This is going to get real awkward when you realize that I don't even have that song on this list. Oops. Oh well. Anyways, I know it isn't anywhere near Valentine's Day, but I think we all could use some love in our lives right now. Even if we have to get it from listening to a song that is 30 years older than us. This list captures the best of the best from several decades, spanning 60s through 90s. Go and listen to some songs that are heavy on the romance and forget about whatever dumpster fire is happening in your life right now.
"Still the One"- Orleans
Best Lyric: "Changing, our love is going gold
Even though we grow old, it grows new"
Flowing locks = beautiful, flowing words.
"How Will I Know"- Whitney Houston
Best Lyric: "I say a prayer with every heartbeat
I fall in love whenever we meet"
Whitney just gets me, you feel?
"Your Song"- Elton John
Best Lyric: "I hope you don't mind
I hope you don't mind
That I put down in words
How wonderful life is while you're in the world"
If someone ever sang this song to me, it would be instant tears.
"Fantasy"- Mariah Carey
Best Lyric: "Oh, when you walk by every night
Talking sweet and looking fine
I get kinda hectic inside"
That's why they call it "the man of your dreams", because unfortunately, that's the only place he exists most of the time.
"For Once In My Life"- Stevie Wonder
Best Lyric: "For once I can touch, what my heart used to dream of"
I first discovered this song from this cover so have a listen to it too.
"Here You Come Again"- Dolly Parton
Best Lyric: "Here you come again lookin' better than a body has a right to"
Imagine your crush, whether they be real, a celebrity, or fictional, entering a room in a killer outfit, and tell me that doesn't send your heart aflutter.
"I Don't Want to Miss a Thing"- Aerosmith
Best Lyric: "I could spend my life in this sweet surrender
I could stay lost in this moment forever
Where every moment spent with you is a moment I treasure"
This one seems like an obvious choice.
"We Belong"- Pat Benatar
Best Lyric: "Whatever we deny or embrace for worse or for better
We belong, we belong, we belong together"
Shoutout to that one scene in Pitch Perfect 2 with this song; it's still hilarious all these years later.
"Love Grows (Where My Rosemary Goes)"- Edison Lighthouse
Best Lyric: "I'm a lucky fella
And I've just gotta tell her
That I love her so endlessly."
You've got to admit this one's pretty catchy.
"Only You"- Yazoo
Best Lyric: "All I needed was the love you gave
All I needed for another day
And all I ever knew
Only you"
Maybe I'm just a little bit too much #foreveralone, but the idea of someone telling me I'm the only one for them just makes me melt.
"Can't Help Falling in Love"- Elvis Presley
Best Lyric: "Take my hand
Take my whole life too"
Whenever I hear this line, my brain is going "AAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"
"Dreaming of You"- Selena
Best Lyric: "Late at night when all the world is sleeping
I stay up and think of you
And I wish upon a star
That somewhere you are thinking of me too"
OMG, does it make you blush imagining someone actually thinking of you in a romantic way or are you normal?
"December, 1963"- Frankie Valli & the Four Seasons
Best Lyric: "Hypnotizin' mezmerizing me
She was everything I dreamed she'd be."
We can't be friends if you don't vibe to this song.
Baby, Baby- Amy Grant
Best Lyric: "The Stars are shining for you
And just like me I'm sure that they adore you"
Her husband Vince Gill might be the more famous singer, but she deserves a lot of appreciation too, especially for this bop.
"Valerie"- Steve Winwood
Best Lyric: "So cool, she was like
Jazz on a summer day."
Can you imagine having a whole song named after you? Dang.
"Alone"- Heart
Best Lyric: "'Til now I always got by on my own
I never really cared until I met you"
I mean, the name of the group is Heart. They're going to have some good love songs.
"In Your Eyes"- Peter Gabriel
Best Lyric: "In your eyes
I am complete."
Unpopular opinion but the movie this song is most known for (Say Anything) I don't think is very good- sorry not sorry.
"Eternal Flame"- The Bangles
Best Lyric: "Say my name
Sun shines through the rain
A whole life so lonely
And then come and ease the pain
I don't want to lose this feeling, oh"
This bop is fire, and I'm not just saying that because of the title.
"I Swear"- All-4-One
Best Lyric: "I'll give you every thing I can
I'll build your dreams with these two hands"
Awww, I just realized that these lyrics are basically wedding vows. I'm emo now.
"It's All Coming Back to Me Now"- Celine Dion
Best Lyric: "There were nights of endless pleasure
It was more than any laws allow."
