Down on Love

When one dives into Down on Love, the first thing that catches the eye is that sense of hope it conveys, even when things seem difficult. Unlike other ballads from the album Agent Provocateur, which could have a more melancholic tone, this song carries a message that love can reappear, even when one feels they have already given up on searching for it. The songwriters, Lou Gramm and Mick Jones, managed to capture that idea with a warm keyboard melody and a chorus that invites belief. While some critics felt the slow build with synthesizers didn’t reach a climactic point, others highlighted the quality of the performance of these instruments.

This track was released as the fourth single from the album Agent Provocateur in August 1984. The recording took place that same year, and the result was a song that, according to music critics of the time, brought Foreigner back to that powerful ballad sound that had led them to their greatest successes. Although it did not reach the top positions on national charts, it did perform well in specific areas such as Dallas, Texas, and Akron, Ohio, reaching the Top 20 in the latter. The B-side of this single was Growing Up the Hard Way, which in turn had its own single release in Europe.