''How Cruel'' is a 12-inch one-sided
EP by British singer-songwriter
Joan Armatrading, which was released in November 1979 on
A&M.
The title track had previously appeared on Armatrading's live album ''
Steppin' Out'', which was not released in the US.
The EP was released in the US and elsewhere, but not in the UK. It peaked at #19 on the
Norwegian Albums Chart. It was nominated for the
Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance
The Grammy Award for Best Female Rock Vocal Performance was an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1958 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to female recording artists for works (songs or albums) conta ...
at the
23rd Annual Grammy Awards
The 23rd Annual Grammy Awards were held on February 25, 1981, at Radio City Music Hall in New York City and were broadcast live on American television. They recognized accomplishments by musicians from the year 1980.
Album of the Year went to Mic ...
in 1981. The single from this EP was "Rosie"/"How Cruel" (1979/1980), which reached #49 in the UK and #52 in Australia. "Rosie" was included on Armatrading's first compilation album, 1983's ''Track Record'', as well as her 2004 live album ''
Live: All the Way from America''. All four tracks from this EP were placed at the start of the second CD of Armatrading's 2003 compilation album ''Love and Affection: Joan Armatrading Classics (1975–1983)''.
Track listing
All tracks composed by Joan Armatrading.
#"Rosie" – 3:10
#"How Cruel" – 3:04
#"He Wants Her" – 3:15
#"I Really Must Be Going" – 4:27
Personnel
*Joan Armatrading – lead vocals, acoustic guitar
*Richard Hirsch, Winston Delandro – guitar
*Ben Adkins, Bill Bodine, Durban Betancourt-Laverde – bass
*
James Lascelles, Mike Storey,
Red Young – keyboards
*
Gary Mallaber, Richard Bailey – drums
*Lon Price – saxophone on "How Cruel"
;Technical
*
Henry Lewy, Skip Cottrell,
Chris Tsangarides – engineers
Charts
Weekly charts
Year-end charts
Sales and certifications
References
{{Reflist
1979 EPs
Joan Armatrading EPs
A&M Records EPs
Albums recorded at A&M Studios
Albums recorded at Morgan Sound Studios
Albums produced by Henry Lewy