) was a British musician. He achieved fame as a member of the pop group Bee Gees. Although his elder brother Barry Gibb and fraternal twin brother Robin Gibb were the group's main le ...

composition "

Country Woman "Country Woman" is a song written and released by British rock band Bee Gees. It was written and performed solely by Maurice Gibb, and released as a B-side of "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart", which was the group's first US No. 1. The songs were ...

". The song appears in the 2013 film ''

American Hustle ''American Hustle'' is a 2013 American historical black comedy crime film directed by David O. Russell. It was written by Eric Warren Singer and Russell, inspired by the FBI Abscam operation of the late 1970s and early 1980s. It stars Christia ...

'' and on its soundtrack. It also provided the title to director Frank Marshall's 2020 documentary film '' The Bee Gees: How Can You Mend a Broken Heart''.

Writing and recording

and

wrote the song in August 1970 with "

Lonely Days "Lonely Days" is a ballad written and performed by the Bee Gees. It appeared on their album ''2 Years On'', and was released as a single, becoming their first Top Five hit in the US, peaking at number three in the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and reac ...

" when the Gibb brothers had reconvened following a period of break-up and alienation. "Robin came to my place," says Barry, "and that afternoon we wrote 'How Can You Mend a Broken Heart' and that obviously was a link to us coming back together. We called Maurice, finished the song, went to the studio and once again, with only 'Broken Heart' as a basic structure, we went in to the studio with that and an idea for 'Lonely Days', and those two songs were recorded that night". They originally offered the song to

Andy Williams Howard Andrew Williams (December 3, 1927 – September 25, 2012) was an American singer. He recorded 43 albums in his career, of which 15 have been gold certified and three platinum certified. He was also nominated for six Grammy Awards. He hos ...

, but ended up recording it themselves, although Williams did later cover the song on his album ''You've Got a Friend''. Barry also explains, "We might imitate a certain group, later on, the group will pick up on the song and say that suits us."

possibly had a hand in the writing of "How Can You Mend A Broken Heart" although the song is officially credited to Barry and Robin Gibb. The 2009 release ''Ultimate Bee Gees'' officially credited Maurice for the first time as co-writer of the song, for both the "Ultimate" CD and DVD, and it was credited to the moniker Barry, Robin and Maurice Gibb. The song was recorded on 28 January 1971 in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, the same day as "

We Lost the Road "We Lost the Road" is a song by the Bee Gees, it was written by Barry Gibb and Robin Gibb and was released on their 1972 album ''To Whom It May Concern''. It was originally recorded in sessions for '' Trafalgar'' on January 28, 1971 (and the fir ...

", "When Do I", "If I Were the Sky", "Bring Out the Thoughts in Me" and " Ellan Vannin". The group's later song " My World" followed along the same musical ideas on this song. Robin Gibb's remarked on the song, "The whole thing took about an hour to complete. The song reached the number one spot, to our great satisfaction."

Reception

The song was sung live for the first time in 1971, in a performance that was notable as drummer Geoff Bridgford's first appearance with the band. Although failing to chart on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

, the song became the Bee Gees' first US number one on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 and also reached number four on the ''Billboard''

Adult Contemporary Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, soul, R&B, quie ...

chart. ''Billboard'' ranked it as the No. 5 song for 1971. ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' described the song as being "a slower, almost country-ballad styled performance which links an intricate melody segment with more powerful thrusts to give the track top forty impetus." In Spain, it was released under the title "Cómo Puedes Arreglar Un Corazón Destrozado". Following the release of "How Can You Mend a Broken Heart", the song was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance by a Duo Or Group along with

George Harrison George Harrison (25 February 1943 – 29 November 2001) was an English musician and singer-songwriter who achieved international fame as the lead guitarist of the Beatles. Sometimes called "the quiet Beatle", Harrison embraced Indian c ...

's "

My Sweet Lord "My Sweet Lord" is a song by English musician George Harrison, released in November 1970 on his triple album ''All Things Must Pass''. It was also released as a single, Harrison's first as a solo artist, and topped charts worldwide; it was the ...

