'Cuts Like a Knife' was Adams' highest charting single to date in Canada while the previous single ' Straight from the Heart' was the higher charting song on the US Hot 100 peaking at number 10. The song reached number 12 on the Canadian singles chart and remained in the top twenty for seven weeks. 'Cuts Like a Knife' was released in 1983, peaking at number 15 on the Billboard Hot 100 and number 6 on the Hot Rock Tracks chart. Adams and I tapped into that tradition for the out-choruses of 'Cuts Like A Knife'.' Release and reception Vallance eventually responded with 'but it feels so right.' As Vallance described it, 'There's a long tradition in pop music of songs that employ 'na-na-na' choruses: ' Hey Jude' by The Beatles, ' Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye' by Steam, ' Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin'' by Journey, and more recently ' Drops of Jupiter (Tell Me)' by Train. We looked at each other, rolled the tape back, and it sounded like 'cuts like a knife,' so we started singing that.' Īdams and Vallance jammed on the chord progression for a while Adams sang 'it cuts like a knife' over and over again. The best example was when we wrote 'Cuts Like A Knife,' which was just literally a mumble. It's just a good thing to have the tape rolling when you're recording me. I think that's where Jim is really good - he can piece a story together. 'I think that I'm one of the world's best mumblers, I can mumble some of the best lyrics, but putting them together is another story. In an interview in 1988 with Vancouver's Georgia Straight newspaper, Adams explained how Vallance and he came up with the title for the song:

Bryan adams cuts like a knife