Ai n't No Love in the Heart of the City - wikipedia Ai n't No Love in the Heart of the City This article needs additional citations for verification. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. ( July 2016 ) `` Ai n't No Love in the Heart of the City '' is a 1974 R&B song, written by Michael Price and Dan Walsh, and first recorded by Bobby Bland for the ABC Dunhill album Dreamer. While Bland scored a minor hit with the song, landing in the top ten of the R&B charts, it is perhaps best known through cover versions and samples. While it is ostensibly a love song, some critics have also heard it as a lament on urban poverty and hopelessness ; the cover version by reggae singer Al Brown even changes most of the lyrics to magnify this emphasis. The song is featured on the soundtracks to the 2009 film Fighting and the 2011 crime drama The Lincoln Lawyer. Covers and samples `` Ai n't No Love in the Heart of the City '' Single by Whitesnake from the album Live... in the Heart of the City and Snakebite EP B - side `` Take Me With You '' ( Live ) Released 1978 ( studio version ) 1980 ( live version ) Format Vinyl LP Recorded April 7 -- 13, 1978 ( studio version ) November 23, 1978 ( live version ) Genre Hard rock, blues - rock Length 5 : 07 ( studio ) 8 : 18 ( live ) Label United Artists, Geffen, EMI ( studio ) Liberty, Sunburst ( live ) Songwriter ( s ) Michael Price Dan Walsh Producer ( s ) Martin Birch ( both versions ) Whitesnake singles chronology `` Ready an ' Willing '' ( 1980 ) `` Ai n't No Love in the Heart of the City '' ( 1978 ) `` Do n't Break My Heart Again '' ( 1981 ) `` Ready an ' Willing '' ( 1980 ) `` Ai n't No Love In The Heart Of The City '' ( 1978 ) ( 1980 ) `` Do n't Break My Heart Again '' ( 1981 ) A well - known cover of the song is by the hard rock band Whitesnake, who included it on their 1978 debut EP, Snakebite, and again as a live recording on Live... in the Heart of the City. The cover was the new band 's first hit, and it became a staple of their live set. For his 2001 album The Blueprint, rapper Jay - Z recorded the song `` Heart of the City ( Ai n't No Love ), '' a Kanye West - produced track built around a sample of Bobby Bland 's chartmaking rendition. Jay - Z 's song was used in the trailer for the 2007 film American Gangster, in a 2011 Chrysler commercial, as the theme song for the CBS series NYC 22 and a Crown Royal commercial in 2013. The song is featured in the 2009 video game DJ Hero, in `` mashed - up '' form. Other notable cover versions have been recorded by : Allman Brothers ( Blues, 2009 live recording ) Mick Abrahams ( rock, 1996 ) Long John Baldry ( blues, 1977 ) Maggie Bell ( rock, 2004, live recording ) Herman Brood ( rock, Bühnensucht, live recording ) Al Brown ( reggae, mid-1970s ) Joe Budden ( Rap, 2007 ) Café Jacques - on the album Round the Back ' ( rock, 1977 ) Paul Carrack ( Blue - Eyed Soul, Pop / Rock, 2008 ) Willie Clayton ( R&B, 1998, as `` Heart of the City '' ) Mary Coughlan ( jazz, 2002 ) Chris Farlowe ( R&B, 1985 ) Crystal Gayle ( country, 1980 ) Jorn Lande ( hard rock, The Snakes live in Europe 1998 ) Nicky Moore ( blues rock, 2009 ) Ruthless Blues ( blues, 1989 ) Barrett Strong ( R&B, 1976 ) Grady Tate ( jazz, 1977 ) Kate Taylor ( rock, 1979 ) Joey Tempest ( rock / metal, 2003 ) DJ Andrew Unknown & DJ Mekalek ( hip hop / rap ( intro ), 2002 ) Vaya Con Dios ( rock, 2004 ) Paul Weller ( rock, 1998 ) YTcracker ( From the `` STC Is the Greatest '' album, track # 16, `` spamcity '', 2004 ) The Good Earth ( pop / rock, 1994 ) Lukas Graham ( Blue - Eyed Soul, 2012 as '' Daddy, Now That You 're Gone ( Ai n't No Love ) '' ) Jay Z ( on the album The Blueprint, as '' Heart of City ( Ai n't No Love ) '' ) GRiZ ( sampled on the song `` Where 's The Love '' on the album Mad Liberation, 2012 ) Jo Harman And Company ( blues, on the album Live At The Royal Albert Hall Recorded 2013, released 2014 ) Walter `` Wolfman '' Washington ( New Orleans R&B, on 