"Torn" is a song written by

Scott Cutler Scott Michael Cutler is an American songwriter, musician, record producer, and music executive. As a member of the alternative rock band Ednaswap, he co-wrote "Torn" which was covered in 1997 by Natalie Imbruglia. Her recording became the worl ...

Anne Preven Anne Preven (born February 25, 1965) is an American songwriter, musician, and record producer. As a member of the alternative rock band Ednaswap, she co-wrote " Torn" which was covered by Lis Sørensen (Danish), Trine Rein (Norwegian), and then N ...

, and

Phil Thornalley Philip Thornalley (born 5 January 1960) is an English songwriter-producer who has worked in the music industry since 1978. He is perhaps best known for co-writing (with Scott Cutler and Anne Preven) the song " Torn" (made famous by Natalie Imbr ...

. It was first recorded in 1993 in Danish (renamed "", Danish for "Burnt") by Danish singer

Lis Sørensen Lis Sørensen (born 28 May 1955) is a Danish pop singer. In the 1970s she worked with Anne Linnet in Shit & Chanel and Anne Linnet Band. In 1983 she released her first solo album. She is also known for being the first artist to record Ednaswa ...

, then in 1994 by Cutler and Preven's American rock band

Ednaswap Ednaswap was an American rock band from Los Angeles, California, that existed between 1993 and 1998. Over a span of five years, the band released four major label records on East West, Elektra Records and Island Records. The band is best know ...

, and in 1996 by American-Norwegian singer

Trine Rein Trine Rein is an American-Norwegian singer. Her album sales have exceeded more than a million records. She was born in San Francisco in 1970, and is married to Norwegian adventurer Lars Monsen. Biography Debut Trine Rein released her first sol ...

. "Torn" is best known as Australian singer

Natalie Imbruglia Natalie Jane Imbruglia ( , ; born 4 February 1975) is an Australian singer and actress. In the early 1990s, she played Beth Brennan in the Australian soap opera '' Neighbours''. Three years after leaving the programme, she began a singing car ...

's 1997 debut

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

. Her version was produced by Thornalley and peaked at number one on the singles charts of Belgium, Canada, Denmark, Iceland, Spain, and Sweden, as well as on three US ''

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 ...

'' charts. Imbruglia's version sold over four million copies worldwide.

Original version

"Torn" was written in 1991 by

and

with producer

as a solo song for Preven. Cutler and Preven's band Ednaswap performed it live, but did not initially release a recording. Ednaswap released a recorded version in 1995. The song followed the single "Glow" from their self-titled debut album. Thornalley and Cutler produced the session. The band later released several variations and remixes of the song as B-sides and on their album '' Wacko Magneto''.

Lis Sørensen version in Danish

The first release recording of the song was in 1993 by the Danish singer

as "''Brændt''" ("Burnt"). It was featured on her album ''Under stjernerne et sted'' ("Somewhere Below the Stars"), and was also a radio single. It became a hit in Denmark. Sørensen had received the song through music producer , as a suggestion for inclusion on her new album. The Danish lyrics were written by .

Trine Rein version

A version of the song was recorded in 1996 by American-Norwegian singer

and released on her second album, ''Beneath My Skin'' (1996). Rein's version reached No. 10 on the Norwegian charts. A

music video A music video is a video of variable duration, that integrates a music song or a music album with imagery that is produced for promotion (marketing), promotional or musical artistic purposes. Modern music videos are primarily made and used as a m ...

was also produced to promote this version.

Natalie Imbruglia version

In 1997, Australian singer and actress

, working with Thornalley, covered the song for her debut studio album, ''

Left of the Middle ''Left of the Middle'' is the debut studio album by Australian singer Natalie Imbruglia, released on 24 November 1997 by RCA Records. It is primarily an alternative pop album. Spurred by the success of lead single " Torn", the album reached numb ...

