The Hurting [UK Bonus Tracks] [ORIGINAL RECORDING REMASTERED] [EXTRA TRACKS] [ORIGINAL RECORDING REISSUED] [IMPORT]

Tears For Fears

Product Details

• Audio CD (March 13, 2001)
• Original Release Date: August 3, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Original recording remastered, Extra tracks, Original recording reissued, Import
• Label: Mercury/Universal
• ASIN: B00000K413
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars See all reviews (40 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #6,915 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Product Description
Digitally remastered reissue of the hit English new wave/ pop duo's 1983 debut album with four bonus tracks added, 'Pale Shelter' (Long Version), 'The Way You Are' (Extended), 'Mad World' (World Remix) and 'Change' (Extended Version). The album also features the original version of the top 75 hit 'Change'. 14 tracks total. 1999 release.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The best debut album and the greatest album of all-time!, October 20, 2003

By	Ajit Menon (Bombay, India) - See all my reviews

Hi, I am from India.
Words fail to clearly express the sheer beauty and impact of the album, "The Hurting". This album is a must for anyone who really loves music with a lot of substance and adventure. TEARS FOR FEARS is my all-time favourite band. Also, I personally feel, in many respects, TEARS FOR FEARS is the only perfect band in the whole world. If you don't believe me, just listen to this debut album of TEARS FOR FEARS.

Each and every track is a classic in its own way. Here is my review of each and every track:

1) The Hurting: Title track that gives a glimpse of how thoughtful this band actually is. This one track should prove that Curt Smith and Roland Orzabal are people with genuine insight and that by no means are they negative. How about lines such as:
"Get in line with the things you know.
Feel the pain, feel the sorrow
Touch the hurt and don't let go, don't let go
Get in line with the things you know
Lean to cry like a baby
Then the hurting won't come back, they won't come back, won't come back"

The echoing guitars perfectly fit the mood and are a treat for the ears. Both Curt and Roland sing this song.

2) Mad World: Moody and reflective song. The song is not negative. It is about the current situation of people living their lives without any morals or values. It is a call for doing something to improve the terrible situation. The song sounds very much relevant and fresh to this day.

3) Pale Shelter: The song is about the lack of love in the lives of children due to inaccessible parents. Fine blend of acoustics and electronics. The Spanish guitar strumming is amazing!

4) Ideas as Opiates: This song is as good as its title. Slightly difficult to understand when I heard for the first time. From what I perceive, it is about those people who mislead the general public with their opinions and who don't actually care about the good-will of the society. The saxophone work is incredible.

5) Memories Fade: Totally blown off when I heard it for the first time. Incredible keyboard, guitar and saxophone arrangements. You can sense the actual mood from Roland's singing and the lively instrumentation.

6) Suffer the Children: The first song recorded and released by TEARS FOR FEARS. Like Pale Shelter, a very thoughtful song about children who don't get proper attention and love during their growing years. Nice pop song.

7) Watch Me Bleed: According to me, the second most philosophical track of the album. Once again, the song is not negative. Great pop-rock. Wonderful and sensible keyboard/guitar arrangement.

8) Change: Brilliant xylophone playing which goes round and round. Very good song!

9) The Prisoner: The most philosophical song of the entire album. The hammering gothic music perfectly fits the mood. The disturbing sound is a must for this track. It is worth contemplating about this track. How about lines such as:
"Here behind the wall
I feel so small
Feeling and not believing
Here anger is me
Love sets me free
Waiting but not relating"

These are the lines that speak of most of us humans, right? We have so many negative tendencies within us because of which we feel we are in a prison and that we are not really free. Once we realise that, we can try to free ourselves. The song is about all that.

10) Start of the Breakdown: The keyboard and percussion arrangements are simply brilliant because the song perfectly gives rise to the actual feeling of a breakdown situation.

11) The Way You Are: A non-album track, which appears on the remastered CD. Very unusual and up-tempo track. Very odd percussion arrangement, it actually reminds me of a percussion instrument called "Chenda". Artists associated with temples or Kathakali in Kerala, South India, play chendas.

There are also lovely re-mixed versions of "Pale Shelter", "Mad World" and "Change".

That's all, folks. Above all, just as the name suggests, TEARS FOR FEARS is a band with a positive attitude. Their music really cannot be categorised. Most of their records are genuinely good, timeless and relevant. Buy this album, enjoy and feel every moment.

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Sounds Awesome Remastered Includes Way You Are, November 3, 2004

By	Dorrie Wheeler - See all my reviews (TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

The Hurting is a really deep album that tackles serious topics. Some of the songs are haunting "The Hurting," "Memories Fade," "Mad World" (which includes the lyric "The dreams in which I'm dying are the best I ever had), and "Pale Shelter" to name a few. Yeah, it's heavy stuff but it sounds so darn good, especially the remastered version. Tears for Fears hits a home run with making pop music that stands the test of time because these songs sounds as good as they did twenty years ago. This album also includes the song "Way You Are." I had heard this song in the 80's and saw it appear on several compilation albums in the 90's but couldn't place where the song came from since it did not appear on the original version of "The Hurting" or it's successor "Songs From The Big Chair." The song is here and the mysetery is explained in the included booklet, the song was recorded in between the first and the second album. The extended versions of the songs aren't that different than the original versions but it is a great bonus to hear the biggest hits from the album "Pale Shelter," "Way You Are," "Mad World," and "Change" back to back.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars even for non-fans, a great album, May 22, 2003

By	C. L. White (Minneapolis, MN) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

There are a lot of people who write reviews of this disc because they are tears for fears fans. But I'm not. 'Head Over Heels' and 'Everybody Wants to Rule the World,' are the only songs after this album that even hint at the brilliance of this record for me.

The Hurting is great not just as a time capsule of the '80s - popular psychology's new wave musical moment. Each of these songs is an innovative pop wingding that showers the ears with perfect sound and exhilarating craftsmanship. I don't have the remastered version, but it would be a shame to tamper with these songs, because each of them (I have them on vinyl and on CD) is perfect just the way it is.

More than just a nostalgia piece for those who lived through the era (I heard many of the songs for the first time in 2000), this is one of the great overlooked pop records, sure to be canonized by loquacious music critics in the very near future.