Love Ain't No Stranger

Last updated

"Love Ain't No Stranger"
LoveAintNoStranger.jpg
Single by Whitesnake
from the album Slide It In
B-side "Guilty of Love" (US)
"Slow an' Easy" (UK)
ReleasedAugust 1984 (US) [1]
28 January 1985 (UK) [2]
Recorded1983
Genre Glam metal [3]
Length4:14
Label Liberty (Europe)
Geffen (North America)
Songwriter(s) David Coverdale, Mel Galley
Whitesnake singles chronology
"Standing in the Shadow"
(1984)
"Love Ain't No Stranger"
(1984)
"Slow an' Easy"
(1984)
Music video
"Love Ain't No Stranger" on YouTube

"Love Ain't No Stranger" is a power ballad by the English hard rock/heavy metal group Whitesnake, and it is taken from the band's U.S.-breakthrough album Slide It In . One of the group's best known songs, it's been included in multiple multi-artist compilation albums as well as in various media from Whitesnake's own labels. Particularly well-received in the context of the 1980s heavy music boom in the Anglosphere, various music critics have praised its composition.

Contents

"Love Ain't No Stranger" is a staple of the band's live performances. Due to its popularity among fans, Whitesnake has performed the song over eight hundred times as of December 2022, making it one of the group's top five most played pieces. [4]

The song charted at number 44 on the UK Singles Chart [5] and 34 on the U.S. Mainstream rock charts. [6] Eduardo Rivadavia of AllMusic described the song as "one of the decade's greatest power ballads, bar none." [7]

Recording

The song starts with keyboardist Jon Lord's keyboards with emotional vocal delivery from singer David Coverdale. The song keeps a slow tempo until the guitars and drums kick in when the song tempo drastically changes and becomes a hard driving rock song. The slow tempo "ballady" section doesn't emerge again until the very middle and very end of the song. According to the 25th Anniversary Edition booklet of Slide It In, the keyboard intro was originally written for guitars, but was eventually switched to keyboards. Also, Coverdale told in the edition's booklet that drummer Cozy Powell once told the singer that "Love Ain't No Stranger" was the best track he'd ever played drums on.

Music video

The music video for "Love Ain't No Stranger" was directed by Mark Rezyka.

The video starts off as Coverdale was walking alone in a misty-night scene at a city. The scene cuts through a shot of Coverdale looking up at a woman on the top-level building. The snake lines were tatted on the woman's chest that is nearly identical to the group's Slide It In cover. The scene then next cuts through a group of people having a alcoholic night-out on the corridors, with Sykes and Murray in the group. Another woman at an young-unknown age was standing out from the group, depicted as an outcast begins to look at Coverdale as the scene continues on the band performing the song at a mock concert. During the interval of Sykes' guitar solo, the scene cuts to where Sykes grabs the woman depicted as an outcast, seemingly inviting her to ride with others in a truck. At the end of the video, Coverdale climbs on to a truck and hugs the woman, but as he turns around he sees that the woman has switched and that the woman he was after is standing on the ground. As the truck, along with Coverdale on it, starts to drive away Coverdale stares at the woman as she disappears into the mist. [8]

Track listing

No.TitleWriter(s)Length
1."Love Ain't No Stranger" David Coverdale, Mel Galley 4:14
Liberty Records-version
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
2."Slow An' Easy"Coverdale, Micky Moody 6:09
3."Slide It In"Coverdale3:20
Geffen Records-version
No.TitleWriter(s)Length
2."Guilty of Love"Coverdale3:18

Personnel

Charts

Chart (1985)Peak
position
UK Singles (The Official Charts Company) [9] 44
US Billboard Mainstream Rock [10] 33

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Whitesnake</span> British hard rock band

Whitesnake are an English hard rock band formed in London in 1978. The group was originally put together as the backing band for singer David Coverdale, who had recently left Deep Purple. Though the band quickly developed into their own entity, Coverdale is the only constant member throughout their history.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Blue Murder (band)</span> English rock band

Blue Murder were an English rock band led by guitarist-vocalist John Sykes. The group was formed in 1987 following Sykes's dismissal from Whitesnake. The initial line-up was rounded out by bassist Tony Franklin and drummer Carmine Appice. In its nascent stage, vocalist Ray Gillen and drummer Cozy Powell were attached to the project. In 1989, Blue Murder released their self-titled debut album, which cracked the Billboard 200 chart and spawned a minor hit with "Jelly Roll". By the early 1990s, however, Blue Murder's music had fallen out of fashion with the popularity of grunge. Franklin and Appice left the band, while Sykes put together a new line-up and released Nothin' But Trouble in 1993. After a live album the following year, Blue Murder were dropped by their record label and broke-up. Since then there have been numerous attempts to reunite the band to no avail.

