LOVE SONGS 101: The Top 101 Love Songs (40-21)
Nov 30 '03 (Updated Feb 15 '04)
The Bottom Line How can you just walk away from me, when all I can do is watch you leave?
#101-#81
#80-#61
#60-#41
The Gratuitous Intro
Oh boy, I'm reading a temperature of 100.3. I threw up at work three times yesterday. What the heck is going on? Surely this'll pass, but man did it just jump up out of nowhere! Eh well, Top 40, here we go...
40.) "Kiss From A Rose" Seal
There is so much a man can tell you, so much he can say
You remain my power, my pleasure, my pain
Baby, to me you're like a growing addiction that I can't deny
Won't you tell me is that healthy baby?
Seal's amazing number from the Batman Forever soundtrack was what sparked his career and propelled Seal 1994's sales into the upper stratosphere. Funny thing is, he didn't even write the song for the movie. This song has "epic" written all over it, as it transforms from atmospheric to a sweeping power ballad without missing a beat. Seal really gets to show off his range here, too.
39.) "Turn Your Love Around" George Benson
I'm alone until you show me
That you're still in love with me
We're gonna make it, we're gonna take it
Back where we belong, turn your love around
"The" other George Benson song, and probably the one most responsible for turning me on to the 80's soul/reggae/R&B/jazz embodied by the likes of Stevie Wonder, (whom I just can't stop mentioning, can I?) Michael Jackson, Lionel Richie, Smokey Robinson, and to a certain extent, even Hall & Oates. While a bit slower than his other song, "Turn Your Love Around" has one of the most infectious beats and is impossible for me not to dance to somehow when it comes on at work. The horn sections that follow every time he sings the title of the song are the best part; they completely save it.
38.) "Lights" Journey
When the lights go down in the city
And the sun shines on the bay
Oh I wanna be there in my city,
Whooooo-oo-whoooooo-ooooooooah
Okay, I mentioned earlier in the list that there were two more of these; well sorry to say but one of 'em got jacked. (For the curious, it was the one you've never heard, "Real Downtown" by the Vigilantes of Love, which is still an EXCELLENT song.) If you're driving in a car with someone you like and you really want to impress them with your romantic mix, toss this one somewhere in there and see what happens. Journey may have been the ultimate "cheese" band, but they sure as heckfire knew what they were doing when they pulled together the way they do on a song like this. Also useful for pulling you out of a bad mood, this one.
37.) "This Is It" Kenny Loggins
You said that maybe it's over
Not if you don't want it to be
For once in your life, here's your miracle
Stand up and fight, this is it!
That's the only time you'll see me putting an exclamation mark by the lyrics. Aside from being the song that "saved my life" this year, it's also compelling, intense, yet inspiring. Mike McDonald of Doobie Bros. fame adds a deepening touch with his soft falsetto in the background, and plays off of Kenny Loggins so well here. If you don't think cymbals are essential to a song, take a listen to this one and you'll remember why your memory nags you to put emphasis on the words "this" and "it", which otherwise sounds like it wouldn't work rhythmically. But it does. The change-up in the rhythmic placement of the words "this is it" at the end also keep it interesting long after you should've started anticipating the next song. I was surprised reading through the lyrics one day to find out that it was actually construable as a love song, which is awesome since I get to include it here now :) This song is #1 1/2 on my Top 10 Songs of all time, but don't worry, there won't be a #1 1/2 here!
36.) "Don't Let The Sun Go Down On Me" Elton John & George Michael
Ladies and gentlemen,
Mr. ELTON JOHN!!!
Much like Elton's rearrangement of "Candle In The Wind" (not the Princess Di version, but the one on Love Songs), I find this version of "Don't Let The Sun" to surpass the original in terms of plain old listening enjoyment. George opens the song and torments you with over a minute of foreplay, until finally after the first chorus, everything but the piano goes silent, you hear the audience start to get excited because they know what's coming. Then George announces Elton's entrance, the crowd goes wild and Elton jumps right into the song. I get a lump in my throat just writing about it. In the video, it's even better because you get to see the two guys hug. I'm not exactly real keen on what attracts two guys to each other, but it certainly isn't my place (nor anyone else's) to deprive them of that right. Even now, when I see the two of them hugging along with the coda of that song, I get the water works. It's just so powerful.
35.) "Being With You" Smokey Robinson
I don't care what they think about me and
I don't care what they say
I don't care what they think of your leaving
I'm gonna beg you to stay
Here goes more of that great 80's soul searching. Everything about the arrangement of this song is just perfect. The saxophone, while placed off to the side, adds greatly to this song without attracting too much attention to itself. Smokey's near-whispery vocals are ever so tender, right on the verge of falsetto but who knows for sure? Every time you think you've hit the chorus, you realize you're just lost in another chamber of the labyrinthian mosaic of one of 1981's finest love songs ever. Kudos to Billboard for noticing.
