Notes and Quotes: "For Your Love"

Jeff Beck with the Yardbirds on Ready, Steady, Go!

Graham Gouldman's tune probably started out as an expression of British blues. His chord choices — with major chords built on the flatted third and sixth — imitates one kind of blues harmonic progression. The introduction of the harpsichord into the recording, however, totally transforms the recording from blues to pop.

This was the straw that apparently broke the camel's back. Tensions between Clapton and Samwell-Smith had been increasing with Clapton aiming for more blues and Samwell-Smith aiming for commercial success (Clayson 1995:171). Clapton appears on this recording, but only on the chorus. This was his last Yardbirds recording. Jeff Beck (pictured above) replaces him immediately.

Clapton: Sam did his first [Otis Redding's “Your One and Only Man”] and everyone just said "Oh, that’s it. No need to try yours." So I thought, "‘Fucking Hell!" and I got really upset and bore a grudge, and I think that day when they said it I actually made up my mind that I wasn’t going to play with them anymore. (Schumacher 44-45)

The sound of the recording is dramatically different than their other recordings and marks a move in 1965 on the part of many blues performers to what they believed was a more exotic and sophisticated sound.

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29 February, 2012