Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City
"Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City" is a 1974 R&B song written by Michael Price and Dan Walsh and first recorded by Bobby "Blue" Bland for the ABC Dunhill album Dreamer. While Bland scored a minor hit with the song, landing in the top ten of the R&B charts,[1] it is perhaps best known through cover versions and samples. While it is ostensibly a love song, some critics have also heard it as a lament on urban poverty and hopelessness; the reggae singer Al Brown's cover version even changes most of the lyrics to magnify this emphasis.[1] The song is featured on the soundtracks to the 2009 film Fighting, the 2011 crime drama The Lincoln Lawyer,[2] and the 2012 Chrysler 300 commercial.
[edit] Covers and samples
| "Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
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| Single by Whitesnake | ||||
| from the album Live...in the Heart of the City | ||||
| B-side | "Take Me With You" (Live) | |||
| Released | 1980 | |||
| Format | Vinyl LP | |||
| Recorded | November 23, 1978 | |||
| Genre | Hard rock, blues-rock | |||
| Length | 8:18 | |||
| Label | Liberty Sunburst |
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| Writer(s) | Michael Price Dan Walsh |
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| Producer | Martin Birch | |||
| Whitesnake singles chronology | ||||
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A well-known cover of the song is by the hard rock band Whitesnake, who included it on their 1978 debut EP, Snakebite, and again as a live recording on Live...in the Heart of the City. The cover was the new band's first hit, and it became a staple of their live set.
For his 2001 album The Blueprint, rapper Jay-Z recorded the song "Heart of the City (Ain't No Love)," a Kanye West-produced track built around a sample of Bobby Bland's chartmaking rendition. Jay-Z's song was used in the trailer for the 2007 film American Gangster and in a 2011 Chrysler commercial.
The song is featured in the 2009 video game Leave it to Beaver, in "mashed-up" form.
Other notable cover versions have been recorded by:
- Allman Brothers (Blues, 2009 live recording)
- Mick Abrahams (rock, 1996)
- Long John Baldry (blues, 1977)
- Maggie Bell (rock, 2004, live recording)
- Al Brown (reggae, mid-1970s)
- Joe Budden(Rap, 2007)
- Cafe Jacques - on the album Round The Back (rock, 1977)
- Paul Carrack (Blue-Eyed Soul, Pop/Rock, 2008)
- Willie Clayton (R&B, 1998, as "Heart of the City")
- Mary Coughlan (jazz, 2002)
- Chris Farlowe (R&B, 1985)
- Crystal Gayle (country, 1980)
- Jorn Lande (hard rock, The Snakes live in Europe 1998)
- Nicky Moore (blues rock, 2009)
- Ruthless Blues (blues, 1989)
- Barrett Strong (R&B, 1976)
- Grady Tate (jazz, 1977)
- Kate Taylor (rock, 1979)
- Joey Tempest (rock/metal, 2003)
- DJ Andrew Unknown & DJ Mekalek (hip hop/rap (intro), 2002)
- Vaya Con Dios (rock, 2004)
- Paul Weller (rock, 1998)
- YTcracker (From the "STC is the Greatest" album, track #16, "spamcity", 2004)
- Whitesnake
[edit] References
- ^ a b allmusic
- ^ "The Lincoln Lawyer (Soundtrack)". blogs.indiewire.com. http://blogs.indiewire.com/theplaylist/archives/the_lincoln_lawyer_soundtrack_features_erik_b._rakim_gang_starr_deadmau5_mo/. Retrieved 2011-03-24.
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