Boston: “More Than a
Feeling”
Nothing says love like rock from the late 1970s. “More Than
a Feeling” is about, as I’m sure you know, a woman named Mary Ann and how much
the lead singer wants her back. Some old familiar song triggered all sorts of
memories, and now we’ve got this awesome song. It may be cheesy and over the
top, but I dare you NOT to rock out when they get to the guitar solo.
Rocky Horror Picture Show: “Dammit, Janet”
Ever since I first heard this song, I’ve wished I had a
friend named Janet so I could address her as such. This is one of the first few
songs of Rocky Horror, before the
cross dressing really kicks in. This song is how Brad (Barry Bostwick!
awesome!) proposes to Janet (a pre-Tim Robbins Susan Sarandon). It’s really
cute: “the road was long, but I ran it (Janet)/there’s a fire in my heart and
you fan it (Janet)/if there’s one fool for you than I am it (Janet)/I’ve one
thing to say, and that’s dammit, Janet, I love you!”
Rainbow: “Since You
Been Gone”
Not to be confused with the Kelly Clarkson song of the
same title, Rainbow’s “Since You Been Gone” is pure late 1970s delight. With
their piercing near-falsettos and all that guitar, you can’t help but love it.
“Since You Been Gone” is very much along the lines of “More Than a Feeling,”
except that the Rainbow guy was reminded of his girl by a dream (as opposed to
the Boston guy’s song reminding him of Mary Ann). Short on subject material?
Maybe, but I’ll take it.
The Kinks: “Lola”
“Lola”
is a sweet little song about a young man who encounters a woman named Lola in a Soho
club. He is impressed by Lola’s size and strength: “when she squeezed me tight,
she nearly broke my spine.” However, at the end of the song, he realizes that
Lola is not who she seems: “I’m not the world’s most masculine guy, but I know
what I am, and I bet I’m a man… so is Lola.” What makes this song really sweet
is that he stays with Lola all the same.
Adam Sandler: “Red
Hooded Sweatshirt”
“Red Hooded Sweatshirt” premiered on Saturday Night Live especially for Valentine’s Day, and it’s a love
song from Adam Sandler to his red hooded sweatshirt. Generally, I don’t think
Adam Sandler is that funny, but this song is wonderful. The best line from the
song goes: “oh, what is it about you that makes me so jolly?/is it your 50
cotton, or your 50 poly?” My friend Allison introduced me to this song, and she
spent a fair amount of time searching for the perfect red hooded sweatshirt: of
course, it had to be 50% cotton and 50% polyester. This was more of a challenge
than one might realize when you are too young for a driver’s license and your only
real shopping option is the Brookings WalMart. Allison did eventually find her
red hooded sweatshirt, and I’m certain she sang this song every time she wore
it.
Nelson: “(Can’t Live
Without Your) Love and Affection”
Meet the Nelson brothers: Gunnar and Matthew, owners of some of the most glorious hair I've ever seen. They are twin
sons of Ricky Nelson, who in turn is the son of Ozzie and Harriet. The Nelsons
were once listed in the Guinness Book of
World Records as the only family to reach number one status in three
successive generations. Anyway, this song was written about a crush on Cindy
Crawford, which makes the song slightly more creepy. In any case, it’s the epitome of early 1990s rock, and I love every second of it.
Johnny Cash: “Ring of
Fire”
You can always count on the Man in Black’s for something
wonderful. Cash himself stated that this song is about “the transformative
power of love,” so I’m going to go ahead and take his word for it. As we know,
love can burn, burn, burn. But when you’ve got Johnny Cash singing to you about
it AND you add a mariachi band, you’ve gone one great song.
The Turtles:
“Elenore”
After their number one hit “Happy Together,” the Turtles
were asked to create more songs like it. Their cheeky response was “Elenore,”
possibly the only Billboard Top 100 song to contain the phrase “et cetera.” The
lyrics go: “Elenore, gee, I think you’re swell/and you really do me well/you’re
my pride and joy, et cetera.” How can you not love a song with lyrics like
that?
Queen: “Somebody to
Love”
This song is about the lack of love, but it’s a love song
all the same. Freddie Mercury just wants somebody to love – is that too much to
ask? The lyrics really are quite sad: “each morning I get up, I die a
little/can barely stand on my feet.” Poor lonely Freddie! Though it’s kind of
depressing, “Somebody to Love” showcases Freddie Mercury at his best… the man
had a VOICE.
Meatloaf: “I Would Do
Anything For Love (But I Won’t Do That)”
This song falls into the “songs I totally love but don’t want
to admit it” category. But now I'm admitting it to the internet. Who can resist Meatloaf, anyway? Not me, that’s for sure. He
had me with that rockin’ keyboard intro. As the title suggests, the song is all
about Meatloaf doing anything for love – except that. What is “that”? Only
Meatloaf knows, and he’s not telling.
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So that's my list: twenty of my favorite love songs of all time. I don't know about you, but I'll be listening to any combination of these songs on Valentine's Day while I eat my candy and spend the day dotting my i's with little hearts. Ok, so I won't be doing that last part... all day. Whatever you end up doing, I hope you have a great Valentine's Day with your spouse, partner, boy/girlfriend, family, pets, or whoever loves you. :)
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