(Love) Compared with You

1976 song by Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel May 2020 February 2015 (Love) Compared with You Steve Harley (Love) Compared With You 1976 USA Single.jpeg single Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel Love's a Prima Donna Too Much Tenderness 1977 Pop, rock 3:33 EMI Records Steve Harley Steve Harley (I Believe) Love's a Prima Donna 1976 The Best Years of Our Lives (live) 1977 "(Love) Compared with You" is a song by the British rock band Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, released in 1977 as the third and final single from the band's fifth studio album, Love's a Prima Donna (1976). Released as a single in North America only, the song was written and produced by Harley. Background Following the UK Top 50 entry of Love's a Prima Donna'''s second single, "(I Believe) Love's a Prima Donna", plans were made for "(Love) Compared with You" to be released as the third single in the UK. However, EMI Records decided to cancel the release at the last minute. Although the UK release was scrapped, EMI chose to release the song as the album's only single in North America in 1977.Also Possible Gavin Report 11 March 1977 1142 14 Along with the rest of Love's a Prima Donna, the song was recorded at Abbey Road Studios, sometime between June and September 1976.Love's a Prima Donna - sleeve notes - original vinyl album - EMI Records - ST11596 English violinist Wilfred Gibson, who contributed to choir and orchestral arrangements on the album, scored the string section for the track. Harley stated in 2020 that bassist George Ford's playing on the song was both "exemplary" and "exceptional", and that "any teacher would want to offer that part as a lesson to a student".Stewart Griffin https://www.mixcloud.com/radio7stewart/the-cockney-rebel-connections-show-programme-92-george-ford-the-cockney-rebel-years/ The Cockney Rebel Connections Show. Show 92: George Ford - The Cockney Rebel Years Mixcloud 12 September 2025 Speaking to Melody Makers Harvey Kubernik in February 1977, Harley spoke of the song, revealing: "'(Love) Compared with You' is the first out-and-out love song I've written. I'd been trying for three years."Some of the fans' poetry puts me to shame - Steve Harley interview by Harvey Kubernik - Melody Maker - February 1977 2020 re-recording In 2020, Harley released a new recording of the song as the opening track on his sixth solo studio album Uncovered. This version, re-titled "Compared with You (Your Eyes Don't Seem to Age)", features a newly-written third verse, replacing the original's repeat of the first verse. Harley revealed to BBC Radio 2's Johnnie Walker in 2020, "I've sung the song [live] many hundreds of times since 1976 [and] every time I'm thinking 'Why are you repeating [the first] verse? Why didn't you write a third verse? Were you lazy? Were you out of words?' 45 years later and I thought the song deserved an update."https://www.bbc.co.uk/sounds/play/m000dqqp Sounds of the 70s with Johnnie Walker - Steve Harley - BBC Sounds Bbc.co.uk 2020-02-25 Harley's engineer and co-producer Matt Butler suggested Harley write a third verse and re-record the song for Uncovered. Harley wrote the new verse one morning in June during his 10-day residency at Rockfield Studios, where Uncovered was being recorded. Speaking of the inspiration behind the verse, Harley told the Cat Tales podcast in 2022, "My dad was being cremated in Bury St Edmunds that morning. He wanted a private ceremony with nobody there. It was 8.30 in the morning and I sat outside the studio in the Welsh cornfields and thought about my dad. 20 minutes later I walked back in, the guys were cooking breakfast, and I said to Matt, 'I've got that verse now'. And I don't know now whether I was writing about my dad or my wife. Or, as my dad [had] passed away, I was thinking about [my] ancient, early relationships. I was thinking about my childhood, my young manhood, and I was thinking about some other girlfriends and relationships. So you never know what's inspiring the words but the narrator [in the song] is clearly in a romantic and reflective mood. He says 'I know we've reached a stage', but he doesn't say what stage you're at. I like to leave things to the imagination."https://www.cattales.co.uk/109-the-one-with-steve-harley/ 109: The one with Steve Harley cattales.co.uk 1 February 2022 5 February 2022 Release "(Love) Compared with You" was released by EMI Records on 7" vinyl in the US and Canada only.http://www.harleyfanzone.com/Discs/Prima.html Love's A Prima Donna Harleyfanzone.com 2013-06-29 dead https://web.archive.org/web/20141121021956/http://harleyfanzone.com/Discs/Prima.html 21 November 2014 The B-side, "Too Much Tenderness", was written and produced by Harley, and also taken from Love's a Prima Donna. For its release as a single, "(Love) Compared with You" was cut down by almost a minute. A promotional edition of the single was also released, which placed the A-side on both sides of the vinyl; one in stereo and one in mono. Neither release featured a picture sleeve, but used a generic one instead. Following its original release on the Love's a Prima Donna album, and as a single, the song has also appeared on a number of Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel compilations including 1987's Greatest Hits,Guarisco Donald A. https://www.allmusic.com/album/greatest-hits-emi-mw0000844672 Greatest Hits [EMI] - Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards AllMusic 2013-06-29 1998's More Than Somewhat – The Very Best of Steve Harley,https://www.allmusic.com/album/more-than-somewhat-the-very-best-of-steve-harley-mw0000471886 More Than Somewhat: The Very Best of Steve Harley - Steve Harley : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards AllMusic 2013-06-29 1999's The Cream of Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel, and 2006's The Cockney Rebel – A Steve Harley Anthology.https://www.allmusic.com/album/cockney-rebel-a-steve-harley-anthology-mw0000554602 Cockney Rebel: A Steve Harley Anthology - Steve Harley : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards AllMusic 2006-10-02 2013-06-29 Critical reception In a review of Love's a Prima Donna, Geoff Barton of Sounds described "(Love) Compared with You" as "balladic" and highlighted the "lovely line "Like a waterfall you tingle me with your love". He added: "This one comes across extremely well, building into an all-encompassing entity and ending with the tear-jerking lines 'I love you - I'm in love with you' echoing away into the distance."http://www.harleyfanzone.com/70/Scrapbook/Reviews/Prima_Donna/Dark_Clouds.htm Dark Clouds Harleyfanzone.com 2013-06-29 https://web.archive.org/web/20160304124141/http://www.harleyfanzone.com/70/Scrapbook/Reviews/Prima_Donna/Dark_Clouds.htm 4 March 2016 dead Paul Phillips of National RockStar magazine picked the song as one of "two tracks which work, not because they are simple songs, but because they are simply presented".http://www.harleyfanzone.com/70/Scrapbook/Reviews/Prima_Donna/Falls_Flat.htm Prima Donna Falls Flat Harleyfanzone.com 2013-06-29 https://web.archive.org/web/20160304101717/http://www.harleyfanzone.com/70/Scrapbook/Reviews/Prima_Donna/Falls_Flat.htm 4 March 2016 dead American magazine Billboard picked the song and the title track as the album's best cuts.Billboard Top Album Picks https://books.google.com/books?id=7kQEAAAAMBAJ&pg=PT82 29 January 1977 Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 82 In a 1976 issue of the EMI Records Weekly News magazine Music Talk, Rex Anderson compared the song with the title track: "'(Love) Compared with You' is the first real highpoint of the album and possibly one of the best things Steve has written to date. It contrasts with all his other work in that it is romantic and dreamy. It is a love hymn with beautifully gentle acoustic guitar, piano, and strings." Later in the review, Anderson also praised Tony Rivers for his vocal arrangements on the song and title track.http://www.harleyfanzone.com/70/Scrapbook/Reviews/Prima_Donna/music_talk_read.htm Love's A Prima Donna Harleyfanzone.com 2013-06-29 https://web.archive.org/web/20160304192802/http://www.harleyfanzone.com/70/Scrapbook/Reviews/Prima_Donna/music_talk_read.htm 4 March 2016 dead In a retrospective review, Donald A. Guarisco of AllMusic commented that it was one of "Harley's finest songs" and described it as a "delicately orchestrated love ballad that manages to be touching and heartfelt without lapsing into sappy sentimentality".Guarisco Donald A. https://www.allmusic.com/album/loves-a-prima-donna-mw0000844439 Love's a Prima Donna - Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards AllMusic 2013-06-29 Guarisco spoke of the song again in a review of the 1987 Greatest Hits compilation, noting it was a "delicate, subtly orchestrated tune where Harley drops his yen for surrealistic lyrics to communicate in direct and elegantly romantic terms". Live performances The song has been performed live during Harley and the band's concerts over the years.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0re2sFfDugU Steve Harley- Love Compared To You YouTube 2013-06-29https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3c91lxkU6Jk Steve Harley & Cockney Rebel - (Love) Compared With You YouTube 2010-12-19 2013-06-29Steve Harley – Love Compared To You – December 13th 2012 – HMV Forum London UK – YouTube As a result, live versions of the song have been recorded and released. A version appeared on the band's 1977 live album Face to Face: A Live Recording,Thompson Dave https://www.allmusic.com/album/face-to-face-mw0000092492 Face to Face - Steve Harley : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards AllMusic 2013-06-29 while an acoustic version later appeared on Harley's 1999 album Stripped to the Bare Bones.Thomas Stephen https://www.allmusic.com/album/stripped-to-bare-bones-mw0000248971 Stripped to Bare Bones - Steve Harley : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards AllMusic 1999-08-03 2013-06-29 In 2010, Harley supported the Children in Need charity by auctioning a personal mini-concert at the winning bidder's home, as well as a signed guitar and a lavish dinner. A German fan won the auction with the bid of $15,000. In December that year, it was revealed that Harley was set to travel to the fan's home to play their requested song, which was "(Love) Compared with You".http://www.contactmusic.com/news/harley-to-perform-at-fans-home-for-charity_1188458 Harley To Perform at Fan's Home For Charity Contactmusic.com 2010-12-08 2013-06-29 Track listing7-inch single (US)"(Love) Compared with You" (Stereo) – 3:33 "Too Much Tenderness" – 4:167-inch promotional single (US and Canada)"(Love) Compared with You" (Mono) – 3:33 "(Love) Compared with You" (Stereo) – 3:33 PersonnelSteve Harley & Cockney Rebel Steve Harley – vocals, guitar Jim Cregan – guitar, backing vocals Duncan Mackay – keyboards George Ford – bass, backing vocals Stuart Elliott – drums Lindsay Elliott – percussionAdditional musicians Tony Rivers – backing vocals, backing vocal arrangement John G. Perry – backing vocals Stuart Calver – backing vocals Wilfred Gibson – string section scoreProduction''' Steve Harley – producer Tony Clark – sound engineer Pat Stapley – assistant sound engineer Ken Perry – mastering References Category:1976 songs Category:1977 singles Category:EMI Records singles Category:Steve Harley songs Category:Songs written by Steve Harley Category:Song recordings produced by Steve Harley