I'd Love to Change the World

"I'd Love to Change the World" is a song by the British blues rock band Ten Years After. Written by Alvin Lee, it is the lead single from the band's 1971 album A Space in Time. It is the band's only Top 40 hit, peaking at number 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 and their most popular single.[1]

"I'd Love to Change the World"
Single by Ten Years After
from the album A Space in Time
B-side"Let the Sky Fall"
Released1971
Genre
Length3:44
LabelColumbia
Songwriter(s)Alvin Lee
Producer(s)Chris Wright
Ten Years After singles chronology
"Love Like a Man"
(1970)		 "I'd Love to Change the World"
(1971)		 "Baby Won't You Let Me Rock 'n' Roll You"
(1972)

Background and composition

The song was written and sung by Alvin Lee.

It discusses the confused state of the world, covering a wide variety of societal complaints, until it finally addresses the Vietnam War.[1]

The song features a folk-inspired chord pattern to support the melody.[1]

Release and reception

"I'd Love to Change the World" was the band's highest charting single. It peaked at number 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1971.[2] When it was released, "I'd Love to Change the World" was a staple of both FM and AM radio, a rarity for the time.

Billy Walker of Sounds wrote that the "acoustic guitar, echoing vocals, and electric guitar build up the tempo with very good cool electric passages by Alvin [Lee], and while there's nothing new developing it's a very nice track".[3] Matthew Greenwald of Allmusic highlighted Lee's guitar work as the "most expressive—and most tasteful—electric guitar performance of his career", and added "if there is a single song that can describe the overall vibe of the counterculture in 1969/1970, this may very well be it. The band and Lee never quite matched the song's supple power in their later efforts, but this song is representation enough of their awesome artistry."[1]

The song was featured in the films Tropic Thunder and The Last Supper and was used in the episode "Six Feet" of the TBS series Wrecked.

In 2015, electronic producer Matstubs released a remix of Jetta's cover of the song. The song received significant attention after being posted to the Trap Nation YouTube channel. It then hit gold,[4] generating over 200 million plays on YouTube[5] and 120 million on Spotify.[6]

Personnel

Chart performance
Chart (1971) Peak
position
U.S. Billboard Hot 100[2] 40
U.S. Cash Box Top 100 Singles[7] 28

Notes
  1. Greenwald, Matthew. "I'd Love to Change the World review". Allmusic. Macrovision Corporation. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
  2. "Ten Years After Awards". Allmusic. Macrovision Corporation. Retrieved June 25, 2012.
  3. Walker, Billy (28 August 1971). "Ten Years After Today". Sounds. Spotlight Publications. p. 6.
  4. "RIAA: Matstubs Certifications".
  5. "YouTube: Jetta - I'd Love to Change the World (Matstubs Remix)".
  6. "Spotify: Matstubs Spotify".
  7. "Cash Box Top 100 11/27/71". Retrieved 28 January 2020.
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References
  • Fisher, Joseph P.; Flota, Brian (2011). The Politics of Post-9/11 Music: Sound, Trauma, and the Music Industry in the Time of Terror. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 1409427846.
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