Hard Place

Album: I Used to Know Her: Part 2 (2018)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • H.E.R. wrote this acoustic, guitar-based track in Nashville with her frequent collaborator David "Swagg R'celious" Harris, and also with Ruby Amanfu, who is a member of Jack White's all-female backing band The Peacocks.
  • The song was produced by Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins, who has also worked with the likes of Brandy, Destiny's Child and Michael Jackson.
  • "Hard Place" finds H.E.R. contemplating a relationship that has left her feeling conflicted.

    What if nothing ever will change?
    Oh I'm caught between your love and a hard place
    Oh I wish there was a right way


    "It's like a torn song," she explained to Radio.com. "You know when something isn't good for you, or maybe it is good for you, but you don't know what it is that you want."
  • The song is a play on the phrase "between a rock and a hard place" meaning a dilemma involving two equally difficult or unpleasant alternatives. Though the expression has a biblical ring to it, it actually is of modern US origin.

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

John Parr

John ParrSongwriter Interviews

John tells the "St. Elmo's Fire (Man In Motion)" story and explains why he disappeared for so long.

Ian Anderson of Jethro Tull

Ian Anderson of Jethro TullSongwriter Interviews

The flautist frontman talks about touring with Led Zeppelin, his contribution to "Hotel California", and how he may have done the first MTV Unplugged.

Gavin Rossdale On Lyric Inspirations and Bush's Album The Kingdom

Gavin Rossdale On Lyric Inspirations and Bush's Album The KingdomSongwriter Interviews

The Bush frontman on where he finds inspiration for lyrics, if his "machine head" is a guitar tuner, and the stories behind songs from the album The Kingdom.

Charlotte Caffey of The Go-Go's

Charlotte Caffey of The Go-Go'sSongwriter Interviews

Charlotte was established in the LA punk scene when a freaky girl named Belinda approached her wearing a garbage bag.

Bill Withers

Bill WithersSongwriter Interviews

Soul music legend Bill Withers on how life experience and the company you keep leads to classic songs like "Lean On Me."

Kristian Bush of Sugarland

Kristian Bush of SugarlandSongwriter Interviews

Kristian talks songwriting technique, like how the chorus should redefine the story, and how to write a song backwards.