" and others. It was performed as part of a medley on '' The Midnight Special'' on 10 October 1975, in Japan on the Japanese TV special ''Love Sounds'', and on the '' Mr. Natural'' tour in 1974. A live version recorded on Nov 17th and 18th, 1989 at the National Tennis Centre,

Melbourne, Australia Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a metropol ...

was used for the benefit album '' Nobody's Child: Romanian Angel Appeal''. In 1997-1999, the song was performed on the ''One Night Only'' tour as part of a medley. It was last performed by the Bee Gees in 2001. Barry Gibb re-recorded the song as a duet with

Sheryl Crow Sheryl Suzanne Crow (born February 11, 1962) is an American musician, singer, songwriter and actress. Her music incorporates elements of rock, pop, country, folk, and blues. She has released eleven studio albums, five compilations and three li ...

for his 2020 solo album '' Greenfields: The Gibb Brothers Songbook, Vol. 1.''

Personnel

Barry Gibb Sir Barry Alan Crompton Gibb (born 1 September 1946) is a British musician, singer-songwriter and record producer. He rose to worldwide fame as a member of the Bee Gees, one of the most commercially successful groups in the history of popul ...

–

lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...

and

harmony vocals Vocal harmony is a style of vocal music in which a consonant note or notes are simultaneously sung as a main melody in a predominantly homophonic texture. Vocal harmonies are used in many subgenres of European art music, including Classical chora ...

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

– lead and harmony vocals *

– harmony vocals,

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

, acoustic guitar,

organ Organ may refer to: Biology * Organ (biology), a part of an organism Musical instruments * Organ (music), a family of keyboard musical instruments characterized by sustained tone ** Electronic organ, an electronic keyboard instrument ** Hammond ...

* Geoff Bridgford –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

* Bill Shepherd – orchestral and strings arrangement

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Other versions

;1970s *1971:

Johnny Mathis John Royce Mathis (born September 30, 1935) is an American singer of popular music. Starting his career with singles of standard music, he became highly popular as an album artist, with several dozen of his albums achieving gold or platinum s ...

recorded a version of this song for his LP ''

You've Got a Friend "You've Got a Friend" is a 1971 song written by American singer, songwriter, and musician Carole King. It was first recorded by King and included on her second studio album, ''Tapestry'' (1971). Another well-known version is by James Taylor fr ...

''. *1972:

Al Green Albert Leornes Greene (born April 13, 1946), better known as Al Green, is an American singer, songwriter, pastor and record producer best known for recording a series of soul hit singles in the early 1970s, including " Take Me to the River", ...

recorded the song for his album '' Let's Stay Together'', which also appeared on the soundtracks of 1997's ''

Good Will Hunting ''Good Will Hunting'' is a 1997 American psychological drama film directed by Gus Van Sant, and written by Ben Affleck and Matt Damon. It stars Robin Williams, Damon, Affleck, Stellan Skarsgård and Minnie Driver. The film received positive r ...

'', 1999's ''

The Virgin Suicides ''The Virgin Suicides'' is a 1993 debut novel by the American author Jeffrey Eugenides. The fictional story, which is set in Grosse Pointe, Michigan during the 1970s, centers on the lives of five doomed sisters, the Lisbon girls. The novel is wr ...

'', 1999's ''

Notting Hill Notting Hill is a district of West London, England, in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. Notting Hill is known for being a cosmopolitan and multicultural neighbourhood, hosting the annual Notting Hill Carnival and Portobello Road M ...

'' and 2010's ''

The Book of Eli ''The Book of Eli'' is a 2010 American post-apocalyptic neo-Western action film directed by the Hughes Brothers, written by Gary Whitta, and starring Denzel Washington, Gary Oldman, Mila Kunis, Ray Stevenson, and Jennifer Beals. The story rev ...

''. Green's version was released as a single in France on Cream Records. In 2008, Green's version was remade into a duet with

Joss Stone Joscelyn Eve Stoker (born 11 April 1987), known professionally as Joss Stone, is an English singer, songwriter and actress. She rose to prominence in late 2003 with her multi-platinum debut album, ''The Soul Sessions'', which made the 2004 Merc ...

for the

soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...

to the film adaptation of ''

Sex and the City ''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy, romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO. An adaptation of Candace Bushnell's Sex and the City (newspaper column), newspaper column and 1996 book anthology of the ...

