"Bringin' On the Heartbreak" is a song by English rock band Def Leppard. A power ballad, it was the second single from their 1981 album High 'n' Dry. The song was written by three of the band's members, Steve Clark, Pete Willis and Joe Elliott.
Musical style
"Bringin' On the Heartbreak" has been described as glam metal, hard rock, and soft rock. Record World said that "Joe Elliot's dramatic vocals and the estranged guitar cries plod over a sledge-hammer beat."
Production
High 'n' Dry was released in the U.S. in summer 1981. "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" was commercially released in the U.S. on 13 November, with "Me and My Wine" (a non-album track) and "You Got Me Runnin'" included as B-sides. It did not appear on the U.S. charts, but its music video was picked up by the recently launched television channel MTV and received heavy rotation. The popularity of the video and the exposure the band received caused a resurgence in sales of High 'n' Dry, which subsequently sold over two million copies. It was released in Mexico as "Llevarlo en la Desilusión" with "Yo y mi Vino" ("Me and My Wine"), featuring the cover art from the single "Too Late for Love".
High 'n' Dry was re-issued in May 1984 with two new tracks, one of which was a synthesizer-heavy remix of "Bringin' On the Heartbreak". With a newly-filmed video featuring Phil Collen on guitar, the remix was released as a single and peaked at 61 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100. The original version of the song was later included on three of their compilation albums: Vault: Def Leppard Greatest Hits (1980–1995) (1995) Best of Def Leppard (2004) and Rock of Ages: The Definitive Collection (2005). The latter compilation ends with the instrumental "Switch 625", as it does in High 'n' Dry. Steve Huey of AllMusic has characterised the song as an "unabashedly dramatic rock ballad."
Music video
The first music video was directed by Doug Smith, and is a live recording of Def Leppard performing the song at the Royal Court Theatre in Liverpool, England on 22 July 1981. It was originally filmed (along with clips for "Let It Go" and "High 'n' Dry") as part of Don Kirshner's Rock Concert television series on the U.S. network ABC. The second music video, directed by David Mallet, was shot in February 1984 in Jacob's Biscuit Factory in Lake, Dublin, Ireland and features replacement guitarist Phil Collen playing Pete Willis's part. The original version of the second video featuring the remix is only available on the VHS and LaserDisc versions of the band's video compilation release Historia. DVD reissues of Historia, and the band's subsequent video compilations Best of the Videos and Rock of Ages - The DVD Collection replace the remix soundtrack with the original High 'n' Dry LP recording.
Track listing
7" Mercury / 818 779-7 (U.S.) "Bringin' On the Heartbreak" (remix) "Me & My Wine" (remix)
Personnel
Joe Elliott - lead vocals
Steve Clark - lead guitar
Pete Willis - rhythm guitar
Rick Savage - bass, backing vocals
Rick Allen - drums
Charts
Mariah Carey version
Background and composition
In 2002, the song was covered by American singer and songwriter Mariah Carey for her album Charmbracelet (2002). The reaction from Def Leppard's Joe Elliott was positive.
Carey co-produced her cover of the song with Randy Jackson. The single version also featured a newly recorded solo and extra guitar overdubs performed by Dave Navarro. One of Carey's few songs with a heavy rock influence, it was released as the album's third and final single on June 2, 2003, by Island Def Jam and her own label, MonarC. It was also the final single from MonarC before she shut it down in 2004.