Aretha Franklin

Released: March 23, 1998

Songwriter: Dallas Austin

Producer: Dallas Austin

(When it hurts too much to stay)

[Verse 1]
Some guys are jealous, can't get it right
When did I wander into love with hindsight?
And the feeling turns to bad
I've always been devoted to you
Don't want to give up but I'm losing myself
Somewhere between our love

[Chorus]
When it hurts too much to stay
Because all of these years
Has brought all of these tears
Has brought all of this pain
And it all stays the same
I'll dip, I'll pack my bags and go

[Verse 2]
My heart is aching
It sings every day
Too many emotions that won't go away
I'm afraid to leave you...
Oh baby, can't sleep at night
And I'm lonely all day
Said I'll love you forever
But I'm on my way
Oh yeah, got to move on with me life, hey hey

[Chorus]
When it hurts too much stay
Because all of these years
Has brought all of these tears
Has brought all of this pain
And it all stays the same
I'll dip; I'll pack my bags and go
When it hurts too much stay
Because all of these years
Has brought all of these tears
Has brought all of this pain
And it all stays the same
I'll dip; I'll pack my bags and go

[Bridge]
I should have seen it coming before now
I'm yet to see if I can find my own space, baby
Nothing else for so long
I've made up my mind
I've made up my way

[Chorus]
When it hurts too much stay
Because all of these years
Has brought all of these tears
Has brought all of this pain
And it all stays the same
I'll dip; I'll pack my bags and go
When it hurts too much stay
Because all of these years
Has brought all of these tears
Has brought all of this pain
And it all stays the same
I'll dip; I'll pack my bags and go
When it hurts too much stay
Because all of these years
Has brought all of these tears
Has brought all of this pain
And it all stays the same
I'll dip; I'll pack my bags and go

Aretha Franklin is both a 20th and 21st century musical and cultural icon known simply by her first Aretha. She is the reigning and undisputed “Queen Of Soul” with a legacy that spans five decades. A native of Detroit, Michigan, Aretha began her career singing gospel at her father, minister C. L. Franklin’s church as a child. In 1960, at the age of 18, Aretha embarked on a secular career, recording for Columbia Records with modest success.

After moving to Atlantic Records in 1967, she released a steady string of US top ten hits through 1973 including “Spanish Harlem”, “Chain Of Fools”, “Baby I Love You”, “Since You’ve Been Gone”, “Daydreaming”, “The House That Jack Built”, “(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman", ”Think“ and her first chart-topper “Respect” – a song that also won Aretha her first of 18 Grammys. During this time, several of her songs were also successful overseas.

By the mid-70s, Aretha’s commercial success waned and she left Atlantic for Clive Davis' Arista Records in 1980. Her 1982 song “Jump to It,” returned her to the top 40 for the first time in six years. 1985’s Who’s Zoomin' Who? got her back into the top 10 twice with its title track and “Freeway Of Love”. Four more songs reached the top 40 through 1986.

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