RockLists.com

Song · Johnny Cash

“Hurt” by Johnny Cash

Released 2002

“Hurt” by Johnny Cash appears on 77 radio countdowns from 28 stations between 2003 and 2026. It was first released in 2002. Its best result is #1 on The Colorado Sound Top 850 Cover Songs, and it was voted number one on two countdowns in total. In the combined RockLists rankings it is the #55 alternative song of 2003, #483 alternative song of all time and #401 of the '00s.

77countdowns
28stations
#1best position
2#1 finishes
6top 10 finishes
2003–2026years charted

Watch

Johnny Cash - Hurt

Video from YouTube (JohnnyCashVEVO). Pressing play loads YouTube's player. Watch on YouTube

"Hurt" started life as a Trent Reznor song, the closing track on Nine Inch Nails' 1994 album The Downward Spiral, but in 2002 Johnny Cash took it over, with Rick Rubin producing, and turned an industrial confession into something closer to a hymn.

Cash doesn't try to match the original's noise. He sings it plain and weathered, a voice that sounds as if every word has been paid for, and the stripped-down setting leaves the song nowhere to hide. It's one of the rare covers that changes what a song means just by who is singing it.

It won commercial success and critical acclaim, and the music video that went with it has been counted among the greatest ever made by publications including NME. Reznor himself was won over, praising the "sincerity and meaning" of Cash's reading and conceding that "that song isn't mine anymore".

Written with AI assistance from RockLists chart data, MusicBrainz and Wikipedia.

RockLists rankings

Alternative & Modern Rock

Indie & Adult Alternative

Hard Rock & Metal

All Rock Formats

Year-end countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
2003 30 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 2003 107
2003 99 Live 105 San Francisco, CA Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 2003 106
2003 30 Q101 Chicago, IL Q101 Top 101 Songs of 2003 101
2003 6 CD101 Columbus, OH CD101 Top 101 Songs of 2003 101
2003 45 CFNY 102.1 The Edge Toronto, ON CFNY Top 102 Songs of 2003 102
2003 81 WCCC The Rock Hartford, CT WCCC Top 106 Songs of 2003 106
2003 31 Channel 104.9 San Jose, CA Channel 104.9 Top 104.9 Songs of 2003 105
2003 25 102.7 WEQX Southern Vermont and the Capital District of New York (Albany) WEQX Top 102.7 of 2003 103
2003 16 102.1 The Edge Dallas-Fort Worth, TX KDGE Top 102 Songs of 2003 102
2003 10 WBCN Boston, MA WBCN Top 104 Songs of 2003 104
2005 55 KROQ Los Angeles, CA KROQ Top 106.7 Songs of 2005 107
2005 105.3 Live 105 San Francisco, CA Live 105 Top 105.3 Songs of 2005 106
2005 72 CD101 Columbus, OH CD101 Top 101 Songs of 2005 101

