"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 Robert Calvin Bland (born Robert Calvin Brooks; January 27, 1930 – June 23, 2013), known professionally as Bobby "Blue" Bland, was an American blues singer. Bland developed a sound that mixed gospel with the blues and R&B. He was descr ...

for the ABC Dunhill album '' Dreamer''.

Background

While it is ostensibly a

love song A love song is a song about romantic love, falling in love, heartbreak after a breakup, and the feelings that these experiences bring. A comprehensive list of even the best known performers and composers of love songs would be a large order. ...

, some critics and fans have also heard it as a lament on urban poverty and hopelessness, as well as a lament upon the struggle to achieve one's goals in life in the absence of external support. "Ain't No Love in the Heart of the City" remains a cult favorite, and is considered a classic.

Chart performance

In the US, Bland scored a top ten hit on the

Hot Soul Singles The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 p ...

chart, where it peaked at #9, as well as peaking at #91 on the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100 is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by '' Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), radio play, and online streaming ...

Cover versions and samples

It is known through several

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

s and samples: *A well-known cover of the song is by the

hard rock Hard rock or heavy rock is a loosely defined subgenre of rock music typified by aggressive vocals and distorted electric guitars. Hard rock began in the mid-1960s with the garage, psychedelic and blues rock movements. Some of the earliest hard ...

band

Whitesnake 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 entit ...

, who included it on their

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

debut EP, ''

Snakebite A snakebite is an injury caused by the bite of a snake, especially a venomous snake. A common sign of a bite from a venomous snake is the presence of two puncture wounds from the animal's fangs. Sometimes venom injection from the bite may occu ...

'', 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 The September 11 attacks against the United States by Al-Qaeda, which Casualties of the September 11 attacks, killed 2,977 people and instigated the global war on terror, were a defining event of 2001. The United States led a Participants in ...

album ''

The Blueprint ''The Blueprint'' is the sixth studio album by American rapper Jay-Z, released on September 11, 2001, through Roc-A-Fella Records and Def Jam Recordings. Its release was set a week earlier than initially planned in order to combat bootlegging. ...

'', rapper

Jay-Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...

recorded the song "Heart of the City (Ain't No Love)," a

Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer, and fashion designer. Born in Atlanta and raised in Chicago, West gained recognition as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records in the ea ...

-produced track built around a sample of Bobby Bland's chartmaking rendition. Other notable cover versions have been recorded by: *

Bobby Bazini Bobby Bazini (born Bobby Bazinet May 6, 1989) is a French Canadian singer-songwriter from Mont-Laurier, Quebec, Canada. He has released three studio albums and is currently signed to Universal Music Canada. Career 2009–2011: ''Better In Tim ...

- on his sophomore album “Where I Belong”(folk/soul, 2014) *The cover version by reggae singer Al Brown even changes most of the lyrics to magnify the emphasis of the lyrics. *

Barrett Strong Barrett Strong (born February 5, 1941) is an American singer and songwriter. Strong was the first artist to record a hit for Motown, although he is best known for his work as a songwriter, particularly in association with producer Norman Whitfi ...

(R&B,

1976 Events January * January 3 – The International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights enters into force. * January 5 – The Pol Pot regime proclaims a new constitution for Democratic Kampuchea. * January 11 – The 1976 Phila ...

) *

Café Jacques Café Jacques are a progressive rock band originally formed in Edinburgh, Scotland and most active in the 1970s. An early version of Café Jacques numbered seven musicians, but the most successful line-up was a trio, consisting of Chris Thomso ...

- on the album ''Round the Back (rock, 1977) *

Grady Tate Grady Tate (January 14, 1932 – October 8, 2017) was an American jazz and soul-jazz drummer and baritone vocalist. In addition to his work as sideman, Tate released many albums as leader and lent his voice to songs in the animated '' Schoolhou ...

(jazz, 1977) *

Long John Baldry John William "Long John" Baldry (12 January 1941 – 21 July 2005) was an English musician and actor. In the 1960s, he was one of the first British vocalists to sing the blues in clubs and shared the stage with many British musicians including t ...

