“Who Do You Love” is a blues standard, notably covered by George Thorogood and the Destroyers. Thorogood’s energetic rendition, fueled by his powerful vocals and slide guitar, propelled the song to rock anthem status. The lyrics, filled with vivid imagery and dark humor, tell a captivating story of a rebellious and enigmatic character. Let’s explore the lyrical content of this blues rock classic.
The song opens with striking visuals: “I walked forty-seven miles of barbed wire, I got a cobra snake for a necktie.” These lines immediately establish the protagonist as a tough, perhaps even dangerous, individual. The imagery continues with a “brand new house on the road side, and it’s a-made out of rattlesnake hide.” This reinforces the theme of danger and wildness, establishing a distinctly bluesy atmosphere. The macabre image of a chimney “made outta human skull” adds a further layer of darkness and eccentricity to the narrative.
The repeated question, “Who do you love?” serves as both a chorus and a challenge. It’s not a simple question of romance, but rather a demand for loyalty and a declaration of the protagonist’s unique identity. The lyrics suggest a character who lives by his own rules, unbound by societal norms. He boasts of using a “rattlesnake whip” and having a “tombstone hand and a graveyard mind.” This imagery evokes a sense of mortality and a disregard for conventional life. The line “I’m just twenty-two and I don’t mind dying” further emphasizes this reckless attitude.
The introduction of Arlene offers a brief moment of potential connection. However, her question “Lonesome George you don’t understand, who do you love?” suggests a fundamental disconnect between them. George’s response is a chaotic scene of a runaway wagon crashing, reinforcing the wild and unpredictable nature of his world.
The song returns to the recurring images of the tombstone hand, graveyard mind, and the defiant declaration of being “twenty-two and I don’t mind dying.” The final verses reiterate the opening lines, emphasizing the cyclical nature of the protagonist’s life and the enduring power of the central question, “Who do you love?” Thorogood’s growling vocals and driving guitar riffs amplify the song’s raw energy and rebellious spirit, cementing its place as a rock and roll classic. The enduring popularity of “Who Do You Love” speaks to the timeless appeal of blues-infused rock and roll and the enduring fascination with characters who live on the edge.
