Is This Love - 2018 Remaster

This mid-tempo rocker shows the sensitive side of Whitesnake's frontman David Coverdale, who wrote the song with guitarist John Sykes. Missing the typical Whitesnake swagger, the song finds Coverdale waiting by the phone for his girlfriend to call. Whitesnake was the name of several of Coverdale's solo projects after he left Deep Purple. This version of the group was breaking up when the single was released; Coverdale had to put together another band to go on the road to promote it.

"Is This Love?" is one of many big ballads of this era that were huge hits for rockers better known for loud guitars and lascivious lyrics. Also in 1987, we had "Love Bites" by Def Leppard and "Wait" by White Lion. The next year gave us "Every Rose Has Its Thorn" by Poison and "The Flame" by Cheap Trick. For many of these bands, the ballads were their biggest hits, but Whitesnake is better known for "Here I Go Again," which went to #1 in the US. "Is This Love?" was the follow-up single, reaching #2, held back by George Michael's "Faith."

The videos for both "Is This Love?" and "Here I Go Again" feature actress/model and Coverdale girlfriend Tawny Kitaen, one of the most popular video vixens on MTV. Both videos take place at 5:55 in the morning on city streets filled with fog. Kitaen also appears in the Whitesnake videos for "Still Of The Night" and "Fool For Your Loving."