'' (1997). Imbruglia's version was recorded in Kilburn, London, with David Munday (lead guitar), Thornalley (bass, rhythm guitars),

Chuck Sabo Chuck Sabo is an American drummer, musical director, songwriter, and producer who has performed and recorded with prominent artists including XTC, Natalie Imbruglia, Elton John, Tom Jones, Chaka Khan, Bryan Adams, Cher, Tina Turner, Pet Shop Bo ...

(drums), Henry Binns, Sam Hardaker (

Zero 7 Zero 7 are an English musical duo consisting of Henry Binns and Sam Hardaker. They began as studio engineers and in 1997 formed the group Zero 7. Their debut album, '' Simple Things'', was released in 2001 in which their song "Destiny" stayed ...

) (drum programming) and

Katrina Leskanich Katrina Elizabeth Leskanich ( ; born April 10, 1960) is an American musician and the former lead singer of the pop rock band Katrina and the Waves. Their song " Walking on Sunshine" was an international hit in 1985. In 1997, the band won the ...

(background vocals). It was mixed by

Nigel Godrich Nigel Timothy Godrich (born 28 February 1971) is an English record producer, recording engineer and musician. He is known for his work with the English rock band Radiohead, having produced all their studio albums since '' OK Computer'' (1997). H ...

. Released as a single, Imbruglia's version became a worldwide hit. For the song, Imbruglia received a

Grammy Award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pres ...

nomination for

Best Female Pop Vocal Performance The Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance was a Grammy Award recognizing superior vocal performance by a female in the pop category, the first of which was presented in 1959. It was discontinued after the 2011 Grammy season. The awar ...

, losing to

Celine Dion Céline Marie Claudette Dion ( ; born 30 March 1968) is a Canadian singer. Noted for her powerful and technically skilled vocals, Dion is the best-selling Canadian recording artist, and the best-selling French-language artist of all time. Her ...

's "

My Heart Will Go On "My Heart Will Go On" is a 1997 song recorded by Canadian singer Celine Dion. The song serves as the main theme to James Cameron's blockbuster film ''Titanic'', based on an account of the transatlantic ocean liner of the same name which san ...

". The accompanying

for "Torn" features British actor Jeremy Sheffield. Imbruglia also recorded an acoustic version of the song in 2001 for ''

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 ...

''. The sheet music for "Torn" is published in the

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

F major F major (or the key of F) is a major scale based on F, with the pitches F, G, A, B, C, D, and E. Its key signature has one flat. Its relative minor is D minor and its parallel minor is F minor F minor is a minor scale based on F, consis ...

Critical reception

Larry Flick Larry Flick is an American journalist, former dance music columnist, single reviewer, and Senior Talent Editor for ''Billboard'' magazine, where he worked for 14 years. Now he produces and hosts Sirius XM radio shows. Flick started in the music ...

from ''

'' described the song as a "shuffling, acoustic-lined rocker", noting that it "has the rich texture and guitar flavor needed to win the props of rock radio." He added, "However, the song also has an infectious melody that will warm the heart of anyone with a hankering for a slice of pure pop. Imbruglia has a charming, heartfelt delivery mildly reminiscent of Jewel." Scottish newspaper '' Daily Record'' commented, "Gorgeous tune from a gorgeous lady". A reviewer from ''

Music & Media ''Music & Media'' was a pan-European magazine for radio, music and entertainment. It was published for the first time in 1984 as ''Eurotipsheet'', but in 1986 it changed name to ''Music & Media''. It was originally based in Amsterdam, but later ...

'' stated that "this very convincing debut single" has taken the U.K. charts by storm, "and looks likely to do so elsewhere." ''

Music Week ''Music Week'' is a trade publication for the UK record industry distributed via a website and a monthly print magazine. It is published by Future. History Founded in 1959 as '' Record Retailer'', it relaunched on 18 March 1972 as ''Music W ...

'' rated it five out of five, picking it as Single of the Week. They wrote, "The former ''

Neighbours ''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...