(blues, 1977) *

Kate Taylor Kate Taylor (born August 15, 1949) is an American singer-songwriter, originally from Boston, Massachusetts. She is the younger (and only) sister of renowned singer-songwriter James Taylor, a six-time Grammy winner. Biography Taylor was born ...

(rock, 1979) *

Crystal Gayle Crystal Gayle (born Brenda Gail Webb; January 9, 1951) is an American country music singer widely known for her 1977 hit "Don't It Make My Brown Eyes Blue". Initially, Gayle's management and record label were the same as that of her oldest sist ...

(country, 1980) *

Herman Brood Hermanus "Herman" Brood (; 5 November 1946 – 11 July 2001) was a Dutch musician, painter, actor and poet. As a musician he achieved artistic and commercial success in the 1970s and 1980s, and was called "the greatest and only Dutch rock 'n' r ...

(rock, Bühnensucht, live recording, 1985) *

Chris Farlowe Chris Farlowe (born John Henry Deighton, 13 October 1940) is an English rock, blues and soul singer. He is best known for his hit single " Out of Time" written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, which rose to No. 1 in the UK Singles Chart in 19 ...

(R&B,

1985 The year 1985 was designated as the International Youth Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** The Internet's Domain Name System is created. ** Greenland withdraws from the European Economic Community as a result of a ...

) *Ruthless Blues (blues, 1989) *

Walter "Wolfman" Washington Walter "Wolfman" Washington (December 20, 1943 – December 22, 2022) was an American singer and guitarist, based in New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. While his roots were in blues music, he blended in the essence of funk and R&B to cre ...

(New Orleans R&B, on 1991 album Sada) *

The Good Earth ''The Good Earth'' is a historical fiction novel by Pearl S. Buck published in 1931 that dramatizes family life in a Chinese village in the early 20th century. It is the first book in her ''House of Earth'' trilogy, continued in ''Sons'' (1932) ...

(pop/rock, 1994) *

Mick Abrahams Michael Timothy Abrahams (born 7 April 1943) is an English guitarist and band leader, best known for being the original guitarist for Jethro Tull from 1967 to 1968 and the frontman for Blodwyn Pig. Jethro Tull Abrahams was born in Luton, B ...

(rock, 1996) *

Jørn Lande Jørn Marumsrud Lande (born May 31, 1968) is a Norwegian hard rock and heavy metal singer and songwriter. He is known for his work with the bands Ark, Beyond Twilight, Millenium, Vagabond, The Snakes, and most notably with power metal band Ma ...

(hard rock, The Snakes live in Europe 1998) *

Paul Weller Paul John Weller (born John William Weller; 25 May 1958) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. Weller achieved fame with the punk rock/ new wave/mod revival band the Jam (1972–1982). He had further success with the blue-eyed soul m ...

(rock, 1998) *

Willie Clayton Willie Clayton (born March 29, 1955) is an American Chicago blues and soul-blues singer and songwriter. He has recorded over 25 albums since the 1980s. He has been performing since the late 1960s. His chart successes span the decades from the ...

(R&B, 1998, as "Heart of the City") *

Jay Z Shawn Corey Carter (born December 4, 1969), known professionally as Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and founder of Manhattan-based conglomerate talent and entertainment agency Roc Nation. He is regarded as one of ...

(on the album ''

'', as "Heart of City (Ain't No Love)", 2001) * Mary Coughlan (jazz,

2002 File:2002 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The 2002 Winter Olympics are held in Salt Lake City; Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother and her daughter Princess Margaret, Countess of Snowdon die; East Timor gains East Timor independence, indepe ...

) *DJ Andrew Unknown & DJ Mekalek (hip hop/rap (intro), 2002) *

Joey Tempest Rolf Magnus Joakim Larsson (born 19 August 1963), known professionally as Joey Tempest, is a Swedish singer best known as the lead vocalist of the rock band Europe. He has written the band's great hits such as " The Final Countdown", " Rock the ...

(rock/metal,

2003 File:2003 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The crew of STS-107 perished when the Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during reentry into Earth's atmosphere; SARS became an epidemic in China, and was a precursor to SARS-CoV-2; A des ...

