1987 Power Ballad, Originally Written for Another Music Icon, Became a Defining Love Anthem 39 Years Ago
In 1987, Whitesnake released a hit power ballad that became a staple love song for fans and one of their biggest concert crowd pleasers.
The theme of love has been central to some of the music genre's greatest hits, and Whitesnake's "Is This Love" is no different. The track was released 39 years ago on May 18 as the second single of their self-titled album. It was a success for the band, landing at No. 2 on the Billboard Hot 100 charts after the chart-topping hit "Here I Go Again" was released years earlier.
UltimateClassicRock even tags "Is This Love" as one of the best power ballads of all time at No. 29 on their list. Ever since its release, it's been a mainstay for the band at their live concerts and has been rereleased several times as part of their live albums. Believe it or not, "Is This Love" was never written or intended to be sung by Whitesnake.
The power ballad was written by vocalist David Coverdale and guitarist John Sykes during the early days of their album, which they worked on in the South of France. According to American Songwriter, the song was originally written and intended for music legend Tina Turner. Coverdale revealed in one of the band's YouTube videos in 2022 that he got a call from friends at EMI Records looking for new material for Turner.
"My friends and associates at EMI Records were looking for songs to follow up Tina's astonishing success story. The album with ‘What's Love Got to Do With It' was huge. Global. And they were looking for songs, and they knew I was going away to do the old correlation of song ideas and said, ‘If you come up with anything that you think might be good for Tina'-because they knew I was a huge fan-‘let us know,'" he explained.
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The two band members soon jetted off to France to work on new songs, with Coverdale admitting he liked working during the day, while Sykes would stay up into the late hours of the night. Coverdale remembers how the guitarist staggered into the room in the middle of the day with coffee and heard the working demo of "Is This Love."
"And he said, ‘Oh, what's that? That's nice.' I said, ‘It's not for us, it's for Tina Turner,'" he recalled.
When producer David Geffen heard the demo, he was the one to tell Coverdale the track would stay with Whitesnake and become their next hit. "Is This Love" went through its doubts by Coverdale, who felt the keyboard notes gave the track a pop feel that fans weren't used to from the band. The track did ruffle some feathers, but undoubtedly became a staple for the band.
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This story was originally published May 20, 2026 at 7:43 AM.