In their early years, Whitesnake played in a hard-edged blues rock and heavy metal influenced style. By the mid-80s, the band had moved towards a more commercially friendly arena rock and pop metal ethos, garnering them major hits such as "Love Ain't No Stranger", "Now You're Gone", "Slide It In", "Still of the Night", and the iconic tune "Here I Go Again" (arguably their 'signature song'). They were named the 85th greatest hard rock band of all time by VH1.
Whitesnake were active primarily in the 80s, but they still tour, albeit with an entirely new line-up (bar Coverdale), to this day. Some of the most famous musicians who have joined the band for a time include Jon Lord, Ian Paice, Cozy Powell, Neil Murray, Bernie Marsden, Micky Moody, Rudy Sarzo, John Sykes, Adrian Vandenberg, Vivian Campbell, Tommy Aldridge, and Steve Vai.
The band's early material has been compared by critics to Deep Purple. This is not only because three past members of the band were once in Deep Purple but also because of their sound and influences. Later, the band took on a sound more in line with the hair metal style popular in the mid to late 80s, but they never truly left their heavy, blues rock roots behind
Formed in 1978 by David Coverdale after leaving Deep Purple, Whitesnake were originally a straightforwards heavy rock group with Jon Lord and Ian Paice from Deep Purple in the band. Despite a few album releases and constant touring, Whitesnake was unable to attain any significant commercial success in America, though becoming popular in the U.K., Europe, and Japan. Their critical reviews as well for their albums were somewhat mixed.
After acquaintance with Chris Cuttler, Fred Frith and most importantly, young guitarist John Sykes, David Coverdale decided to turn to a slicker, more commercially viable sound. Whitesnake made their first major splash in the States in 1984 with the album 'Slide It In', featuring the self-titled single as well as rock tracks "Slow An' Easy" and "Love Ain't No Stranger". All three of them gained major airplay and were eaten up by fans. Sykes was not involved in any of the song writing for 'Slide It In', though re-did some of Micky Moody's guitar work in the American remastering of the U.K. version of the album.
Three years later, thanks to radio-friendly, Zeppelin-ish songwriting and MTV friendly Tawny Kitaen's automobile acrobatics, Whitesnake became superstars with the album 'Whitesnake' (titled '1987' in Europe, and 'Serpens Albus' in Japan). Containing the U.S. smash hits "Here I Go Again", "Is This Love", "Still of the Night" and others, the album eventually sold over 10 million copies. Coverdale replaced the entire band for the subsequent tour, ditching Sykes for guitarists Adrian Vandenberg and Vivian Campbell. Also joining the band at this point were bassist Rudy Sarzo and drummer Tommy Aldridge.
Campbell left shortly after the tour (going on to replace Steve Clark in Def Leppard. Vandenberg, despite penning most of the material on the follow-up album, was unable to record due to a freak wrist injury. Guitar virtuoso Steve Vai was brought in to record all of the guitar parts for Slip of the Tongue, which was released in the spring of 1989. Despite going platinum, the album did not reach the stratospheric heights of Whitesnake (entitled 1987 in Europe, and Serpens Albus in Japan). With a divorce looming, and the alternative 'grunge' movement threatening to destroy the melodic rock movement, Coverdale dissolved Whitesnake.
In the late 90s, David Coverdale and Adrian Vandenberg finally recorded together again. Initially intended to be a Coverdale solo effort, the Whitesnake name was eventually attached (much like the Tony Iommi/Black Sabbath projects of the late 80s). The resulting products were a new studio album entitled Restless Heart, and the live acoustic set, Starkers In Tokyo.
In the early 2000's Coverdale relaunched Whitesnake fully with an entirely new lineup centred around guitarists Reb Beach and Doug Aldrich (previously of Winger and Lion/Dio). This Whitesnake embarked on tours across the globe, releasing the "Live In the Still of the Night" DVD and "Live... In the Shadow of the Blues" on CD in 2006. A new studio album, "Good to be Bad", was released in 2008 reaching the top 10 in the UK album charts.
Over the last few years Coverdale has been involved in a remastering project which has seen all albums from 1978's Trouble, to 1989's Slip of the Tongue reissued with bonus material.
