For Your Love Songs Ranked

“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. Guitarist Eric Clapton disapproved of the change and it influenced him to leave the group. Shortly after its release by Columbia on 5 March 1965, it became a hit in the UK. When it was released a month later by Epic Records in the US, it became the group’s first charting single. By then, Clapton had already left the group for various reasons, including their more commercial aspirations. Here are all of For Your Love songs ranked.

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11. Got to hurry

“An instrumental written by the manager, Giorgio Gomelsky, under the pseudonym Rasputin. The thing is, Gomelski hardly knew how to play the door, except on the guitar, so it’s hard to believe that he created this riff, simple as it may be. So possibly this instrumental is neither more nor less than the first song written by Eric Clapton without any help.”

10. I Ain’t Done Wrong

“The song is very basic, and it is definitely Keith who puts the whole song together with the strong vocal melody and hints of harmonica. After Keith, you have to follow Jim McCarty, who does a great job on the drums to bring this song to life, which, otherwise, does not have much. We have Jeff on guitar, but he doesn’t seem to feel comfortable or exploit his potential.”

9. I Wish You Would

“I Wish You Would” by Billy Boy Arnold is another fierce and compact R&B, where the Yardbirds once again have the luxury of “hiding” the ability of their great guitarist. The good thing is that this time the harmonica takes the song and teaches performance. “

See more: The Yardbirds Albums Ranked

8. My Girl Sloopy

“The song is fun, and Beck’s guitar is again wasted in pursuit of a commercial tune and more of the Isley Brothers style. But there’s tons of fun, they turn up the intensity, then they turn the tune down almost to silence, they do third voices, then that “Twist & Shout” type of climb and it’s all really harmless fun.”

7. Good Morning Little Schoolgirls

“It is also a more commercial rockanrolite and in the same light sense. What saves it is that it is much more fun, it has an entertaining harmonica, a good vocal harmony and another good Clapton solo at 1:20, which starts by holding a tone for several seconds in an exceptional way.”

6. I ain’t got you

“I Ain’t Got You” is a simple, compact and very well executed R&B. Here you can hear hints of Eric’s solos at minute 1, but Keith’s harmonica ends up highlighting more. But the song shows a good group work, with the voice supporting the song at times and then those catchy finishes from the whole group.”

See more: The Yardbirds Songs Ranked

5. Sweet music

“Then comes “Sweet Music”, a pop ballad in the style of “For Your Love”, but more cheesy and less intelligent. It’s the Yardbirds trying to shake off their blues-savvy, intellectual fanbase a bit, but with few pennies in their pants, and instead win over screaming teens with rich daddies.”

4. Putty (In Your Hands)

“A fun and almost harmless song. I say “almost” because of that intoxicating riff that Eric does, and the superb lowering of Paul Samwell-Smith on the bridges. Other than that, the song is simple and pure fun.”

3. A Certain Girl

“In “A Certain Girl”Eric remembers that he is a guitar wizard. The song is very catchy, maybe the other side of the “smart” pop that “For Your Love” represents, but it is impossible to get the melody and the riff and the rhythm and the way the rest of the band answers “I can ‘. t tell ya … “and then that one like” uhhhh … “of disappointment. Pure fun”

2. I’m not talking

“The requintos are first class for the time, wild, with a lot of distortion, with a refined technique, and it is perfect how they go at full speed and suddenly they all stop for Beck to stretch the strings in a delicious effect. It is not at the top of its capacity, but it shows a more experimental and wild style, although still based on blues. Too bad Clapton had rather little opportunity to shine in solos like this.”

1. For your love

“The album opens with “For Your Love”perhaps the most emblematic song of the Yardbirds, the most famous, but also the one that led Eric to resign from the group because he was turning to a more commercial and pop sound than the pure R&B that he preferred. Nor is it that we can tear our clothes for the departure of Eric from the Yardbirds: thanks to that, we were able to listen to a hitherto unknown Jeff Beck.”