So Much For Love

Album: Pearl Harbor And The Explosions (1980)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • "So Much for Love" is a song by San Francisco's trailblazing new wave band Pearl Harbor & the Explosions. From their 1980 self-titled debut, the song takes a cynical look at love, portraying a cold and empty relationship. Written by guitarist Peter Bilt with additional lyrics by frontwoman Pearl Harbor, the song's message is clear: Love can go sour.

    In a Songfacts interview with Pearl Harbor, she explained: "Peter Bilt from The Explosions actually wrote the song, including most of the lyrics. I just added some additional lyrics and changed some of his around. He came up with the title and arrangement. I suppose you could say that the lyrics speak for themselves – it's about love gone wrong."
  • Susanna Hoffs, the singer and guitarist of the Bangles, added a funky spin to "So Much for Love" on her 1991 solo debut album, When You're a Boy. The idea came from David Kahne, her producer, who also produced the original version by Pearl Harbor & the Explosions.

    "So Much for Love" wasn't the only cover on When You're a Boy. Hoffs also covered David Bowie's "Boys Keep Swinging," even using a line from the song for the album's title.
  • After the breakup of Pearl Harbor & the Explosions, Harbor relocated to London and launched a solo career. There, she met and married Paul Simonon, the bassist for The Clash. Their marriage lasted seven years.

    Looking back on her London days, Harbor told Songfacts: "It was fantastic and I had a blast. The music scene in London was amazing and we went out to see live music every week. I was so lucky to be there at that time."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Facebook, Bromance and Email - The First Songs To Use New Words

Facebook, Bromance and Email - The First Songs To Use New WordsSong Writing

Where words like "email," "thirsty," "Twitter" and "gangsta" first showed up in songs, and which songs popularized them.

Stand By Me: The Perfect Song-Movie Combination

Stand By Me: The Perfect Song-Movie CombinationSong Writing

In 1986, a Stephen King novella was made into a movie, with a classic song serving as title, soundtrack and tone.

Adele

AdeleFact or Fiction

Despite her reticent personality, Adele's life and music are filled with intrigue. See if you can spot the true tales.

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"Songwriter Interviews

Ian talks about his 3 or 4 blatant attempts to write a pop song, and also the ones he most connected with, including "Locomotive Breath."

John Lee Hooker

John Lee HookerSongwriter Interviews

Into the vaults for Bruce Pollock's 1984 conversation with the esteemed bluesman. Hooker talks about transforming a Tony Bennett classic and why you don't have to be sad and lonely to write the blues.

Al Jourgensen of Ministry

Al Jourgensen of MinistrySongwriter Interviews

In the name of song explanation, Al talks about scoring heroin for William Burroughs, and that's not even the most shocking story in this one.