<i>Snakebite</i> (album) 1978 EP by Whitesnake

Snakebite is the first official release by the British hard rock band Whitesnake. The original EP initially featured only four tracks and was released in the UK in June 1978 and never published in the US. Snakebite was re-released in September 1978 as a Double Extended Play containing four extra studio tracks taken from David Coverdale's second solo album Northwinds. The EP sleeve is entitled David Coverdale's Whitesnake and features photographs of the live band in concert. All tracks from the original EP also were used as bonus tracks on the 2006 remaster of Whitesnake's debut studio album Trouble.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Neil Murray (British musician)</span> Scottish bassist

Philip Neil Murray is a Scottish musician, best known as the former bassist of Whitesnake, the Brian May Band, Black Sabbath, and Gary Moore.

<i>Slide It In</i> 1984 studio album by Whitesnake

Slide It In is the sixth studio album by English rock band Whitesnake. Originally released on 30 January 1984 in Europe, by Liberty/EMI, it was remixed for the American market, later issued on 16 April 1984 in North America by Geffen. In Japan, it was issued a "European" Mix release date on 23 March 1984, and an "American" remix on 21 December 1984 by CBS/Sony. Widely regarded as a moderate success, it helped the American market to open up for the band's sound and breakthrough throughout the later 1980s. Historically, it was the final Whitesnake recording to use the band's original "snake" logo.

<i>Lovehunter</i> 1979 studio album by Whitesnake

Lovehunter is the second studio album by British band Whitesnake, released in 21 September 1979. It was the bands first UK Top 30 album, charting at No. 29 on the UK Albums Chart. "Long Way from Home", the leading track on the album reached No. 55 on the UK charts, while "Walking in the Shadow of the Blues" was one of the most popular and praised Whitesnake's songs in the beginning. The album became controversial because of its cover art.

<i>Saints & Sinners</i> (Whitesnake album) 1982 studio album by Whitesnake

Saints & Sinners is the fifth studio album by English hard rock band Whitesnake, released on 15 November 1982 by Liberty Records. The album was the last to be recorded by the Ready an' Willing line-up as the members had strained relations alongside the musical direction and the band's management despite commercial successes in their native. Guy Bidmead produced the album as Martin Birch's replacement at first, but Birch returned to finish the album during the recording.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Is This Love (Whitesnake song)</span> 1987 single by Whitesnake

"Is This Love" is a song by British rock band Whitesnake. It was released in 1987 as the second single from their self-titled album.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Here I Go Again</span> 1982 single by Whitesnake

"Here I Go Again" is a song by British rock band Whitesnake. Originally released on their 1982 album, Saints & Sinners, the power ballad was re-recorded for their 1987 self-titled album. It was re-recorded again the same year in a new "radio-mix" version, which was released as a single and hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on 10 October 1987, and also No. 9 on the UK Singles Chart on 28 November 1987. The 1987 version also made No. 1 on the Canadian RPM singles chart on 24 October 1987. In 2018 at the BMI London Awards, it received the "5 Million Performances Award", while in 2022 it garnered the "8 Million-Air Award".

<i>Starkers in Tokyo</i> 1997 live album by Whitesnake

Starkers in Tokyo is a live acoustic album and video recording by English rock band Whitesnake, released only in Japan on 9 September 1997. It is performed in the style of the Unplugged series and simply features David Coverdale on vocals and Adrian Vandenberg on acoustic guitar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Still of the Night (song)</span> 1987 single by Whitesnake

"Still of the Night" is a song by the English band Whitesnake. It was released as the first single from their self-titled 1987 album. It reached #16 in the U.K., #18 on the U.S. Mainstream rock Tracks and #79 on the Billboard Hot 100.

