For Your Love

Greatly Appreciated

FOR YOUR LOVE
 
 
“For Your Love”  is a rock song written by Graham Gouldman and recorded by English group the Yardbirds.  Released in March 1965, it was their first top ten hit in both the UK and the US.  The song was a departure from the group’s blues roots in favour of a commercial pop rock sound, which Eric Clapton disapproved and led him to leave the group.  (More from Wikipedia)
 
 

As with many of the British Invasion bands, the Yardbirds initially played American R&B and blues songs rather than their own compositions.  As reported in Wikipedia, during their days at the Crawdaddy Club:  “They drew their repertoire from the Chicago blues of Howlin’ WolfMuddy WatersBo DiddleySonny Boy Williamson II, and Elmore James, including ‘Smokestack Lightning’,Good Morning Little School Girl’,Boom Boom’, ‘I Wish You Would’, ‘Rollin’ and Tumblin’’, and ‘I’m a Man’.”  In fact, Eric Clapton left the Yardbirds in March 1965 as a protest when the band finally got a hit single with a song that did not come from this milieu, “For Your Love(written by Graham Gouldman, later a member of 10cc). 

 

The frequent hit songs by the Yardbirds – “I’m a Man”, “Happenings Ten Years Time Ago”, For Your Love, “Heart Full of Soul”, “Shapes of Things”, “Over Under Sideways Down”, etc. – hit my eardrums with at least as powerful an impact as the greatest Rolling Stones songs, like “Brown Sugar”, Jumpin’ Jack Flash, “Paint it Black”, Get off of My CloudSympathy for the Devil, “Street Fighting Man”, etc.  To me though, these songs sound every bit as fresh to me today, probably because they haven’t been played to death on oldies’ radio as much as anything else.  

 

(May 2014)

 

Last edited: March 22, 2021