"Heal It Up" is a song from American alternative rock band Concrete Blonde, which was released in 1993 as the second single from their fifth studio album Mexican Moon. The song was written by Johnette Napolitano, and produced by Concrete Blonde and Sean Freehill.
In the US, "Heal It Up" was the second promotional single to be released from Mexican Moon, following "Jonestown". "Heal It Up" was released to target album rock and commercial alternative radio.[1] The song reached number 16 on the US BillboardModern Rock Tracks chart in November 1993.[2]
Music video
The song's music video was directed by Jane Williams. It reached number 46 on the Billboard Video Monitor list for MTV for the week ending December 12, 1993, which recorded the top 50 most played clips on the channel.[3]
Critical reception
On its release, Music & Media wrote, "Slowly building into a crescendo, not unlike Simple Minds in their golden years, Napolitano tells a tormented tale of lost souls in need of healing. Wait for the cinematic bridge."[4] In a retrospective on the music of 1993, Don Mayhew of The Fresno Bee picked "Heal It Up" as one of his song selections and commented, "The best bellow of the year goes to Napolitano, who whispers, stomps and soars through this."[5]
In a review of Mexican Moon, Gerry Krochak of the Regina Leader-Post noted how the song's "subdued electric verse builds into an intense chorus". He added, "More thrilling guitar work and Napolitano's vocals complement each other brilliantly on what is perhaps the album's finest cut."[6] Chuck Campbell of The Knoxville News Sentinel felt the song, "though meandering, offers satisfaction in its gritty execution".[7]