All-time and decade countdowns

Year#StationCountdownof
2003 1910 CD101 CD101 Top 2004 Songs of All-Time (December 2003) 2004
2004 1871 CD101 CD101 Top 2005 Songs of All-Time (December 2004) 2005
2004 603 WXPN WXPN 885 All-Time Greatest Songs (2004) 885
2005 1844 CD101 CD101 Top 2006 Songs of All-Time (December 2005) 1994
2005 43 The Edge KEDJ Top 103 on Independent Radio 103
2005 629 99X 99X Freedom of Choice 1000 (2005) 1000
2006 45 107.7 The End The End Top 107 Songs of the Millennium (December 2006) 107
2006 409 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 2006) 500
2006 266 Live 105 Live 105 500 Co-Op Countdown (Memorial Day 2006) 500
2007 347 CD101 CD101 Top 2008 Songs of All-Time (December 2007) 2008
2007 571 WTMD WTMD Top 897 Songs of All Time 897
2008 189 KROQ KROQ Flashback 500 (Memorial Day 2008) 500
2008 366 CD101 CD101 Top 2009 Songs of All-Time (December 2008) 2009
2009 6 WYEP WYEP 913 Songs That Matter from the Last Decade 913
2009 345 Live 105 Live 105 Memorial 500 Song List (2009) 500
2009 370 CD101 CD101 Top 2010 Songs of All-Time (December 2009) 2010
2009 38 WYEP WYEP 913 Essential Songs 913
2009 60 Triple J Triple J Hottest 100 of All-Time (2009) 100
2009 147 WXPN WXPN 885 Desert Island Songs (2009) 885
2010 374 CD101 CD101 Top 2011 Songs of All-Time (December 2010) 2011
2011 381 CD101 CD101 Top 2012 Songs of All-Time (December 2011) 2011
2012 140 WYEP WYEP Top 500 Songs Countdown 500
2013 386 CD101 CD101 Top 2013 Songs of All-Time (December 2013) 2012
2013 12 WXPN WXPN 885 Greatest Songs of the New Millennium (2013) 885
2013 8 BBC Radio 6 Music BBC 6 Music 100 Best Tracks Of The Last 10 Years 100
2014 388 CD101 CD101 Top 2014 Songs of All-Time (2014) 2013
2014 94 WXPN WXPN 885 All-Time Greatest Songs (2014) 885
2014 35 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2014) 100
2015 27 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2015) 100
2016 22 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2016) 100
2016 613 WYEP WYEP 913 Countdown 2016 913
2017 22 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2017) 100
2018 41 The Current The Current's 893 Essential Songs 892
2018 34 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2018) 100
2018 225 WTMD WTMD Listeners' Top 897 Songs, 2003-2018 896
2019 84 KEXP KEXP Listeners' Favorite Songs of All Time 627
2019 114 WYEP WYEP Big Spring Countdown 2019 1017
2019 33 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2019) 100
2019 114 WYEP WYEP Labor Day Weekend Countdown 2019 1099
2020 95 WXPN WXPN 2020 Greatest Songs of All Time 2020
2020 30 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2020) 100
2021 64 WYEP WYEP 2021 Labor Day Countdown 168
2021 47 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2021) 100
2021 1 KISW KISW 25 Greatest Rock Covers 25
2022 56 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 2000s 907
2022 173 KEXP KEXP Top Songs of the Last 50 Years (1972-2022) 491
2022 22 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 1055 Colorado Sound Songs of All Time 1055
2022 355 X96 X96 Top 500 Alternative Songs of All Time 500
2022 59 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2022) 100
2023 58 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2023) 100
2023 80 ALT 104.5 ALT 104.5 Top 104 of ALT Time 104
2023 431 WYEP WYEP Countdown to Fall 2023 1229
2023 120 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of All Time 909
2024 77 WYEP WYEP Best Songs of the Past 50 Years 1049
2024 61 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2024) 100
2024 16 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 1055 Songs of the 21st Century 1055
2024 11 WXPN WXPN The 885 Greatest Songs of the 21st Century (2024) 885
2024 1 The Colorado Sound The Colorado Sound Top 850 Cover Songs 850
2025 64 Studio Brussel Studio Brussel De Tijdloze 100 (2025) 100
2025 46 90.9 The Bridge 90.9 The Bridge Top 909 Songs of the 21st Century 909
2025 68 WYEP WYEP Best Songs of the 21st Century (So Far) 714
2026 457 101X 101X 500 (2026) 500
2026 127 WYEP WYEP Greatest Songs of All Time 1180
2026 601 KXT KXT 917 Song Countdown 917

Charting alongside it in 2003

Best songs of 2003 →
  1. 1Seven Nation ArmyThe White Stripes
  2. 2Like a StoneAudioslave
  3. 3Bring Me to LifeEvanescence
  4. 4Somewhere I BelongLinkin Park
  5. 5Times Like TheseFoo Fighters
  6. 6Weak and PowerlessA Perfect Circle

Comments

Log in or create a free account to join the conversation about "Hurt" by Johnny Cash.

Be kind and stay on topic. Guidelines

No comments yet. Be the first to share your thoughts.