Thin Line Between Love and Hate
| "Thin Line Between Love and Hate" | |
|---|---|
 A-side label of U.S. vinyl single
| |
| Single by The Persuaders | |
| from the album Thin Line Between Love and Hate | |
| B-side | "Thigh Spy" |
| Released | August 1971 |
| Genre | R&B |
| Length | 3:16 |
| Label | Atco Records |
| Songwriter(s) | Richard Poindexter Robert Poindexter Jackie Members |
| Producer(s) | Richard Poindexter Robert Poindexter |
"Thin Line Between Love and Hate" is the title of a 1971 song by the New York City-based R&B vocal group The Persuaders. The song was written and produced by the Poindexter brothers, Robert and Richard, and was also co-written by Robert's wife, Jackie Members.
Composition
The song tells a story about a man coming home early in the morning to his understanding wife one too many times; after the song's bridge, he finds himself lying in a hospital, bandaged from head to foot.
Chart history
This was the group's biggest hit song, spending two weeks atop the Billboard R&B chart in late 1971. It also reached #15 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and was a certified Gold Record by the RIAA.
| Chart (1971) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 15 |
| U.S. Billboard Best Selling Soul Singles | 1 |
Cover versions
The song has been covered or sampled by many musical acts.
- The rock band The Pretenders recorded a cover version of this song, included on their 1984 album Learning to Crawl. Featuring Paul Carrack on keyboards and backing vocals, it was released as a single, peaking at #83 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and #49 on the UK Singles Chart. This version changed the lyric from first-person viewpoint to second-person.
- Jamaican reggae singer B.B. Seaton recorded a version as the title track of his 1973 album for Trojan Records.
- A sample of "Thin Line Between Love and Hate" was featured in the song "Washed Away" by the hip-hop band Arrested Development. This song can be found on their 1992 album 3 Years, 5 Months & 2 Days in the Life Of....
- Also in 1992, rapper Kid Frost sampled this song on his track "Thin Line". This song is included on his album East Side Story and reached #82 on the Billboard R&B chart.
- In 1995, Annie Lennox recorded a cover, featured on her second solo album Medusa.
- In 1996, R&B vocal trio H-Town recorded the song, which was included in the film A Thin Line Between Love and Hate starring Martin Lawrence. Released as "A Thin Line Between Love & Hate", this version featured Roger Troutman, and Shirley Murdock on female vocals and reached #6 on the Billboard R&B chart and #37 on the Billboard Hot 100.