"Torn" was written in 1993 by Scott Cutler and Anne Preven with producer Phil Thornalley as a solo song for Preven. Cutler and Preven's band Ednaswap performed it live. The first recording of the song was in 1993 by the Danish singer Lis Sørensen as "Brændt" (Burned) after it was translated by Elisabeth Gjerluff Nielsen.
The physical single of Imbruglia's version of the song has sold more than 4 million copies worldwide, including more than 1 million copies in the UK alone. In the UK, it is the 85th biggest selling single of all time. "Torn" remained the 19th most played song in the UK from 2001 to 2010.
