I first heard “I Love You So Much It Hurts” on John Prine’s 1995 album, “Lost Dogs and Mixed Blessings” and thought for a long time that he had written it. It was actually written by Floyd Tillman in 1948 and reached as high as #6 on the Folk Best Seller Chart. Later in 1948 Jimmy Wakely’s version went to #1 on the Folk Best Seller chart. In 1949 the Mills Brothers recorded it and it went to #8 on the pop chart. Over the years many artists have recorded it including Patsy Cline, Ray Charles, Andy Williams, and Merle Haggard.
It’s in 3/4 time and I used the same pattern I’ve used in so many 3/4 time songs, which is Pattern #13 from my Fingerstyle tutorial. I mix that pattern in with a simple measure that’s just 3rd string, pinch, pinch, with the “pinch” being the 1st and 4th strings with thumb and middle finger on the counts of 2 and 3.