Here I Go Again
| "Here I Go Again" | ||||||||||
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| Single by Whitesnake | ||||||||||
| from the album Saints & Sinners | ||||||||||
| B-side | "Bloody Luxury" | |||||||||
| Released | November 15, 1982 | |||||||||
| Format | Vinyl LP | |||||||||
| Recorded | 1982 | |||||||||
| Genre | Blues rock, hard rock | |||||||||
| Length | 5:09 | |||||||||
| Label | Geffen | |||||||||
| Writer(s) | David Coverdale Bernie Marsden |
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| Producer | Martin Birch | |||||||||
| Whitesnake singles chronology | ||||||||||
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| "Here I Go Again" | ||||||||||
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| Single by Whitesnake | ||||||||||
| from the album Whitesnake | ||||||||||
| B-side | "Guilty of Love" | |||||||||
| Released | 3 February 1987 | |||||||||
| Format | Vinyl LP Cassette CD |
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| Recorded | September 1985–October 1986 | |||||||||
| Genre | Hard rock | |||||||||
| Length | 4:36 (Album Version) 3:54 (Radio Edit Mix) |
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| Label | Geffen | |||||||||
| Writer(s) | David Coverdale Bernie Marsden |
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| Producer | Mike Stone & Keith Olsen | |||||||||
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"Here I Go Again" is a #1 hit song recorded by Whitesnake. Originally released on their 1982 album, Saints & Sinners, the song was re-recorded for their eponymous 1987 album Whitesnake. The song was re-recorded yet another time that year in a new "radio-mix" version. The 1987 album version hit number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart on October 10, 1987,[1] and number nine on the UK Singles Chart on November 28, 1987. The 1987 version also hit number one on the Canadian Singles Chart on October 24, 1987. In 2006, the 1987 version was named the 17th Greatest Song of the 1980s by VH1.
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[edit] Background and writing
The song was written by lead singer, David Coverdale, and former Whitesnake guitarist, Bernie Marsden. The most notable differences between the original and revamped version are the style of the music (blues-rock versus hard rock) and a slight change in the lyrics. The chorus of the original version features the lines:
- "An' here I go again on my own
- Goin' down the only road I've ever known
- Like a hobo I was born to walk alone"
In an interview, Coverdale claimed he changed the lyric because he was afraid people would think he was saying "homo" instead of "hobo".[2]
[edit] Music video
The music video for the song was directed by Marty Callner,[3] who directed most of Whitesnake's videos in the 1980s. It became memorable due to actress Tawny Kitaen's appearance wearing white lingerie. In the video she is seen prancing on the hood of Whitesnake lead singer David Coverdale's Jaguar XJ and massaging him while he is trying in vain to concentrate on driving. Kitaen would later become Coverdale's wife for a brief period.
[edit] Single versions
There are several different versions of the song, all recorded officially by Whitesnake. They are:
- The original version from the 1982 Saints & Sinners album with Bernie Marsden and Micky Moody on guitar (5:03)[4]
- The re-recorded version which appears on the Whitesnake (aka "1987") album with John Sykes on guitar (solo by Adrian Vandenberg) (4:36)
- A 1987 "radio-mix" version, which was released as a U.S. single with Denny Carmassi on drums and Dan Huff on guitar, who also provided the new arrangement. This version also appeared on Whitesnake's Greatest Hits album in 1994 (3:54)
- A 1997 acoustic version recorded for the Starkers in Tokyo album with Adrian Vandenberg on guitar.
In 1987, EMI released a limited Collectors Poster Edition 'USA Single Remix' 7" vinyl [EMP 35], the B-side of which consists of an engraved signature version, and the sleeve of which unfolds into a poster of the band.
While the 1987 album version and the "Radio" version (released on the Greatest Hits album) of the tune are fairly similar, there are several significant differences. The original 1987 version has a long and slow keyboard and vocal intro, whereas the other kicks straight in with the band. One was recorded for the album 1987, the other for a U.S single release the same year. They contain two very different guitar solos, Adrian Vandenberg plays the album and video solo, and Dan Huff plays on the radio edit version. Of the two versions, the one most widely referred to is the remastered version released in the self-titled 1987 album, although both receive significant airplay today.