34.) "Prayer For The Dying" Seal
I'm crossing that bridge with lessons I've learned
Playing with fire and not getting burned
I may not know what you're going through
But time is the space between me and you
There is a light through that window
Hold on, say yes, while people say no, life carries on
Even 18-year olds know that Seal is a very loving human being around here. I know we just heard from him and all, but here he is again with the first single behind "Kiss From A Rose", and to me, this one just barely edges out that one for two reasons -- #1, I'm a sucker for the fast songs, and #2, this is a "love song for everybody". Anytime I have ever heard this song, it has made me feel better, even at times when I thought I was already perfectly content. Thanks Seal for all the good feelings!
33.) "Five Candles (You Were There)" Jars of Clay
You were there when I needed you
You were there when the skies broke wide wide open
Here we go with the Christian Rock bands doing love songs again! But hey, if it's true that God is Love than who would know better? The Jars underplay this one to its advantage, and the beauty of its message becomes a lot clearer. There is some nice instrumentation backing this one up. When the organ jumps in, it's pure magic. Although this is supposedly a song about God, I tell ya, I don't know any girl who could resist being told that she was there when the skies broke wide open. (But I'm sure they exist!)
32.) "Head Over Heels" Tears For Fears
With one foot in the past now this time
When will it last? Now now now
Have you no ambition?
I don't know, maybe it's not a love song, maybe it is. It sure seems to have some deeper meaning, especially considering its inclusion in Donnie Darko, one of the biggest mindf*ck movies there is. This song utilizes excessive production and all kinds of synthesizer work, backed by a pounding mid-tempo beat and a really hot video of a girl in a library. (Library girls rule, for anyone who was wondering.) I love the unabashedly cheesy melody and harmonizing that comes through on the verse of this song; in fact, a long time ago, I used to get this song confused with "What A Fool Believes" by the Doobie Bros. because the only thing I remembered about either one was that I had them both somewhere on tape, recorded from the radio, and that in each song, high notes were hit. That's how narrow-minded I was.
31.) "Steal Away" Robbie Dupree
I caught you glancing my way
And I know what you're after, no second chances tonight
Why don't we steal away, why don't we steal away into the night
This one's a little mediocre in the lyrics department, but I just can't resist the chiming notes in the background and that supercool beat. For most, I'm sure this is "just another" 80's song, but it's one of those I just happened to really start digging when I listened more closely. There's a great melody hiding in this song that goes right over your head, probably because of excessive airplay back in the day. I don't know.
Top 30... boy, this is getting intense
30.) "Against All Odds" Phil Collins
How can you just walk away from me
When all I can do is watch you leave
'Cause we've shared the laughter and the pain and even shared the tears
You're the only one who really knew me at all
Here we go, lonely guys. You just can't get her, can you? Well, here's your chance to sit alone in your room and cry until your eyes fall out of their sockets. This is, at least in my mind, Phil's greatest song ever (which also means.. hooray! No more Phil Collins songs after this!). Between its forlorn melody, Phil's pained vocals and the heart wrenching lyrics, this one takes all the cake in the world when it comes to the guy's share of the aftermath of the end of the world. So take a look at me now!
29.) "Love Of A Lifetime" Firehouse
I finally found the love of a lifetime
A love to last my whole life through
Again, through overplay and less-than-stellar lyrics, I am forced to keep this one out of the Top 20. (Wait a second, I guess lyrics really do matter after all) However, it is still a gorgeous power ballad, much along the lines of "The Flame" by Cheap Trick (which unfortunately ain't gonna be here, sorry to crush your hopes). What does this song have that that one doesn't have? Well, the harmony doesn't hurt, especially toward the end when the song seems to culminate all over itself, key changes and all. This one is also a little more straightforward as far as melody. In some cases, simplicity is the name of the game, even if you play that simplicity at a raging volume. Unfortunately, volume nowadays is all about how much the speakers shake, not feeling.
28.) "Everything I Do (I Do It For You)" Bryan Adams
You can't tell me it's not worth fighting for
I can't help it, there's nothing I want more
This is another one of those songs that is helped greatly by the movie from which it sprung, and the superb performances of Costner and that M chick which offer a nice visual memory. But on its own, the song is equally amazing. Bryan Adams sings the living hell out of it, the music just follows obediently along, loosening its grip just long enough for the teary-eyed ones to look away and drench their Kleenexes a little more. Then it goes ape again and the whole process repeats itself like a multiple orgasm.
27.) "Here Comes My Girl" Tom Petty
Every now and then, I get down to the end of a day
I'll have to stop, ask myself, "What've I done?"
It just seems so useless to have to work so hard
And nothin' ever really seem to come from it
And then she looks me in the eye and says "We gonna last forever,"
And man, you know I can't begin to doubt it
Tom Petty always seemed like kind of a kid at heart, but never did he take a more innocent standpoint than right here. He speaks (not necessarily raps) his verses in a strangely low voice, lamenting the "uselessness" of his life, and then he raises his voice to the usual singing level when things start to change and he sees that girl and he knows that maybe he does have a reason, or a purpose. You think the chorus is going to rock out and instead, Petty continues to lead it gently, with a voice so close to breaking you just can't help but feel happy for him.
