Love Is Strong by the Rolling Stones opened the Voodoo Lounge album in 1994 and won three MTV Video Music Awards, including Best Cinematography, making it one of the most visually celebrated rock videos of the decade.
Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, it combined a dense harmonica-driven riff with production that brought the Stones back to a raw blues-rock sound after years of more polished releases.
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| Song | Love Is Strong |
| Artist | The Rolling Stones |
| Album | Voodoo Lounge (1994) |
| Written by | Mick Jagger, Keith Richards |
| Produced by | Don Was, The Rolling Stones |
| Released | 1994 |
| Genre | Rock, Blues Rock |
| Record Label | Virgin Records |
| Chart Peak | #14 UK Singles Chart |
Table of Contents
Background and History
The Rolling Stones formed in London in 1962 and became one of the longest-running acts in rock history.
The band features Jagger on vocals, Richards on guitar, Ronnie Wood on guitar, and Charlie Watts on drums.
Voodoo Lounge was the first album recorded without founding bassist Bill Wyman, who had departed the previous year.
The album was produced by Don Was, who worked to pull the band back toward a grittier sound rooted in their blues and rock and roll origins.
Love Is Strong was chosen as the lead single, its opening harmonica figure and dense rhythm establishing the album’s sonic direction immediately.
Love Is Strong and the Recording Story
Love Is Strong opens with a harmonica phrase by Jagger that sets a heavy, blues-drenched tone before the full band enters.
Richards’s guitar work drives the track with the rhythmic authority that defines the Stones at their best.
Don Was’s production gives the track a dry, close-miked quality that emphasizes the raw interaction between the instruments rather than layering in studio gloss.
That approach produced a track that felt both contemporary and rooted in the band’s classic 1960s and 1970s sound.
It stood alongside other blues-influenced rock of the era, including the hard-driving energy of Thunderstruck by AC/DC and the confessional directness of One by U2.
Love Is Strong and Chart Success
Love Is Strong reached number fourteen on the UK Singles Chart and charted in multiple European markets.
Voodoo Lounge debuted at number one in more than ten countries including the United Kingdom.
The album was certified platinum multiple times in the United States and United Kingdom.
The music video, directed by David Fincher, featured giant-sized band members walking through the streets of New York City in a visual style that became immediately iconic.
It won MTV Video Music Awards for Best Cinematography, Best Art Direction, and Best Editing in 1994.
The Voodoo Lounge World Tour, which accompanied the album, became one of the highest-grossing concert tours of the decade.
Lasting Legacy of Love Is Strong
Love Is Strong is remembered as one of the Stones’ most visually striking singles and a confident return to form.
The David Fincher video established a benchmark for ambitious rock music video production in the mid-1990s.
Its opening harmonica riff remains one of the most recognizable in the band’s catalog of 1990s work.
The album it introduced, Voodoo Lounge, is consistently ranked among the best late-career Stones records.
The single demonstrated that a band in their fourth decade could produce work that competed visually and sonically with acts half their age.
That combination of artistic credibility and commercial reach helped the band maintain their position as rock’s most durable institution through the decade.
Watch the Official Video
Frequently Asked Questions
FAQ
- Who directed the Love Is Strong video?
- David Fincher directed the video, which features giant-sized band members walking through New York City streets, winning three MTV Video Music Awards including Best Cinematography in 1994.
- What album is it from?
- It is the opening track on Voodoo Lounge, released on Virgin Records in July 1994 and produced by Don Was and the Rolling Stones, the first album recorded without founding bassist Bill Wyman.
- How did Voodoo Lounge chart?
- The album debuted at number one in more than ten countries including the United Kingdom and was certified platinum multiple times, while the accompanying world tour became one of the highest-grossing of the decade.
- Who produced Voodoo Lounge?
- Don Was produced the album, working to return the band to a grittier, blues-rooted sound after several more polished releases, using close-miked production that emphasized the raw interaction between instruments.
- What chart position did Love Is Strong reach?
- The single reached number fourteen on the UK Singles Chart and charted across multiple European markets, while the video received heavy MTV rotation following its three Video Music Award wins.
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With a harmonica riff, a David Fincher video, and a production philosophy that stripped the sound back to its blues-rock core, Love Is Strong by the Rolling Stones proved that five decades into their career, the band could still open an album with a track that demanded attention.