'', with her vocals

overdubbed Overdubbing (also known as layering) is a technique used in audio recording in which audio tracks that have been pre-recorded are then played back and monitored, while simultaneously recording new, doubled, or augmented tracks onto one or more av ...

onto the track. *1973: Singer-actress

Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

covered the song on her 1973 album ''

Half-Breed Half-breed is a term, now considered offensive, used to describe anyone who is of mixed race; although, in the United States, it usually refers to people who are half Native American and half European/white. Use by governments United States In ...

''. *1977:

Florence Henderson Florence Agnes Henderson (February 14, 1934 – November 24, 2016) was an American actress. With a career spanning six decades, she is best known for her starring role as Carol Brady on the ABC sitcom ''The Brady Bunch''. Henderson also appeare ...

performed the song during a medley on an episode of ''

The Brady Bunch Variety Hour ''The Brady Bunch Hour'' is an American variety show featuring skits and songs produced by Sid & Marty Krofft Productions in association with Paramount Television. It ran on ABC from November 28, 1976, to May 25, 1977. The series starred the o ...

''. ;1980s *Single release by Deirdre and Louise Rutkowski (later of 4AD supergroup

This Mortal Coil This Mortal Coil were a British music collective led by Ivo Watts-Russell, founder of the British record label 4AD. Although Watts-Russell and John Fryer were the only two official members, the band's recorded output featured a large rotating ...

) for their debut "In An Ideal World" (1984) with their first band Sunset Gun. ;1990s *1991:

Teddy Pendergrass Theodore DeReese Pendergrass (March 26, 1950 – January 13, 2010) was an American soul and R&B singer-songwriter. He was born in Kingstree, South Carolina. Pendergrass spent most of his life in the Philadelphia area, and initially rose to musi ...

recorded a version of this song on his LP '' Truly Blessed''. ;2000s *2003:

Michael Bublé Michael Steven Bublé ( ; born September 9, 1975) is a Canadian singer. A four-time Grammy Award winner, he is often credited for helping to renew public interest and appreciation for traditional pop standards and the Great American Songboo ...

recorded this song, with Barry Gibb performing

backup vocals A backing vocalist is a singer who provides vocal harmony with the lead vocalist or other backing vocalists. A backing vocalist may also sing alone as a lead-in to the main vocalist's entry or to sing a counter-melody. Backing vocalists are used ...

, on his '' self-titled album''. Bublé's version reached number 22 on the US ''Billboard'' Adult Contemporary chart. It was Buble's first single. *2003: American Idol's second winner

Ruben Studdard Ruben Studdard (born September 12, 1978) is an American singer and actor. He rose to fame as winner of the second season of ''American Idol'' and received a Grammy Award nomination in 2003 for Best Male R&B Vocal Performance for his recording of ...

covered the song on his debut album '' Soulful''. *2005:

Mari Wilson Mari Macmillan Ramsay Wilson (born 29 September 1954, Neasden, London) is a British pop and jazz singer. She is best known for her 1982 UK top-10 hit single "Just What I Always Wanted" and her 1960s image complete with beehive hairstyle. Care ...

, English pop and jazz singer, included a cover on her album ''Dolled Up''. *2005:

Steve Brookstein Stephen Desmond "Steve" Brookstein''Births, Marriages & Deaths Index of England & Wales, 1916–2005.''; at ancestry.com (born 10 November 1968) is an English singer, who is best known for winning the first series of ''The X Factor'' in 2004.< ...

recorded it on his number-one album '' Heart and Soul''. *2006: The song is covered in Julio Iglesias's album ''

Romantic Classics ''Romantic Classics'' is a studio album by Julio Iglesias Julio José Iglesias de la Cueva (; born 23 September 1943) is a Spanish singer, songwriter and former professional footballer. Iglesias is recognized as the most commercially succe ...