'' star possesses a sweet voice and this song — produced by

(

Radiohead Radiohead are an English rock band formed in Abingdon, Oxfordshire, in 1985. The band consists of Thom Yorke (vocals, guitar, piano, keyboards); brothers Jonny Greenwood (lead guitar, keyboards, other instruments) and Colin Greenwood (bass) ...

) — has a gentle beauty. Should be huge." The magazine's Alan Jones viewed it as an "excellent single", adding, "A star is reborn." In 2013, "Torn" was declared the "Best Pop Song" on a top 10 list, part of a larger collection of songs by '' Q'' magazine in their special edition ''1001 Best Songs Ever'' issue. In 2013, ''Billboard'' ranked "Torn" the number 26 Biggest Pop Song based only on pop radio charts compiled between 1992 and 2012. In 2005, "Torn" was listed at number 383 on ''

Blender A blender (sometimes called a mixer or liquidiser in British English) is a kitchen appliance, kitchen and laboratory appliance used to mix, crush, purée or emulsion, emulsify food and other substances. A stationary blender consists of a blender ...

'' magazine's list of "500 Greatest Songs Since You Were Born".

Chart performance

The physical single of Imbruglia's version of the song has sold more than 4 million copies worldwide, including more than 1 million copies in the UK alone. In the UK, it is the 85th biggest selling single of all time. The track peaked at number two for three weeks, from 2 to 22 November 1997, and then dropped to number four, it broke the airplay record in the UK (more than 2000 plays) for six weeks and was number one for fourteen weeks in the UK radio chart. On 24 September 2007, Natalie Imbruglia's version of the song re-entered the UK Singles Chart at number 70, on the strength of digital sales after her greatest hits album was released. In the Flanders region of Belgium, the single peaked at a number one for 7 consecutive weeks and charted for 22 weeks. In the United States, the song peaked at number one on the

Hot 100 Airplay The Radio Songs chart (previously named Hot 100 Airplay until 2014 and Top 40 Radio Monitor until 1991) is released weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine and measures the airplay of songs being played on radio stations throughout ...

chart for 11 consecutive weeks. However, as a result of rules preventing tracks which had not been released as physical singles from charting on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, the song did not chart there during its peak of popularity in the United States. When the song was declining in popularity, the rules changed to allow airplay-only songs onto the chart, and the song charted for 2 weeks, peaking at number 42. In Canada, it peaked at number one on the ''

RPM Revolutions per minute (abbreviated rpm, RPM, rev/min, r/min, or with the notation min−1) is a unit of rotational speed or rotational frequency for rotating machines. Standards ISO 80000-3:2019 defines a unit of rotation as the dimensionl ...

'' Top Singles chart for 12 nonconsecutive weeks, from 13 April to 8 June and 22 June to 6 July 1998. It was the most successful single of the year there. In the ''

Forbes ''Forbes'' () is an American business magazine owned by Integrated Whale Media Investments and the Forbes family. Published eight times a year, it features articles on finance, industry, investing, and marketing topics. ''Forbes'' also re ...

'' list of the UK's 40 most-played songs of the 2010s, "Torn" was at no. 40, and the only 1990s song in the list. It was the 19th-most-played song from 2000 to 2009 in the UK. In 2009, ''

News.com.au news.com.au is an Australian website owned by News Corp Australia. It had 9.6 million unique readers in April 2019 and covers national and international news, lifestyle, travel, entertainment, technology, finance, and sport. Staff The organiza ...

'' reported that it was the most played song on Australian radio since 1990, played more than 300,500 times since its 1997 release, an average of 75 times a day, based on data compiled by the

Australian Performing Rights Association APRA AMCOS consists of Australasian Performing Right Association (APRA) and Australasian Mechanical Copyright Owners Society (AMCOS), both copyright management organisations or copyright collectives which jointly represent over 100,000 songwr ...

(APRA).

Music video

The

to Natalie Imbruglia's cover version, filmed on 25 October 1997 under the direction of

Alison Maclean Alison Maclean (born July 31, 1958) is a Canadian-New Zealand film director of music videos, short films, television (episodes of ''Sex and the City'', ''The Tudors'', '' Homicide: Life on the Street''), commercials and feature films. Her works i ...

