Tell Me Where IT Hurts (Garbage Song) - Song

Song

Garbage began work on "Tell Me Where It Hurts" in earnest during February and March 2007 at Vig's home studio in Los Angeles, ending their self-imposed hiatus to record new tracks following the band's appearance at a benefit show in Glendale, California for musician Wally Ingram who had been suffering from throat cancer. In an interview prior to that event, drummer Vig told Billboard "Despite the layoff, the group has been sharing song ideas via the Internet. We need to sit down in a room and play them and get them complete".

The genesis of "Tell Me Where It Hurts" came from Garbage jamming in a Bacharach-style, which took shape in the recording studio once guitars were added. Manson did not want the song to be a "simple, lovey-dovey love song, it had to have strange connotations".

During the sessions to write new songs for Absolute Garbage, Garbage worked on four songs - "Tell Me Where It Hurts", "Betcha", "All The Good In This Life" and "Girls Talk Shit". Of the four songs, only "Tell Me Where It Hurts" made the album, while of the other three songs, one ended up a b-side, one an iTunes bonus and one remaining unreleased respectively. Garbage completed two versions of "Tell Me Where It Hurts": an orchestral version and a "Guitars Up" mix with a rockier arrangement.

Bass on "Tell Me Where It Hurts" was performed by Daniel Shulman, who had been Garbage's touring bassist from 1995 until 2002, as well as performing on tracks from both Version 2.0 and Beautiful Garbage. This was his first appearance on a Garbage track since taking up an A&R position with Island Def Jam Music Group in 2003.