Back to my favourite decade then, 1982 saw this at 38 - ah now ye’re talkin’!
Title: “Here I Go Again”
Artist: Whitesnake
Nationality: English
Genre: Hard Rock, Blues Rock
Written by: David Coverdale, Bernie Marsden
Original release date: October 1982
Highest chart position (at time of writing): 34 (re-released in 1987 and hit number 1 in the US and 9 in the UK)
Chart position (at time of writing): 38
Progress, if any, at time of writing: Rising
From the album: Saints & Sinners
What do I know about this artist? Ah, Whitesnake! Many was the night I listened to
Live.. In the Heart of the City, Lovehunter, Come an’ Get It or
Slide it in! Good times, good times. One of the premier British hair metal bands of the 1980s, then Coverdale had to get all up himself and that was that. Marsden slays though.
What do I think of this single? Love it. It’s a classic power ballad with real punch, and who doesn’t remember Coverdale’s uber-sexy wife in the video? Ah. Might just have to go watch it just one more time. For research, you understand, of course.
What have I learned about this single? Nothing I didn’t really know already. I knew it was re-released five years later and was far more successful, with for some reason the word “hobo” in the chorus being changed to “drifter”, and I always wondered if it was because the word was being mistaken for “homo”? Seems odd, but there you go. Great song, and Coverdale could really belt the tunes out back then. Still, despite the sexy video I have to say I prefer the original: there’s more honesty, more soul and aching need in this one, whereas the ‘87 version is polished to the nines and you get more of the confident swagger, whereas here he seems much more down to earth. Oh well, whichever version you prefer, it’s a killer song, the likes of which we will probably never hear again.
My rating: A+++