[edit] Personnel
Original 1982 version from Saints & Sinners
- David Coverdale - lead vocals
- Bernie Marsden - guitar, backing vocals
- Micky Moody - guitar
- Neil Murray - bass
- Jon Lord - keyboards
- Ian Paice - drums
1987 version from Whitesnake
- David Coverdale - lead vocals
- John Sykes - guitar, backing vocals
- Adrian Vandenberg - guitar solo
- Neil Murray - bass
- Don Airey - keyboards
- Bill Cuomo - keyboards
- Aynsley Dunbar - drums
1987 Radio-mix version
- David Coverdale - lead vocals
- Dann Huff - guitar
- Neil Murray - bass
- Don Airey - keyboards
- Bill Cuomo - keyboards
- Denny Carmassi - drums
[edit] Appearances in other media
[edit] Films
The song has appeared in various movies including:
- the 1998 film I Still Know What You Did Last Summer
- the 2003 comedy Old School
- the 2008 film Adventureland
- the credits of the 2009 film Fired Up
- the 2010 film Barry Munday
- the 2010 film The Fighter
[edit] Video games
- The song appears as a cover in the game Karaoke Revolution Party.
- The song is played during the final cutscene of the 2007 real-time strategy video game World in Conflict.
- The 1987 version of the song is a playable track in the 2010 rhythm game Rock Band 3.
[edit] Cover versions
- In 2004 "Here I Go Again" was rendered anew as the debut single by Polish dance/pop singer Mandaryna. Remixed by Groove Coverage, the song was a smash hit in Poland, Europe and Asia, peaking at #2 on the Polish Singles Chart.
- Dan Maxwell & His Band recorded the song for the 2008 cover compilation: Hair Apparent - the Main Man Records Tribute to Hair Bands.
- Eurotrance group Topmodelz covered the song on their 2008 album, Time 2 Rock, and released two remixes of their cover.
- The song was featured in the Broadway musical Rock of Ages, which opened on 7 April 2009 at the Brooks Atkinson Theatre.
- Uncle Kracker released his new album, Happy Hour in 2009 with the track "Livin' The Dream" featuring the chorus of "Here I Go Again" in the song.
- Montreal acoustic/reggae band Lucky Uke recorded a cover of the song for their 2010 debut album. A sample can be heard on the band's official website.[5]
[edit] Live cover performances
- Macedonian singer Tose Proeski covered this song during his concerts. It was also included on his final album, So Ljubav Ot Tose, in 2011.
[edit] Parodies
- Parody glam metal band Steel Panther released a track on their debut album, "Feel The Steel", entitled "Fat Girl (Thar She Blows)"-- the song has clear homage to "Here I Go Again," with similar guitar progression and rhythm.
- Christian rock parody band, ApologetiX, released a parody of the song titled "Here I Go (Against All I've Known)" on their 2006 studio album, Wordplay.
- The music video was parodied in the O.C. episode "The Summer Bummer", the American Dad! episode "Dungeons and Wagons", as well as the films Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby and Death Proof. It was also featured a number of times in the Frat Pack film Old School. It was featured being sung by Nicholas D'Agosto and Eric Christian Olsen during the credits of Fired Up!
- The music video was also referenced in Bowling for Soup's "1985" music video. Originally recorded by SR-71, the song itself contains further references with the lyrics "She was gonna shake her ass/On the hood of Whitesnake's car".
[edit] References
- ^ "Allmusic (Whitesnake charts and awards) Billboard singles". http://www.allmusic.com/artist/p5819.
- ^ "David Coverdale's bio". http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0184434/bio. Retrieved July 12, 2010.
- ^ MVDbase.com - Music video details
- ^ 1982 single - from Discogs.com
- ^ http://www.luckyuke.com/site.php?langue=en
| Preceded by "Didn't We Almost Have It All" by Whitney Houston |
Billboard Hot 100 number-one single October 10, 1987 |
Succeeded by "Lost in Emotion" by Lisa Lisa and Cult Jam |
| Preceded by "La Bamba" by Los Lobos |
Canadian number-one single October 24, 1987 |
Succeeded by "Mony Mony" by Billy Idol |
