Alone Again Or

"Alone Again Or" is a song originally recorded in 1967 by rock group Love, written by band member Bryan MacLean. It was the opening track on the album "Forever Changes", and was also released as a single in the USA, UK, Australia, France and Holland.
Two demo versions by MacLean himself were released in 1997 on his album "Ifyoubelievein".
Bryan MacLean originally wrote the song, then called "Alone Again", in 1965 for Love's debut album. However, he did not complete it until the recording of Forever Changes in summer of 1967. The song was inspired by his memory of waiting for a girlfriend, and the melody drew on Prokofiev's Lieutenant Kije Suite. The essence of the song is the contrast between the positivity of the tune and the bleakness of the lyrics, with the chorus "And I will be alone again tonight, my dear."

For the recording session, arranger David Angel worked with MacLean, adding a string section and a horn part for a mariachi band whom co-producer Bruce Botnick had recently used on a Tijuana Brass album. MacLean later said "That was the happiest I ever was with anything we ever did as a band - the orchestral arrangement of that song." However, Botnick, with co-producer and band leader Arthur Lee, remixed the track to bring Lee's own unison vocal to the forefront of the song, at least partly on the grounds that MacLean's own vocal lead was too weak.
Lee also added to the mystery of the song by changing the title to "Alone Again Or".

Released as a single at the beginning of 1968, "Alone Again Or" reached #7 on KHJ on 17 April 1968 but just barely "Bubbled Under" the Hot 100 in May 1968, finally reaching only #99 on the 12 September 1970 Hot 100. Over the years it has become regarded as a classic of the era, being ranked #436 on Rolling Stone's list of the 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

The song has been featured in several motion pictures, most notably two in 1996: Bottle Rocket and Sleepers. It also appeared at the close of the 2009 British comedy movie Bunny and the Bull, playing as the lead character finally breaks free of his obsessions.
Versions have subsequently been recorded by an eclectic variety of bands and singers including The Damned (1986), The Oblivians (1993), UFO (1977), Sarah Brightman (1990), The Boo Radleys (1991), Chris Pérez Band (1999), Calexico (2004), Matthew Sweet and Susanna Hoffs (2006), Les Fradkin (2007).