Did you think I would leave the queen of romantic ballads off this list? Never.
"Tell Her About It"- Billy Joel
Best Lyric: "Tell her all your crazy dreams
Let her know you need her
Let her know how much she means"
I just don't think Billy Joel has a bad song.
"The Best"- Tina Turner
Best Lyric: "Just as long here in your arms I could be in no better place."
I really dig this version too.
"Crimson and Clover"- Tommy James & The Shondells
Best Lyric: "Ah, now I don't hardly know her
But I think I could love her"
Thank you to the movie "The Sun is Also a Star" and the gorgeous Charles Melton for introducing me to this bop.
"Ain't Nobody"- Chaka Khan
Best Lyric: "And now we're flyin' through the stars
I hope this night will last forever"
The songs that used to play at baton contests when I was younger really stay with me forever.
"Caught Up In You"- 38 Special
Best Lyric: "You're the one
Who caught me baby you taught me
How good it could be"
Honorable mention for another one of their excellent songs- "Hold On Loosely".
"The Way You Love Me"- Faith Hill
Best Lyric: "Ooh, to feel the way I feel with your arms around me"
I get into this song. I'm whole-ass screaming the words aloud whenever it plays.
"Can't Fight This Feeling"- REO Speedwagon
Best Lyric: "And if I had to crawl upon the floor
Come crashing through your door."
I relate to this song when I see a cookie. Or a chocolate bar. Or bread. Or honestly most foods.
"Let's Hear It for the Boy"- Deniece Williams
Best Lyric: "'Cause every time he pulls me near
I just wanna cheer"
Did anyone else religiously watch Footloose as a kid? Oh, just me?
"(I've Had) The Time of My Life"- Bill Medley, Jennifer Warnes
Best Lyric: "You're the one thing
I can't get enough of"
Okay, but did you think I'd leave off the biggest song from one of the most classic romance movies of all time? That'd be a rookie mistake.
"My Baby Loves Me Just the Way that I Am"- Martina McBride
Best Lyric: "He thinks I'm pretty, he thinks I'm smart
He likes my nerve and he loves my heart"
Ugh, it must be nice.
"Put Your Head On My Shoulder"- Paul Anka
Best Lyric: "People say that love's a game
A game you just can't win
If there's a way
I'll find it someday
And then this fool will rush in"
The singer Paul Anka, not to be confused with the dog of the same name. As you can see, I bingewatched "Gilmore Girls" during quarantine.
"Don't Leave Me This Way"- Thelma Houston
Best Lyric: "You started this fire down in my soul
Now can't you see it's burning out of control"
I first heard a snippet of this tune in the background of a movie and searched far and wide for it but couldn't find it. However, it fell into my lap while I was watching Netflix, so I'd like to thank the streaming gods.
"Silly Love Songs"- Wings
Best Lyric: "Love doesn't come in a minute
Sometimes it doesn't come at all
I only know that when I'm in it
It isn't silly, love isn't silly, love isn't silly at all."
I've got to thank Glee for this one.
"Andante, Andante"- ABBA
Best Lyric: "Make your fingers soft and light
Let your body be the velvet of the night"
What more did you expect from me? Of course, there's an ABBA song on here.
"Get Outta My Dreams, Get Into My Car"- Billy Ocean
Best Lyric: "I'll be the sun shining on you
Hey Cinderella step in your shoe"
I can still remember the exact location I was when I heard this bop for the first time. Now, that's power.
"Be My Baby"- The Ronettes
Best Lyric: "I'll make you happy, baby, just wait and see
For every kiss you give me I'll give you three."
This one might be older than both my parents, but it's still a certified jam.
"Open Arms"- Journey
Best Lyric: "Living without you, living alone
This empty house seems so cold"
In the age of Coronavirus, this would be a big no-no.
"Kiss Me"- Sixpence None The Richer
Best Lyric: "Oh, kiss me, beneath the milky twilight
Lead me out on the moonlit floor
Lift your open hand
Strike up the band and make the fireflies dance"
I, an avid lover of all things rom-com, would have to personally shun myself if I didn't include this 90s classic on here.
"Brandy (You're A Fine Girl)"- The Looking Glass
Best Lyric: "'Yeah, your eyes could steal a sailor from the sea.'"
Need your cares taken away? (Don't we all right now?) Listen to this mellow tune.
"Jump (For My Love)"- The Pointer Sisters
Best Lyric: "Jump if you want to taste my kisses in the night then
Jump, jump for my love."
You should be jumping for joy, because you finally made it to the end of my list.