Tried to love again after your first heartbreak? The first cut is the deepest, do you agree?

Those who have gone through difficult breakups will surely relate to this. This song has gone through all different kinds of hearts. A song that made those who are in love shed real tears. Yes, The First Cut Is The Deepest is the perfect song that has ever come into existence for such matters.

Most people nowadays all credit the song to the talented American artist Sheryl Crow. However, this beautiful song roots back to its original owner, Cat Stevens.

Cat Stevens’ ‘The First Cut Is The Deepest’

Written by Cat Stevens, ‘The First Cut Is The Deepest’ originally was rock in genre. Moreover, it was widely recorded and has become a hit single for four different artists: P. P. Arnold (1967), Keith Hampshire (1973), Rod Stewart (1977), and Sheryl Crow (2003).

This is about a guy who has met a girl he wants to start a relationship with. In the song, he is explaining the hurt he feels because of his first love, and how it is keeping him from diving into this potential new relationship.

In America, the first version to chart was by Keith Hampshire, who took it to #70 in 1973. Rod Stewart covered it in 1976, taking it to #21 US and #1 UK; Sheryl Crow released her version in 2003, which made #14 in the US and #37 in the UK.

Watch Cat Steven’s original The First Cut Is The Deepest.

The Man Behind The Song

Cat Stevens, whose birth name is Steven Demetre Georgiou, is a British singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. His 1967 debut album reached the top 10 in the UK, and the album’s title song Matthew and Son charted at number 2 on the UK Singles Chart. Stevens’ albums Tea for the Tillerman (1970) and Teaser and the Firecat (1971) were both certified triple platinum in the US by the RIAA. His musical style consists of folk, pop, rock, and Islamic music.

Cat Stevens originally wrote The First Cut Is The Deepest which appeared on his album New Masters in December 1967.

Following his conversion to Islam, Stevens has changed his name to Yusuf Islam.

Sheryl Crow’s Version

Undeniably, Sheryl Crow gave a new flavor to the song. Originally sung from a man’s perspective, Crow shared also how women see it in their view. The First Cut Is The Deepest became her biggest radio hit since All I Wanna Do.

It remained 36 weeks on the Billboard Hot 100, and was also Crow’s first Top 40 solo country hit, following the success of her hit duet with Kid Rock, “Picture”. The song topped the airplay charts in the US and became a platinum seller, also reaching No. 14 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart and went to number one on the AC chart for two nonconsecutive weeks.

Furthermore, it was also featured during an episode of HBO’s The Sopranos and The CW’s One Tree Hill, in which she also guest-starred.

Watch Sheryl Crow’s version of the song.