<i>Long Way from Home</i> (EP) 1979 EP by Whitesnake

Long Way from Home is a 1979 EP by British hard rock band Whitesnake. The titular song was written by lead singer David Coverdale, and "Trouble" and "Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City" are the B-side tracks. The song was taken from the band's album Lovehunter, and was the lead-off track. The song charted at number 55 on the UK Singles Chart in 1979.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Crying in the Rain (Whitesnake song)</span>

"Crying in the Rain" is a song by the English hard rock band Whitesnake. The song was originally released on the group's 1982 album Saints & Sinners, but was re-recorded on the group's 1987 multi-platinum album Whitesnake. The song was inspired by singer David Coverdale's divorce.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Guilty of Love (song)</span> 1983 single by Whitesnake

"Guilty of Love" is a song by the English rock band Whitesnake from their 1984 album Slide It In. Written by vocalist David Coverdale, he described the track as a "very simple and honest love song". It has frequently been compared to Thin Lizzy for its dual lead guitars.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Give Me All Your Love</span> 1988 single by Whitesnake

"Give Me All Your Love" is a song by the English rock band Whitesnake. The song is taken from the group's 1987 multi-platinum self-titled album. Being the fourth single released from the album, the track reached number 48 on the US Top 100 charts, number 22 on the Mainstream Rock Charts, number 18 in the UK charts, and 49 in New Zealand.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Slow an' Easy</span> 1984 promotional single by Whitesnake

"Slow an' Easy" is a song by the English rock band Whitesnake from their 1984 album Slide It In. The album provided the group with a commercial breakthrough in the United States, and this specific song, which was released as a promo single, became a hit on rock radio. "Slow an' Easy" and "Love Ain't No Stranger" reached #17 and #34 on Billboard's Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, respectively.

<i>Whitesnake</i> (album) 1987 studio album by Whitesnake

Whitesnake is the seventh studio album by British rock band Whitesnake, released on 23 March 1987 by Geffen Records in the US, and by EMI Records in the UK one week later. It was co-written and recorded for over a year in what would be the first and final collaboration between vocalist David Coverdale and guitarist John Sykes, the final album to feature longtime bassist Neil Murray and the only album with drummer Aynsley Dunbar. The album, besides its commercial success, is remarkable for the band's change to a more modern glam metal look and sound, and the first recording to use the band's new logo which would characterise them in the future.

<i>Live... in the Still of the Night</i> 2006 live album by Whitesnake

Live... In the Still of the Night is a live concert DVD by the band Whitesnake. The concert was filmed on 20 October 2004 at the Hammersmith Apollo in London. It was released regularly on 5 May 2006 featuring the recording of the live performance, behind-the-scene documentary and a photobook. The limited "special collector's" edition which was previously released on 7 February 2006 includes a bonus live album CD with ten selected songs from the same show.

"Give Me More Time" is a song by the English hard rock band Whitesnake from their 1984 album Slide It In. Written by vocalist David Coverdale and Mel Galley.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Standing in the Shadow</span> 1984 single by Whitesnake

"Standing in the Shadow" is a song by the English hard rock band Whitesnake from their 1984 album Slide It In. It was written by singer David Coverdale.

References

  1. Strong, Martin Charles (1995). The Great Rock Discography. p. 894. ISBN   9780862415419.
  2. "Music Week" (PDF). p. 58.
  3. manosg (27 December 2014). "Review: Whitesnake - Slide it In". www.sputnikmusic.com. Retrieved 8 February 2021. "Love Ain't No Stranger" is the standout track; with its highly effective buildup and the addictive vocal line, it's probably one of the best hair/pop metal tracks of the '80s.
  4. "Whitesnake Tour Statistics - Songs Played Total". Setlist.fm. Retrieved 12 December 2022.
  5. "Whitesnake The Official Charts Company".
  6. "Allmusic (Whitesnake charts and awards) Billboard singles".
  7. Love Ain't No Stranger at AllMusic . Retrieved October 28, 2018.
  8. "Whitesnake - Love Ain't No Stranger (Official Music Video)". Rhino . Retrieved 4 May 2024.
  9. "Whitesnake – Official Charts". Official Charts Company . Retrieved 27 August 2021.
  10. "Whitesnake Mainstream Rock Airplay Chart". Billboard . Retrieved 27 August 2021.