1991 album Sada ) Supersonic Blues Machine ( On the album `` West of flushing south of frisco '' 2016 ) Shane Pacey Trio ( On album, `` Helios '' 2016 ) Zeshan B ( On album, `` Vetted '' 2017 ) References ^ Jump up to : Jo - Ann Greene ( 2001 - 08 - 14 ). `` Ai n't No Love in the Heart of the City - Al Brown : Listen, Appearances, Song Review ''. AllMusic. Retrieved 2013 - 03 - 26. Jump up ^ `` The Lincoln Lawyer ( Soundtrack ) ''. Blogs.indiewire.com. Archived from the original on 2011 - 04 - 07. Retrieved 2011 - 03 - 24. Jump up ^ Hamilton, Andrew ( 1998 - 06 - 02 ). `` Something to Talk About - Willie Clayton : Songs, Reviews, Credits, Awards ''. AllMusic. Retrieved 2013 - 03 - 26. Bobby Bland Studio albums Two Steps from the Blues Here 's the Man ! Live albums Together for the First Time... Live Bobby Bland and B.B. King Together Again... Live Singles `` Farther Up the Road '' `` I 'll Take Care of You '' `` I Pity the Fool '' `` St. James Infirmary Blues '' `` Turn On Your Love Light '' `` Call It Stormy Monday ( But Tuesday Is Just as Bad ) '' `` That 's the Way Love Is '' `` Goin ' Down Slow '' `` Ai n't No Love in the Heart of the City '' Whitesnake David Coverdale Tommy Aldridge Reb Beach Joel Hoekstra Michael Devin Michele Luppi Studio albums Trouble Lovehunter Ready an ' Willing Come an ' Get It Saints & Sinners Slide It In Whitesnake Slip of the Tongue Restless Heart Good to Be Bad Forevermore The Purple Album Live albums Live... in the Heart of the City Starkers in Tokyo Live... In the Still of the Night Live... in the Shadow of the Blues Live at Donington 1990 Made in Japan Compilations Greatest Hits The Best of Whitesnake The Silver Anniversary Collection Best of Whitesnake The Early Years The Definitive Collection Boxsets 30th Anniversary Collection Extended plays Snakebite 1987 Versions Singles `` Day Tripper '' `` Long Way from Home '' `` Fool for Your Loving '' `` Ready an ' Willing '' `` Ai n't No Love in the Heart of the City '' `` Do n't Break My Heart Again '' `` Here I Go Again '' `` Guilty of Love '' `` Love Ai n't No Stranger '' `` Slow an ' Easy '' `` Still of the Night '' `` Crying in the Rain ' 87 '' `` Here I Go Again ' 87 '' `` Is This Love '' `` Give Me All Your Love '' `` Fool For Your Loving ' 89 '' `` The Deeper the Love '' `` Now You 're Gone '' `` Soldier of Fortune '' Videos albums Starkers in Tokyo Live... in the Still of the Night Live at Donington 1990 Made in Japan David Coverdale solo albums White Snake Northwinds Into the Light Former members Guitarists Micky Moody Bernie Marsden Mel Galley John Sykes Vivian Campbell Adrian Vandenberg Steve Vai Warren DeMartini Doug Aldrich Bassists Neil Murray Colin Hodgkinson Rudy Sarzo Guy Pratt Tony Franklin Marco Mendoza Uriah Duffy Keyboardists Peter Solley Jon Lord Paul Mirkovich Brett Tuggle Timothy Drury Drummers Dave Dowle Ian Paice Cozy Powell Aynsley Dunbar Denny Carmassi Chris Frazier Brian Tichy Related articles Band members Discography Coverdale Page Deep Purple Blue Murder Paice Ashton Lord Manic Eden The Snakes The Company of Snakes Martin Birch Devil City Angels Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Ain%27t_No_Love_in_the_Heart_of_the_City&oldid=811247669 '' Categories : 1974 songs 1978 songs Whitesnake songs Hard rock ballads Rhythm and blues ballads Hidden categories : Articles needing additional references from July 2016 All articles needing additional references Articles with hAudio microformats Talk About Wikipedia Italiano Edit links This page was last edited on 20 November 2017, at 12 : 22. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution - ShareAlike License ; additional terms may apply. By using this site, you agree to the Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. Wikipedia ® is a registered trademark of the Wikimedia Foundation, Inc., a non-profit organization. About Wikipedia

Question: who wrote ain't no love in the heart of the city
Answer: Michael Price