, features a shot of an apartment where the angle of vision never changes. Shots of Imbruglia singing along with the song are interspersed with footage of her and British actor Jeremy Sheffield engaging in a romantically inclined conversation. These few scenes turn out to be

B-roll In film and television production, B-roll, B roll, B-reel or B reel is supplemental or alternative footage intercut with the main shot. The term ''A-roll'', referring to main footage, has fallen out of use. Film and video production Films and ...

footage, as the two actors are seen fumbling their lines and positions; and the director constantly steps into frame to redirect the two. During the last chorus, the apartment walls start wobbling and the crew comes to dismantle it, revealing the location to be a set inside a

soundstage A sound stage (also written soundstage) is a soundproof, large structure, building, or room with large doors and high ceilings, used for the production of theatrical film-making and television productions, usually located on a secured movie or ...

. Imbruglia begins to dance during the finishing guitar solo as her "world" crumbles around her. The song was pantomimed by

David Armand David Armand (born David Robert Whitehead in September 1977) is an English comedian, actor and writer who has performed on stage, film, radio and most notably, television, where the shows he has appeared in include '' Fast and Loose'', ''Episo ...

for a 2005 HBO broadcast which spread on the internet. This popularity of the "Karaoke for the Deaf" performance by Armand as Johan Lippowitz resulted in the 2006 live performance (Amnesty International's Secret Policeman's Ball) with Imbruglia where she sings "Torn" and then joins into the "interpretive dance" pantomime featuring both Armand and Imbruglia acting out the words of the song.

Track listings

UK CD single 1 UK CD single 2 UK cassette single European CD single

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

All-time charts

Certifications

Release history

Rouge version

In 2005, Brazilian girl group

Rouge Rouge is the French word for "red" and may refer to: Compounds * Rouge (cosmetics), a cosmetic used to color the cheeks and emphasize the cheekbones * Jeweler's rouge or iron(III) oxide * Rouging, a form of corrosion applicable to stainless ...

recorded a Portuguese version of the song, titled "O Amor é Ilusão" (lit.: "Love is an illusion"), included in the group's 2005 fourth studio album '' Mil e Uma Noites''. It was the album's second and last single, and their last overall until " Bailando" in 2018. The lyrics were written by Milton Guedes, who co-wrote their hits " Não Dá pra Resistir", " Beijo Molhado", and others, with production by

Rick Bonadio Ricardo "Rick" Bonadio (born June 21, 1969) is a Brazilian music producer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist and sound engineer, owner of Midas Studio and record companies Arsenal Music and Midas Music. Career He began his career in the 80's as a ...

Background

After three studio albums, their record label

Sony BMG Sony BMG Music Entertainment was an American record company owned as a 50–50 joint venture between Sony Corporation of America and Bertelsmann. The venture's successor, the revived Sony Music, is wholly owned by Sony, following their buyout o ...

demanded a compilation album, against the band members' wishes. At the time, rumors of their breakup circulated in the press, and they felt a new release would help dispel those allegations. ''Mil e Uma Noites'' was eventually released as a compromise, with most tracks being previously released hits, plus six all-new tracks. As always, the album featured songs originally in English rewritten for Portuguese, including "Torn". After the success of the album's first single " Vem Habib (Wala Wala)", "O Amor é Ilusão" was announced as the follow-up and released in late September. This version keeps most of the original's lyrical themes, about a lost love who gradually drifts away from the narrator.

Charts

In popular culture

The song appeared in several television series, the most prominent of which being the American TV series ''

Charmed ''Charmed'' is an American fantasy drama television series created by Constance M. Burge and produced by Aaron Spelling and his production company Spelling Television, with Brad Kern serving as showrunner. The series was originally broadcast ...