) *

Maggie Bell Margaret Bell (born 12 January 1945 in Maryhill, Glasgow, Scotland) is a Scottish rock vocalist. She came to fame as co-lead vocalist of the blues-rock group Stone the Crows, and was described as the UK's closest counterpart to American sing ...

(rock, 2004, live recording) * Vaya Con Dios (rock, 2004) * YTcracker (From the "STC Is the Greatest" album, track #16, "spamcity", 2004) *

Joe Budden Joseph Anthony Budden II (born August 31, 1980) is an American media personality and former rapper. He first gained recognition as a rapper with his 2003 top 40 single " Pump It Up" and as a member of the hip hop supergroup Slaughterhouse. In ...

(Rap, 2007) * Paul Carrack (Blue-Eyed Soul, Pop/Rock, 2008) *

Allman Brothers Allman may refer to: Music *The Allman Brothers Band The Allman Brothers Band was an American rock band formed in Jacksonville, Florida in 1969 by brothers Duane Allman (founder, slide guitar and lead guitar) and Gregg Allman (vocals, keyboa ...

(Blues, 2009 live recording) *

Nicky Moore Nicholas Charles Moore (21 June 1947 – 3 August 2022) was an English blues, rock and heavy metal singer, who was best known as a member of the British band Samson. He replaced Bruce Dickinson who left the band to join Iron Maiden in 1982. ...

(blues rock, 2009) *

GRiZ Grant Richard Kwiecinski (born May 31, 1990), also known by his stage name GRiZ, is an American DJ, songwriter, and electronic music producer from Southfield Michigan. He is known for playing the saxophone along with producing funk, electro-soul, ...

(sampled on the song "Where's The Love" on the album Mad Liberation, 2012) *

Lukas Graham Lukas Graham is a Danish pop band consisting of lead vocalist and multi-instrumentalist Lukas Forchhammer, bassist Magnus Larsson, and drummer Mark Falgren. The band released their first album, '' Lukas Graham'', with labels Copenhagen Records ...

(Blue-Eyed Soul,

2012 File:2012 Events Collage V3.png, From left, clockwise: The passenger cruise ship Costa Concordia lies capsized after the Costa Concordia disaster; Damage to Casino Pier in Seaside Heights, New Jersey as a result of Hurricane Sandy; People gather ...

as "Daddy, Now That You're Gone (Ain't No Love)") * Jo Harman And Company (blues, on the album ''Live At The Royal Albert Hall'' Recorded 2013, released 2014) *

Dana Fuchs Dana Fuchs (pronounced Fyooks, born January 10, 1976) is an American singer and songwriter known for a mix of Southern rock, soul, roots, and blues. She is also an actor. ''The New York Times'' Stephen Holden called Fuchs' performance in the film ...

(On album "Broken Down, acoustic sessions" 2015) * Shane Pacey Trio (On album, "Helios" 2016) *

Supersonic Blues Machine Supersonic Blues Machine is an American, California-based trio, consisting of drummer Kenny Aronoff, producer/bass player Fabrizio Grossi and singer/guitarist Kris Barras, currently signed to Provogue Records. Their sound is predominantly based ...

(On the album "West of flushing south of frisco" 2016) * C.S. Armstrong (On album, "Ain't No Love" 2016) * Zeshan B (On album, "Vetted" 2017) *

Black Pumas Black Pumas is an American psychedelic soul band based in Austin, Texas, led by singer/songwriter Eric Burton and guitarist/ producer Adrian Quesada. The group received its first Grammy Award nomination in 2020 for Best New Artist. History In 20 ...

(On the album ''Black Pumas Deluxe Edition Exclusive 2LP+7"'', released 2020) *

DJ Khaled Khaled Mohammed Khaled (born November 26, 1975), known professionally as DJ Khaled, is an American DJ, record executive, record producer and rapper. Khaled first gained recognition as a radio host in the 1990s on the radio station WEDR, 99 Ja ...

(Sampled on the intro track "THANKFUL", on the album ''

KHALED KHALED ''Khaled Khaled'' is the twelfth studio album by American record producer DJ Khaled. It was released through We the Best Music and Epic Records on April 30, 2021. The album features guest appearances from Lil Wayne, Jeremih, Lil Baby, Lil Durk, ...