26.) "I Just Wanna Stop" Gino Vanelli
Ohh, try hard to forget it, but I know my mind won't let it
I just wanna stop and tell you what I feel about you baby
I just wanna stop, the world ain't right without you baby
I just wanna stop (pause) for your looooove
You wanna talk about somebody who can SING, Gino is your man. This guy's voice is incredible. I don't know a lot about his background, but "Stop" is definitely a plate that's been to the soul buffet more than a few go-arounds. Female backing vocals (thankfully, unobtrusive ones) create a nice candlelight kind of atmosphere, and Gino subtly but powerfully engages in his lyrical prowess. The idea of "stopping", for anything, becomes more tempting day by day in this crazy, mixed up world of ours, let alone stopping for something like that.
25.) "Everlasting Love" Howard Jones
I need an everlasting love
I need a friend and a lover divine
An everlasting, precious love
Wait for it, wait for it, give it some time
Howard Jones was a wizard with a synthesizer; he was proof that you didn't necessarily have to play music to create it. His vision is uncompromised, especially in a song like this with a driving beat, a simple melody and a stunning delivery. The way he builds up to the chorus, I mean, you'd have to put my ass on morphine to keep me from air-guitaring to that stuff. Especially since I know just when the "burst" is coming. I can't think of a lot of songs that take simplicity and make it as divine as Howard does here. All it takes is to hear it at the right time and you're toast.
24.) "These Dreams" Heart
The sweetest song is silence that I've ever heard
Funny how your feet in dreams never touch the Earth
In a wood full of princes, freedom is a kiss
But the prince hides his face from dreams in the mist
This may just be the most overplayed 80's song there ever was. The weird thing is, no matter how many times I hear it, I NEVER get sick of it! Yet again, we have a simple melody oozing softly out, and some of the most cryptic lyrics ever penned coming out the mouth of lead singer Ann Wilson (who is FANTASTIC). I find the song insanely romantic, for what few romantic allusions I can extract from it. Long before I got into music, my Algebra teacher, Mr. Bagwell, passed this song on the radio, and I spent (seriously) the next TWO MONTHS trying to remember how the rest of it went. And for the only time I can ever recall, I actually did remember the rest of it, without hearing it. Maybe that's why I'm so close to it.
23.) "Circle of Life" Elton John
Some say eat or be eaten
Some say live and let live
But all are agreed as they join the stampede
You should never take more than you give
In the circle of life
I do believe this is the last one for which the status of "love song" would be questionable, but there aren't enough love songs for animals out there if you ask me. And that's why I have this song here; Elton wrote it specifically for The Lion King, and he captures the essence of the Lion's life with a startling accuracy; you can't possibly hear the song and not think of Simba rolling in the meadow, getting pinned by Nala, and growing up with Timon and Pumbaa. But sometimes when I hear the song now, I think about my baby neices, and I get all teary eyed. Which is crazy 'cause I never had any special feelings about the song before. Now all of a sudden, to quote Avril Lavigne, "Everything's changing."
22.) "Every Breath You Take" The Police
Since you've gone I've been lost without a trace
I dream at night, I can only see your face
I look around but it's you I can't replace
I feel so cold and I long for your embrace
If not for the presence of certain other individuals, I never would have recognized the impeccable beauty of this song. It was always just another song with a bland beat, all the lines sounded the same, and worst of all, Puff Daddy remade it (conveniently dropping the beat under 120 BPM, but I'm not even sure the original was over). What really saves this song is its bridge, as quoted above. And the whole stalker thing is kind of interesting as well, though I never saw it that way before Sting mentioned it on VH-1's Storytellers. Don't husbands watch their wives in amazement? Of course he does say that she's gone, though, doesn't he. But most people never "hear" anything besides the chorus anyway. Puff Daddy sure as heck didn't!
21.) "Imagine" John Lennon
You may say I'm a dreamer, but I'm not the only one
I hope some day you'll join us, and the world will live as one.
Beautiful piano, beautifully sung, a melody that never fails to take my breath away. Nothing more can be said.
Almost there!
But first... Imagine?
I figured I might as well get rid of the cop-out answer before we got to the Top 20. Besides, I'm not sure I really want the same artist in the Top 20 two times (there's your first clue). Otherwise, John Lennon would've been in the Top 10 twice. My love for variety overpowers my love for the songs of any one particular artist, or else John Lennon would probably have been in the Top 20 four times. Someone questioned whether or not "Imagine" was really a love song, and truth be told, it's not anything that you would put on a romance mix. I myself still consider it to be the ultimate "Love song for the world" though, and because of that, "Imagine" was #1 on this list a few weeks ago. Some may be relieved, some may be disappointed. I think the bottom line is that my priorities are screwed up! But they've always been. It's the only way to live. Anyway, Top 20 is on the way...
#20-#1
Mike's Love Songs 100-81
Mike's Love Songs 80-61
Mike's Love Songs 60-41
Mike's Love Songs 40-21
Mike's Love Songs 20-1
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