'', in the episode "I've Got You Under My Skin". Imbruglia's version of the song appeared in other shows as well; examples include the Chilean soap opera ''

Separados ''Separados'' (''International Title:'' Better Off Single) is a Chilean telenovela originally aired on TVN. Cast * Luz Valdivieso as Carolina Cavada * Álvaro Rudolphy as Jaime Mathews * Sigrid Alegría as Verónica Infante * Jorge Zabaleta as P ...

'' (broadcast by

TVN TVN may refer to: * TVN (Australian TV channel), a former horse racing channel * Televisión Nacional de Chile, a public broadcaster * TVN (Indonesia), a former television station; predecessor of Rajawali Televisi * TVN (Norway), or TVNorge, a comm ...

), the Turkish teen drama ''

Love 101 ''Love 101'' is a 2000 comedy film that was directed by Adrian Fulle. The movie first released to theaters on February 14, 2000 and stars Michael Muhney and Jeff Anderson as two college students that find their friendship threatened by the intro ...

'' (broadcast and distributed by

Netflix Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription video on-demand over-the-top streaming service and production company based in Los Gatos, California. Founded in 1997 by Reed Hastings and Marc Randolph in Scotts Valley, California, it offers a fil ...

), and the Philippine TV series ''

Gimik ''Gimik'' is a Philippine youth-oriented television series produced and broadcast by ABS-CBN. The show ran from June 15, 1996, to February 6, 1999, replacing ''Game Na Game Na!'' and was replaced by '' G-mik'' every Saturday for 90 minutes and ...

'' (aired by

ABS-CBN ABS-CBN (an initialism of its two predecessors' names, Alto Broadcasting System and Chronicle Broadcasting Network) is a Television in the Philippines, Philippine Commercial broadcasting, commercial broadcast broadcast network, network tha ...

). In 2010, British-Irish boyband

One Direction One Direction, often shortened to 1D, are an English-Irish pop boy band formed in London in 2010. The group are composed of Niall Horan, Liam Payne, Harry Styles, Louis Tomlinson, and previously Zayn Malik until his departure from the gr ...

sang an acoustic version of "Torn" for their first performance as a group on ''

The X Factor ''The X Factor'' is a television music competition franchise created by British producer Simon Cowell and his company Syco Entertainment. It originated in the United Kingdom, where it was devised as a replacement for ''Pop Idol'' (2001–2003 ...

''. The group would perform the song again in November 2015 on

BBC Radio 1 BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...

Live Lounge The Live Lounge is a segment on the British radio stations BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 1Xtra. It was originally hosted by Simon Mayo, and later by Jo Whiley on her weekday mid-morning, and later weekend lunchtime radio shows, then by Fearne Cotton ...

, this time as a quartet following

Zayn Malik Zain Javadd Malik ( ; born 12 January 1993), known mononymously as Zayn, is an English pop and R&B singer. Zayn auditioned as a solo contestant for the British music competition television series ''The X Factor'' in 2010. After being eliminate ...

's departure earlier in the year. In 2018, Welsh pop punk band

Neck Deep Neck Deep are a Welsh pop punk band from Wrexham, Wales formed in 2012. Founded after vocalist Ben Barlow met former lead guitarist Lloyd Roberts, the pair posted a song ("What Did You Expect?") online under the name Neck Deep. The song soon ga ...

covered the song, with an accompanying music video that parodies Natalie Imbruglia's 1997 video.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Torn (Ednaswap Song) 1990s ballads 1993 songs 1995 songs 1995 singles 1997 debut singles 2005 singles ARIA Award-winning songs Bertelsmann Music Group singles Columbia Records singles East West Records singles Natalie Imbruglia songs Number-one singles in Denmark Number-one singles in Iceland Number-one singles in Spain Number-one singles in Sweden Rouge (group) songs Portuguese-language songs Pop ballads RCA Records singles Rock ballads RPM Top Singles number-one singles Songs about heartache Songs written by Anne Preven Songs written by Phil Thornalley Songs written by Scott Cutler Song recordings produced by Phil Thornalley Sony BMG singles Ultratop 50 Singles (Flanders) number-one singles Alternative rock ballads Ednaswap songs