'', released 2021) *

Gov't Mule Gov't Mule (pronounced "Government Mule") is an American Southern rock jam band, formed in 1994 as a side project of the Allman Brothers Band by guitarist Warren Haynes and bassist Allen Woody. Fans often refer to Gov't Mule simply as ''Mule''. ...

(on the album 'Heavy Load Blues', released 2021) *

Horace Andy Horace Andy (born Horace Hinds, 19 February 1951) is a Jamaican roots reggae songwriter and singer, known for his distinctive vocals and hit songs such as "Government Land", as well as "Angel", "Spying Glass" and "Five Man Army" with English tri ...

(on album "Midnight Scorchers", released 2022)

Popular culture

*Jay-Z's version of the song was used in the trailer for the 2007 film '' American Gangster'', in a 2011

Chrysler Stellantis North America (officially FCA US and formerly Chrysler ()) is one of the " Big Three" automobile manufacturers in the United States, headquartered in Auburn Hills, Michigan. It is the American subsidiary of the multinational automoti ...

commercial, as the theme song for the CBS series ''

NYC 22 ''NYC 22'' (pronounced NYC 2-2) is an American police procedural drama television series that aired on CBS from April 15 to August 11, 2012, as a mid-season replacement for '' CSI: Miami''. On May 13, 2012, CBS canceled the series after one seas ...

'' and a

Crown Royal Crown Royal, also known as Seagram's Crown Royal, is a blended Canadian whisky brand created by Seagram and owned by Diageo since 2000. Production of Crown Royal is done at Gimli, Manitoba, while the blending and bottling of the whisky are done ...

commercial in 2013. *The song is featured in the 2009 video game

DJ Hero ''DJ Hero'' is a music video game, developed by FreeStyleGames and published by Activision as a rhythm game spin-off of the '' Guitar Hero'' franchise. It was released on October 27, 2009 in North America and on October 29, 2009 in Europe. The g ...

, in "mashed-up" form. *The song is played over the opening credits of the 2019 Norwegian

time-travel Time travel is the concept of movement between certain points in time, analogous to movement between different points in space by an object or a person, typically with the use of a hypothetical device known as a time machine. Time travel is a w ...

fantasy

comedy-drama Comedy drama, also known by the portmanteau ''dramedy'', is a genre of dramatic works that combines elements of comedy and drama. The modern, scripted-television examples tend to have more humorous bits than simple comic relief seen in a typical ...

television series ''

Beforeigners ''Beforeigners'' is a Norwegian television series that premiered on 21 August 2019. The show was created and written by Eilif Skodvin and Anne Bjørnstad, and directed by Jens Lien. Produced by Rubicon TV AS for HBO Nordic, it is the first Norwe ...

''. *The song is featured on the soundtracks to the 2009 film ''

Fighting Combat ( French for ''fight'') is a purposeful violent conflict meant to physically harm or kill the opposition. Combat may be armed (using weapons) or unarmed ( not using weapons). Combat is sometimes resorted to as a method of self-defense, or ...

'', the 2011 crime drama ''

The Lincoln Lawyer ''The Lincoln Lawyer'' is a 2005 novel, the 16th by American crime writer Michael Connelly. It introduces Los Angeles attorney Mickey Haller, half-brother of Connelly's mainstay character Detective Hieronymus "Harry" Bosch. It was adapted as ...

'' and is also featured in the 2017 movie '' The Hitman’s Bodyguard''. *The song is featured in episode 5 of

Sex Education Sex education, also known as sexual education, sexuality education or sex ed, is the instruction of issues relating to human sexuality, including emotional relations and responsibilities, human sexual anatomy, Human sexual activity, sexual acti ...

. *The song is also featured in season five of the Netflix series,

Last Chance U ''Last Chance U'' is an American documentary streaming television series that is produced and premiered by Netflix. The six-episode first season explores the football program at East Mississippi Community College, which features several colleg ...

, which focuses on the lives of Laney College football players and staff within Oakland, CA.

Charts

Whitesnake

References

{{authority control 1974 songs 1978 songs Whitesnake songs Hard rock ballads Rhythm and blues ballads United Artists Records singles Geffen Records singles EMI Records singles Liberty Records singles