(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding

“(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding” is a 1974 song written by English singer/songwriter Nick Lowe and recorded in the best-known version by Elvis Costello.

Brinsley Schwarz version

The song was originally released in 1974 on the album The New Favourites of... Brinsley Schwarz by Lowe's band Brinsley Schwarz and released as a single; this version was included on Lowe's 2002 compilation Anthology (along with the Elvis Costello version), and his 2009 compilation Quiet Please... The New Best of Nick Lowe, as well as 1991's Surrender to the Rhythm: The Best of Brinsley Schwarz, 1996’s Naughty Rhythms: The Best of Pub Rock 1970–1976, and 1998’s Pub Rock: Paving the Way for Punk.

Thus far, Lowe himself has not released a solo studio version of the song, but plays it regularly in concert, and live versions have appeared as B-sides of his 1982 double 45 single My Heart Hurts, and his 1994 EP True Love Travels on a Gravel Road, on the radio compilations KGSR Broadcasts Vol. 3, Q107's Concerts in the Sky: the Campfire Versions, and Live at the World Cafe 10th Anniversary, some with solo acoustic guitar and some with different full bands. Another live Lowe version appeared on his 2004 live album Untouched Takeaway, and a live Brinsley Schwarz version was included on What IS so Funny About Peace Love and Understanding?, which featured songs played live in BBC sessions. Lowe also produced a cover version of the song as a B-side for the 1991 single See Saw by the British band the Katydids, after producing their eponymous debut album.

Elvis Costello & The Attractions version

The Elvis Costello & The Attractions version was first issued as the B-side of Lowe's 1978 single American Squirm credited to "Nick Lowe and His Sound". At the time, Lowe was Costello's producer, and he produced this track as well. When the song became a hit, it was quickly appended as the last track to the US edition of Costello's album Armed Forces. It has appeared on most of Costello's "Best of..." compilations over the years, as well as on the soundtrack to the film 200 Cigarettes. Live versions appeared on Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, Volume 7: 2002–2003, and 2012's The Return of the Spectacular Spinning Songbook, both by Elvis Costello and the Attractions. In 2004, Rolling Stone magazine ranked this version of the song as the 284th best song of all time. John Lennon quotes the song in his 1980 Rolling Stone interview with Jonathan Cott.^[1]

The Bodyguard

A very high-selling, if not as famous cover version of the song was included on the soundtrack album for the film The Bodyguard, which sold 17 million copies in the United States alone. This version was performed by jazz singer Curtis Stigers, who also used it as a B-side to the single Sleeping with the Lights On off his eponymous debut album, which had been released the year before. According to Will Birch's seminal book on pub rock, No Sleep Till Canvey Island, the cover royalties from Stigers' version of the song made Lowe wealthy. Lowe, however, asserts that he used most of the money to support a subsequent tour with full band. Stigers later covered a second Lowe song, "You Inspire Me", on the 2003 album of the same name.

Other performances

In 2004, "(What's So Funny 'bout) Peace, Love and Understanding" was regularly performed as an all-star jam on the Vote for Change tour, which featured a rotating cast of headliners. The 11 October concert at the MCI Centre in Washington DC was broadcast live on the Sundance Channel and on radio. This version of the song featured Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, the Dixie Chicks, Eddie Vedder, Dave Matthews, and John Fogerty with Michael Stipe, Bonnie Raitt, Keb' Mo', and Jackson Browne.

A Perfect Circle covered the song on their 2004 album eMOTIVE, an album containing covers of many classic songs.

In 2008, Costello performed a version of the song on Stephen Colbert's A Colbert Christmas: The Greatest Gift of All! with Colbert, Feist, Toby Keith, John Legend, and Willie Nelson.

At the finale of Costello's Glastonbury 2013 set Peace, Love, and Understanding was performed before and after an ironic comment on the first appearance at the festival, a few hours later, of the Rolling Stones using their own song Out of Time.