Whitesnake released Forevermore, on March 25, 2011 in Europe, and on the 29th in North America. They have released a number of scheduled 2011 tour dates on their website, with six scheduled UK tour dates and other European dates. In February 2011, Whitesnake was announced as one of the headliners to play the annual Rocklahoma festival in Pryor, Oklahoma, on Memorial Day weekend. A digital single for the song 'Love Will Set You Free' was released, along with a video for the song, on February 21.
The album Forevermore was released as a special edition 'Snakepack' through Classic Rock magazine on 25 March, a full 3 weeks before its commercial release. The fan pack includes the full, official new album Forevermore, a 132-page magazine, poster and pin badge. On 20 March 2011, Whitesnake announced that Brian Ruedy would play keyboards on the Forevermore World Tour.
The album did not chart highly upon its official release in the UK (number 33, possibly due to the copies released as part of the aforementioned Classic Rock Snakepack, which are not eligible for the charts). It did, however, show signs of Whitesnake's slow rebuild of support in the US with the album charting at number 49 - the band's highest charting album since the 80s.
Doug Aldrich and Reb Beach are Whitesnake longest standing guitar players, both being in the band 10 years by 2012.
Whitesnake are set to embark on their farewell tour in May 2022, beginning in the UK and Ireland with Foreigner and Europe. In July 2021, the group announced the addition of multi-instrumentalist Dino Jelusick to their ranks, turning Whitesnake into a septet for the first time. Later that November, Michael Devin parted ways with the band. He was replaced by Tanya O'Callaghan, marking the first female musician to join the band.
Website: http://www.whitesnake.com/
Looking for Love
Whitesnake Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
An' closing my eyes
I'm asking myself
Why is it all my horizons
Are so far away?
I look in the mirror
Don't like what I see
A stranger is staring at me
Looking for love
The love of a woman
The needs of a man
I try so hard to believe
But I don't understand
The search goes on
But over the mountains
Across the sea
I know love is waiting
I hear it calling to me
Calling my name
I'm looking for love all around me
Looking for love to surround me
The love that I need
To rescue the state of my heart, yeah
Alone again, it's always the same
Well, I've just been marking my time
Since the day I was born
With no one to blame
The candle is burning
It's way down low
I just need someone
To show me the way, the way to go
Which way to go
I'm looking for love all around me
Looking for love to surround me
The love that I need
To rescue the state of my heart
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love to rely on
Looking for love, a shoulder to cry on
I'm looking for love
To rescue the state of my heart
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love to rely on
Looking for love, a shoulder to cry on
I'm looking for love
To rescue the state of my heart
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
Looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love to rely on
Looking for love, a shoulder to cry on
I'm looking for love to rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
Need your love, I need your love
Whitesnake's song "Looking for Love" is a ballad about the search for love and companionship. The singer is tired of waiting, closing his eyes and asking himself why his horizons seem so far away. He takes a hard look in the mirror but doesn't like what he sees, and feels like a stranger is staring back at him. The lyrics convey his sense of loneliness and frustration and his desperate search for someone to share his life with. The repeated refrain of "Looking for love" emphasizes the theme of the song and the feeling of searching endlessly for something that seems just out of reach.
The second verse emphasizes the ambiguity and confusion the singer feels about his search for love. He tries hard to believe, but he doesn't quite understand what he's looking for. He knows love is out there somewhere, but it seems to be just over the mountains or across the sea, elusive and difficult to find. The bridge emphasizes how alone the singer feels, despite his search for love, and the final verse conveys his longing for someone to show him the way and help him find the love he's seeking.
Overall, "Looking for Love" is a poignant and relatable song about the universal human desire for connection and companionship.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm tired of waiting
Expressing the singer's impatience and frustration with their current situation.
An' closing my eyes
The singer has been unwilling to face reality, but is now ready to confront their situation.
I'm asking myself
The singer is beginning to take a more introspective approach and is questioning their own experiences.
Why is it all my horizons
The artist is noticing that their goals and dreams seem to be too far away or unreachable.
Are so far away
This is a continuation of the previous line and emphasizes the artist's feelings of hopelessness and desperation.
I look in the mirror
The singer is seeking self-reflection and trying to understand their own feelings.
Don't like what I see
The singer is unhappy with their current state and wants to change it.
In my reflection
The artist is seeing themselves clearly for the first time.
