| "Love in Vain" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single by Robert Johnson | |
| Released | 1939 |
| Recorded | Dallas, Texas, June 20, 1937 |
| Genre | Blues |
| Length | 2:25 |
| Label | Vocalion |
| Songwriter(s) | Robert Johnson[1][a] |
| Producer(s) | Don Law |
"Love in Vain" (originally "Love in Vain Blues") is a blues song written by American musician Robert Johnson. Johnson's performance – vocal accompanied by his finger-style acoustic guitar playing – has been described as "devastatingly bleak". He recorded the song in 1937 during his last recording session and in 1939 it was issued as the last of his original 78 rpm records.
"Love in Vain" has elements of earlier Delta blues songs and for a while it was believed to be in the public domain. In 1969, the Rolling Stones recorded an updated rendition featuring an electric slide guitar solo. The popularity of their adaptation led to a lawsuit over the copyright, which was eventually resolved in favor of Johnson's estate. Various artists have recorded the song.
- ^ Cite error: The named reference
Courtwas invoked but never defined (see the help page). - ^ Waxman 1970, Back cover.
Cite error: There are <ref group=lower-alpha> tags or {{efn}} templates on this page, but the references will not show without a {{reflist|group=lower-alpha}} template or {{notelist}} template (see the help page).