''. *2007:

Barry Manilow Barry Manilow (born Barry Alan Pincus; June 17, 1943) is an American singer and songwriter with a career that spans seven decades. His hit recordings include "Could It Be Magic", " Somewhere Down the Road", " Mandy", "I Write the Songs", " Can ...

's version appears on his album ''

The Greatest Songs of the Seventies ''The Greatest Songs of the Seventies'' is Barry Manilow's follow up to his previous album, ''The Greatest Songs of the Sixties''. The album was released on September 18, 2007. The album was released under Arista Records and it features some of M ...

''. *2009:

Jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, with its roots in blues and ragtime. Since the 1920s Jazz Age, it has been recognized as a major ...

singer-pianist

Diana Krall Diana Jean Krall (born November 16, 1964) is a Canadian jazz pianist and singer known for her contralto vocals. She has sold more than 15 million albums worldwide, including over six million in the US. On December 11, 2009, '' Billboard'' maga ...

covered this song on her album '' Quiet Nights''. *2009:

Rod Stewart Sir Roderick David Stewart (born 10 January 1945) is a British rock and pop singer and songwriter. Born and raised in London, he is of Scottish and English ancestry. With his distinctive raspy singing voice, Stewart is among the best-selling ...

recorded a version for his album ''

Soulbook ''Soulbook'' is the 25th studio album by Rod Stewart. Like his previous five albums, ''Soulbook'' features Stewart singing old material; for this album he sings classic material from Motown and the soul genre. It was released on 17 October 2009 ...

'', though it was left off the final track listing. ;2010s *2014:

Eef Barzelay Ifar "Eef" Barzelay (born May 12, 1970) is an Israeli-American musician. He is the principal songwriter and singer of alternative country band Clem Snide, but has also toured as a solo act, both as a headliner and in support of various artists ...

recorded a version for a fundraising CD titled ''More Super Hits of the Seventies'' for freeform radio station

WFMU WFMU is a listener-supported, independent community radio station, licensed to East Orange, New Jersey. Since 1998 its studios and operating facilities have been headquartered in Jersey City, New Jersey. It broadcasts locally at 91.1 Mhz FM, in ...

. *2017:

Chris Stills Chris Stills (born April 19, 1974 in Boulder, Colorado) is a musician and actor. He is the son of American rock musician Stephen Stills and French singer-songwriter Véronique Sanson. He has played with both his father and his mother. Biogr ...

recorded a version for the feature film

I, Tonya ''I, Tonya'' is a 2017 American biographical film directed by Craig Gillespie and written by Steven Rogers. It follows the life and career of the American figure skater Tonya Harding and her connection with the 1994 attack on her rival Nancy ...

. *2020:

Kahil El'Zabar Kahil El'Zabar (born Clifton Blackburn; November 11, 1953) is an American jazz multi-instrumentalist (mainly a Percussion instrument, percussionist) and composer. He regularly records for Delmark Records. Life and work El'Zabar was born in Chica ...

recorded an instrumental version titled "How Can We Mend Broken Heart" for his 2020 album ''America the Beautiful''.

References

Literature

*Melinda Bilyeu, Hector Cook, and Andrew Môn Hughes, with Joseph Brennan and Mark Crohan. ''The Ultimate Biography of the Bee Gees''. London: Omnibus, 2001. *Unpublished list of tape reels, Universal/Polygram, viewed in 2000 by Joseph Brennan.

External links

* Allmusic entry
Superseventies.com entry

Gibb Songs
{{DEFAULTSORT:How Can You Mend a Broken Heart 1971 singles 1971 songs Atco Records singles Polydor Records singles Songs written by Barry Gibb Songs written by Robin Gibb Bee Gees songs Al Green songs Diana Krall songs Joss Stone songs 2003 debut singles Michael Bublé songs Cher songs Andy Williams songs Billboard Hot 100 number-one singles Cashbox number-one singles RPM Top Singles number-one singles Song recordings produced by Robert Stigwood Song recordings produced by Barry Gibb Song recordings produced by Robin Gibb Song recordings produced by Maurice Gibb Songs about loneliness Songs about heartache