A stranger is staring at me
The artist feels like they do not know themselves anymore and have become a stranger to themselves.
Looking for love
The artist is searching for something missing from their life.
The love of a woman
The singer is specifically searching for romantic love from a woman.
The needs of a man
The artist is acknowledging their own need for love and companionship.
I try so hard to believe
The singer is struggling to remain optimistic and hopeful despite past disappointments.
But I don't understand
The singer is confused and unable to make sense of their experiences.
The search goes on
The singer continues to look for love and is not giving up.
But over the mountains
The artist knows that love can be found in unexpected places and is willing to explore new possibilities.
Across the sea
This line emphasizes the distance between the artist and their ideal love, but also suggests that it is not impossible to find.
I know love is waiting
The singer is confident that their search will ultimately be successful.
I hear it calling to me
The singer is feeling hopeful and optimistic about finding love.
Calling my name
This is a metaphor for the artist feeling like they are being drawn closer to the love they seek.
Alone again, it's always the same
The artist is acknowledging their own cycle of loneliness and disappointment.
I've just been marking my time
The artist feels like they have been waiting for love to find them instead of actively seeking it out.
Since the day I was born
The singer is emphasizing the duration of their loneliness and longing for love.
With no one to blame
The artist is taking responsibility for their own situation.
The candle is burning
This is a metaphor for the singer's dwindling hope and desire for love.
It's way down low
The singer's hope and desire for love are almost extinguished.
I just need someone
The singer feels a strong need for companionship and support.
To show me the way
The artist is looking for guidance and direction, possibly from a partner or loved one.
The way to go
The artist wants to find their way towards fulfilling their need for love.
I'm looking for love all around me
The singer is actively seeking love in every aspect of their life.
Looking for love to surround me
The singer wants love to permeate every aspect of their life.
The love that I need
The artist is emphasizing their own need for love and companionship.
To rescue the state of my heart, yeah
The artist believes that love will save them from their current state of unhappiness.
An' finding only heartache
The artist is experiencing disappointment and pain in their search for love.
I'm looking for love to rely on
The singer wants to find a partner or loved one to rely on emotionally.
Looking for love, a shoulder to cry on
The artist wants to find someone they can share their pain and vulnerability with.
To rescue the state of my heart
The singer believes that finding love will heal their emotional wounds.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: David Coverdale, John Sykes
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@aymaneboulaid5960
I'm tired of waiting
An' closing my eyes
I'm asking myself
Why is it all my horizons
Are so far away
I look in the mirror
Don't like what I see
In my reflection
A stranger is staring at me
Looking for love
The love of a woman
The needs of a man
I try so hard to believe
But I don't understand
The search goes on
But over the mountains
Across the sea
I know love is waiting
I hear it calling to me
Calling my name
I'm looking for love all around me
Looking for love to surround me
The love that I need
To rescue the state of my heart, yeah
Alone again, it's always the same
I've just been marking my time
Since the day I was born
With no one to blame
The candle is burning
It's way down low
I just need someone
To show me the way, the way to go
Which way to go
I'm looking for love all around me
Looking for love to surround me
The love that I need
To rescue the state of my heart
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love to rely on
Looking for love, a shoulder to cry on
I'm looking for love
To rescue the state of my heart
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love to rely on
Looking for love, a shoulder to cry on
I'm looking for love
To rescue the state of my heart
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love
An' finding only heartache
I'm looking for love to rely on
Looking for love, a shoulder to cry on
I'm looking for love
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
To rescue the state of my heart
@tonymontana-uw1bq
John Sykes on guitar, is just next level awesome..
@sheiladaniels9552
I'm glad I had Whitesnake to listen to as a teen and young adult. Their music got me through some tough times. Still love listening to them at 53.
@sidle
Me too!
@MetalGoddess2791
I'm still listening to them! I just can't get enough. David Coverdale is my Elvis🤩
@acekingdom5050
53 likes here too, coincidence? I think not. You’re 54 now, right? I’ll add one
@kickboxerforever00
They still ARE getting me through
@1badsteed
One of the greatest bands ever
@orkidarrapi1428
Agreed😊
@Denisse1991-
Yes❤
@daniaraudah6798
Vocal, bassist, keyboard, guitar and drum in this song are perfect! 80s sound are evergreen!