Covers

Year	Singer/Group	Album or Single	Comments
1987	Midnight Oil	"Put Down That Weapon"	Non-album single B-side, as "Peace Love and Understanding" Performed as a closer on their Blue Sky Mining tour
1988	The Flaming Lips	"Drug Machine"	Non-album single B-side, combined with cover of "Strychnine" by The Sonics Collected on 1998 album A Collection of Songs Representing an Enthusiasm for Recording...By Amateurs and 2002 album The Day They Shot a Hole in the Jesus Egg
1989	Phil and John	Don't Look Now... It's The Hallelujah Brothers	Christian pop version
1991	Katydids	"See Saw"	Non-album single B-side, as "Peace Love and Understanding", produced by composer Nick Lowe
1991	The Party	In the Meantime, In Between Time	Includes Rap interlude
1991	Cletis Carr	Tales of Ordinary Madness
1992	Dead White And Blue	Heads
1992	Curtis Stigers	The Bodyguard: Original Soundtrack Album	Also appears as B-side to single "Sleeping with the Light On"
1992	Trip Shakespeare	Volt (EP)
1994	Chris Dowd	Original Soundtrack from the Motion Picture Floundering	Chris Dowd was a member of the rock band Fishbone.
1996	Lucy Kaplansky	Flesh and Bone
1996	Kabah	La Calle de las Sirenas	Spanish version, as "Amor, Paz Y Entendimiento" Also appears on 2000s "Serie Millennium 21"
1997	Down By Law	Before You Were Punk	Various artists tribute album to songs of the new wave era
1997	Unsteady	Double or Nothing
1998	Sam the Butcher	Assembly Line
1998	Uncle Otto	Men Who Smoke
1998	The Boz Roz Band	Shadow of the Thunderbird
2000	Charlie Hunter	Solo Eight String Guitar	Instrumental version
2000	Mr. B's Boogie Band	Mr. B's Boogie Band
2001	Joe Goldmark	Strong Like Bull...But Sensitive Like Squirrel	Instrumental version
2001	The House Jacks	Drive	Live a cappella version
2001	Teddy Morgan and the Pistolas	Live@7BlackCats	Live
2001	Joe Louis Walker	Labour of Love: The Music of Nick Lowe	Various artists tribute album containing new covers of Lowe's songs
2002	The Wallflowers	Red Letter Days	Bonus track on Japanese edition of the album
2002	Glen Ricks	Reggae Rocks: A Tribute to Rock ’N’ Roll	Reggae version, on album of various reggae artists performing covers of classic rock songs
2003	Steve Earle	Just an American Boy	Live
2004	A Perfect Circle	eMOTIVe
2004	Chris Cornell and Maynard James Keenan	Axis of Justice: Concert Series Volume 1	Live CD/DVD benefit for Axis of Justice
2004	The Ataris	Live at the Metro	Live solo acoustic version performed by Kris Roe
2004	Keb' Mo'	Peace... Back by Popular Demand	Blues version, on album of largely covers of classic folk and rock songs
2006	Chris Cornell	Chris Cornell: Unplugged in Sweden	Live solo acoustic version.
2007	The Holmes Brothers	'"State of Grace"	Soul blues version with pedal steel accompaniment.
2010	KC Craine	Road 20	Acoustic version
2010	Katherine Green	DFTBA Lullabies	Sung for DFTBA Records compilation lullaby album
2013	David Broza	East Jeruslaem / East Jerusalem	Featuring Israeli/Palestinian musicians and the Jerusalem Youth Chorus (a choir of Jewish & Palestinian high schoolers).
2015	Shovels & Rope Ft. Lucius	Busted Jukebox Vol. I	Featured on the band's 2015 release of covers with other prominent alternative artists.

A version was sung by PJ Olsson & Salman Ahmad for the theme of the television series Aliens in America.
In the 2003 film Lost in Translation, Bill Murray's character impassionately sings a karaoke version of the song.
Simple Minds included a cover of the song in the bonus CD included with the deluxe release of their 2009 album Graffiti Soul.
The Pretty Reckless sung the song live for KROQ Radio Sessions 2010.
Panic! at the Disco vocalist Brendon Urie posted a cover of the song to his Twitter account on 7 August 2011.
Derek Webb recorded a cover of the song for the December installation of his 2011 subscription album project Democracy, Vol. 2.
Indie band The Hush Sound covered the song during the encore of their 2012 tour.

References

↑ Cott, Jonathan, The Ballad Of John And Yoko, (1982), p.191. Michael Joseph Ltd

The Bodyguard Original Soundtrack Album

Performed by Whitney Houston	"I Will Always Love You" "I Have Nothing" "I'm Every Woman" "Run to You" "Queen of the Night" "Jesus Loves Me"

Performed by various artists	"Even If My Heart Would Break" (Kenny G and Aaron Neville) "Someday (I'm Coming Back)" (Lisa Stansfield) "It's Gonna Be a Lovely Day" (The S.O.U.L. S.Y.S.T.E.M.) "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love, and Understanding" (Curtis Stigers) "Waiting for You" (Kenny G) "Trust in Me" (Joe Cocker featuring Sass Jordan) "Theme from The Bodyguard" (Alan Silvestri)

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