"Cold Hard Bitch" is a song by Australian rock band Jet, released as the fourth single (second in the United States) from their 2003 debut album, '' Get Born''. The song was written by band members Chris Cester, Nic Cester, and Cameron Muncey. Note: User may have to click 'Search again' and provide details at 'Enter a title:' e.g Cold Hard Bitch; or at 'Performer:' Jet Heavily inspired by prior heavy bands such as

AC/DC AC/DC are an Australian rock band formed in Sydney in 1973. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock and Heavy metal music, heavy metal, although the band calls it simply "rock and roll". They are cited as a formativ ...

, the song is one of the heaviest in the group's catalog, being a tough hard rock tune with a simplistic chord structure. The song was released in the United States on 9 February 2004 and in Australia on 26 July 2004. In addition to peaking at number 33 in Australia, it topped the 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 advertis ...

Mainstream Rock Mainstream rock (also known as heritage rock) is a radio format used by many commercial radio stations in the United States and Canada. Format background Mainstream rock stations represent a cross between classic rock, active rock and alternativ ...

and

Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks between 1988 and 2009, and Alternative Songs between 2009 and 2020) is a music chart published in the American magazine ''Billboard'' since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

charts and reached number 55 on the ''Billboard''

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...

. In Canada, the song reached number two on the ''

Radio & Records ''Radio & Records'' (''R&R'') was a trade publication providing news and airplay information for the radio and music industries. It started as an independent trade from 1973 to 2006 until VNU Media took over in 2006 and became a relaunched sister ...

'' Rock Top 30, while in Europe, it charted in the United Kingdom, peaking at number 34 in September 2004.

Background and single history

Band-members Chris Cester, Nic Cester, and Cameron Muncey composed the tune. An embryonic version of it appeared on Jet's 2002 release '' Dirty Sweet'' (also known as '' Dirty Sweet EP''), a four-song work from the band's early days. "Cold Hard Bitch" received a large scale release when the group's debut studio album, '' Get Born'', came out on 14 September 2003. The group's debut single, " Are You Gonna Be My Girl", became their

signature song A signature (; from , "to sign") is a depiction of someone's name, nickname, or even a simple "X" or other mark that a person writes on documents as a proof of identity and intent. Signatures are often, but not always, handwritten or styliz ...

and gained significant chart success in the US, making it their most successful hit there. That song had considerable pop radio airplay and peaked No. 29 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. "Cold Hard Bitch" came out several months later and peaked No. 55 on the Hot 100, yet it was more successful on

rock and roll Rock and roll (often written as rock & roll, rock-n-roll, and rock 'n' roll) is a Genre (music), genre of popular music that evolved in the United States during the late 1940s and early 1950s. It Origins of rock and roll, originated from African ...

radio stations, reaching No. 1 on ''Billboard''s

Hot Modern Rock Tracks Alternative Airplay (formerly known as Modern Rock Tracks between 1988 and 2009, and Alternative Songs between 2009 and 2020) is a music chart published in the American magazine ''Billboard'' since September 10, 1988. It ranks the 40 most-playe ...

for three weeks. "Cold Hard Bitch" gave the band their only number-one Modern Rock hit in the US: their prior hit, "Are You Gonna Be My Girl", had peaked at No. 3. The single also became their sole No. 1 on the

Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks Mainstream Rock is a music chart published by '' Billboard'' magazine that ranks the most-played songs on mainstream rock radio stations in the United States. It is an administrative category that combines the " active rock" and " heritage rock" ...

chart, spending eight weeks at the top, whereas their prior hit peaked at No. 7. Strongly influenced by past

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a heavier subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and Distortion (music), distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the Garage rock, garage, Psychedelic rock, psychedelic and blues ...

groups such as

, "Cold Hard Bitch" features a simplistic chord structure that emphasizes the guitar playing and bassline. In terms of a critical response, the song received praise from

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

's MacKenzie Wilson, who viewed it as having a "sultry" edge. However, in his other positive review of ''Get Born'', music critic Tim Sendra, also of

, panned "Cold Hard Bitch". He argued that it was the "only track that really falters" on the release due to it being "silly and mean-spirited", constituting "an ill-advised trip down Nazareth lane" that "leaves the listener with a foul taste in their mouth". At the APRA Music Awards of 2005, "Cold Hard Bitch" was nominated for Most Performed Australian Work Overseas but lost to "Are You Gonna Be My Girl". In the following year, three Jet tracks were nominated for the same category with "Are You Gonna Be My Girl" again winning over "Cold Hard Bitch" and " Look What You've Done". The music video for the single shows the band performing in a bar, playing pinball, and talking to women, generally giving off a 'guys night out' atmosphere.

Track listings

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Release history

References

{{Authority control 2003 songs 2004 singles Capitol Records singles Elektra Records singles Jet (band) songs Song recordings produced by Dave Sardy Songs written by Nic Cester Songs written by Cameron Muncey Songs written by Chris Cester