Love Love Love
Thursday, February 14th, 2008We’re here to help you woo!
Featured below is a list of ‘Best Love Songs of All Time’ for Valentine’s Day. So, what are your favorites? Cheesy, poignant, silly, achingly beautiful…whatever you’ve got, bring it on (give us your faves by leaving a comment)!
Take care, folks, and happy Valentine’s Day!
LOVE,
Everyone at Sounds Familyre
Lowell Brams:
‘Andmoreagain‘ from “Forever Changes,” by Love (1967). It’s the prime example of the Love enigma; how could an erratic, drugged- to-the-gills wildman like Arthur Lee write and sing such heartfelt, sensitive love songs, and turn them into classic recordings? I don’t know, but there it is, the song that expressed a love that’s remained with me for forty years- the love, not the person. We tried, but didn’t make it, and neither did the band, which broke up after recording Forever Changes, but the brutal aftermath doesn’t diminish the song’s beauty and the emotions it stirs.”
Ben + Vesper:
“Vesper grooves to ‘Hallelujah‘ by Jeff Buckley, but Ben loves ‘Someday We’ll Be Together‘ by Diana Ross and the Supremes, and ‘Mad About You‘ by Belinda Carlisle. Yes, he’s a softie. He gets all melty when he hears those. Ben also loves ‘Bonnie and Clyde‘ as sung by Bridget Bardot. We remembered that because as we were browsing Belinda Carlisle’s ouevre, we saw that she came out with a version of that song on an _all French_ CD last year!”
John Ringhofer:
“Kenny Loggins & Stevie Nicks: ‘Whenever I Call You “Friend“‘
I don’t know if this 1978 duet is actually a love song or not, but it’s sassy enough to be one. It begins with some false starts, gets soulfully acapella, cycles through some deliciously strange melody twists, displays a vaguely Country chorus (accented by cascading strings), and ends with the obligatory key change. Unless I’m mistaken, I’m pretty sure it’s got Michael McDonald’s falsetto singing “Ever and ever!” right when the tempo jumps a couple notches to the third movement. His suspected involvement at least qualifies it for greatness. The lyrics are kind of hard to decipher, with the possibility of innuendo: “I know forever we’ll be doing it…right.” Oh yeah, and there’s a sax solo. Whatever it is, it’s classic!”
Joshua Stamper:
“Without a doubt, one of the most romantic pieces of music ever written is ‘Ravel’s Piano Concerto in G Major-2nd Movement‘. The piece begins with solo piano, and the central theme is so beautiful it hurts (typically Ravel). About 45 seconds after the the orchestra enters, a sweet chromaticism begins to pervade the piano part, such that harmonies that were straightforward now seem just a bit troubled. The piece continues to unfold with a staggering balance of tension and release, until the end where it resolves sweetly, easily, and gently - how do those guys do that? The result is, to use a hackneyed phrase, breathtaking (hey, it’s Valentine’s Day - I can say ‘breathtaking’). Truly bittersweet. Oh, and it’s in 3/4. Who can resist 3/4?”
Dan Zimmerman:
Doris Day - ‘Secret Love‘
Beatles - ‘And I Love Her‘
Dylan - ‘Love Minus Zero/No Limit‘
Everly Bros. - ‘Let It Be Me‘
J.S. Bach - ‘Sheep May Safely Graze‘
Ken Fabianovicz:
Troggs - ‘Love Is All Around‘
Tom Rapp (of Pearls Before Swine) - ‘Love/Sex‘
Velvet Underground - ‘I Found A Reason‘
Bob Dylan - ‘If Not For You‘
Beach Boys - ‘God Only Knows‘
Delfonics - ‘La La Means I Love You‘
Bread - ‘Baby I’m a Want You‘
Ronettes - ‘Be My Baby ‘
Flamingos - ‘I Only Have Eyes for You‘
Daniel Johnston - ‘True Love Will Find You In The End‘
Glen Campbell - ‘Less of Me‘
Christiaan Pallidino:
Dylan - ‘Love Minus Zero/No Limit‘
Irma Thomas - ‘It’s Raining‘
Nina Simone - ‘Love Me Or Leave Me‘
Biz Markie - ‘Just A Friend‘
Benni Hemm Hemm - ‘I Can Love You In A Wheelchair Baby‘
Ted Velykis:
“My favorite love song has to be ‘When You Need a Laugh‘ by Hank Cochran and made famous by Patsy Cline. I don’t know if it’s just the way Patsy sings it or if the lyrics just touch me somehow - but every single time I hear it I get choked up. Do sad songs count?”
