It's a Heartache

"'It's a Heartache'" is a song recorded by Welsh singer Bonnie Tyler. Written by Ronnie Scott and Steve Wolfe, and co-produced with David Mackay, the single was released in November 1977 through RCA Records. The song topped the charts in Australia, Canada, and numerous European countries, and reached No. 3 in the US and No. 4 in the UK. Worldwide, "It's a Heartache" sold around six million copies.

In the United States, Tyler's version was released in 1978 around the same time as versions of it were released by Juice Newton and Ronnie Spector.

Background
"It's a Heartache" was recorded at The Factory Sound in Surrey, England, in 1977. Producer David Mackay finished the construction of his recording studio in the summer of 1977, and this song was cut during the very first session.

"It's a Heartache" was one of the first recordings Tyler made following a surgical procedure to remove nodules from her vocal folds. The procedure left Tyler with an "unusually husky voice", which AllMusic journalist Marcy Donelson described as "an effective instrument".

Release
Producer David Mackay recalled that RCA was reluctant to release the single. The label was pre-occupied with reissuing Elvis Presley's back catalogue following his recent death. Mackay, Scott and Wolfe threatened to terminate their contract with RCA if they did not release the track immediately. "It's a Heartache" was released on 4 November 1977 in parts of Europe, including the United Kingdom, and March 1978 in the United States and Canada.

Critical reception
The release had music critics comparing Tyler's voice to Rod Stewart's. Carol Wetzel from Spokane Daily Chronicle complimented Tyler's voice on "It's a Heartache", stating that her previous big hit, "Lost in France", is "no big deal, probably because it was made before her voice changed."

Other versions
In 1978, Juice Newton released a cover through Capitol Records, produced by John Palladino. Newton reached No. 86 on the US Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 91 on the Canadian RPM Singles Chart. In the same year, Ronnie Spector issued a single through Alston Records. Tyler, Newton and Spector's versions were all released in the same week in the United States, with Billboard listing each one as "recommended" tracks.

Dave & Sugar's 1981 rendition of "It's a Heartache" reached No. 32 on the Billboard Country Singles Chart.

Kareen Antonn and Bonnie Tyler
In 2004, Tyler released a bi-lingual duet with French singer Kareen Antonn. Renamed "Si tout s'arrête", the single reached No. 7 on the Belgian Flanders chart, No. 12 in France and No. 25 in Switzerland. In the following year, Tyler included a solo version of the song, sung entirely in English, on her album Wings.

Trick Pony version
American country music group Trick Pony recorded a version of the song for their third studio album R.I.D.E. (2005). The group's record label, Asylum-Curb Records, released "It's a Heartache" as the second single from the album on 31 January 2005. Heidi Newfield sang the main vocals, and Chuck Howard produced. At the end of July 2005, the cover peaked at number 22 on the Hot Country Songs chart, while reaching number 18 on the Radio & Records version of the country chart.

Commercial performance
Trick Pony's cover of "It's a Heartache" debuted on the US Billboard Hot Country Songs chart the week of February 12, 2005 at number 49, becoming the second highest debut of the week. Slowly, the song barely missed the top twenty, peaking at number 22 on July 30, 2005 and becoming the most successful single from the album. It was their highest peaking single since "On a Mission" peaked at number 19 in 2003 and their final top forty hit to date. On the Radio & Records version of the country chart, it performed even better by peaking at number 18.

Music video
Jeffrey Phillips directed the music video. The video features a couple going through a divorce, which includes cut-scenes of the members of Trick Pony. While the husband is buying wine, two robbers come in and hold the owner at gunpoint. The husband tries to stop them but is stabbed by one of the thieves. The police then break the news to the wife, who is devastated. The video ends with the wife going to her would-be ex-husband's grave.

The video began airing in late April 2005 on the Great American Country channel.