Top 10 Love Songs of All Time

The Top 10 Love Songs of ALL TIME from  Amy’s Table Producer, Chris Comer.

You won’t find any Big Hair ballads or cheesy hit singles on this   list, and it will bear no recognition to all the other “Best Love   Songs Of All Time” lists, because, lets face it, there are so many   songs written about love that I don’t need to include Babe by Styx or   Three Times A Lady by Lionel Ritchie. You can find those lists on   VH1′s web site. There are just too many other, better love songs out   there. So download these songs, make an iPod playlist, and remember to intersperse some up-tempo stuff in between, and hopefully you’ll   ’gitchasum’ this cold Valentine’s Day!

1.) Curtis Mayfield – The Makings of You
If you’ve never heard this song, you’re missing out. It just might be   the best love song ever. I mean EVER. The melody is absolutely   gorgeous, Curtis’ high falsetto singing is absolutely beautiful and   when you hear it you will well-up inside; the song is in 3/4 time.   Some of the best love songs are in 3. Check out the string   arrangement – not cheesy. And the lyrics are obviously about someone   Curtis admires very much:

Add A little sugar, honey suckle lamb
A Great Big expression of happiness
Boy, you could not miss with a dozen roses
Such would astound you
The joy of children laughing around you
These are the makings of you

Read the lyrics while you listen. You’ll cry those happy, joyous   tears. This guy was in LOVE. A perfect song from beginning to end.   The makings of her were the joy of children laughing? Only Shakespere   or King Solomon could do better than that. This song will astound   you. It floors me every time.

2.) Any PRINCE ballad.

Sure, Prince is the funkiest cat this side of James Brown. But his   ballads are his best work. Instead of just picking one song from   Prince for #2 on my list I’ll just briefly mention the loveliest of   Prince’s love songs…lets start with The Beautiful Ones from Purple   Rain (who can resist “Baby, baby, baaaby….”); Insatiable from   Diamonds and Pearls; She Gave Her Angels and Crucial from Crystal   Ball; Do Me Baby from Controversy; Adore from Sign O The Times; Most
Beautiful Girl In The World from The Gold Experience; International   Lover from 1999 …I know I’m missing some. Feel free to add to this   list. I can’t just pick one…or two…or three…..

3.) Stevie Wonder – I Love Every Little Thing About You

Stevie is probably the greatest songwriter in popular music, just   based on those five LPs he put out in the 70′s. I pick this one, even   over You Are The Sunshine Of My Life, because it is really one of the   most passionate songs ever written, and it makes you HAPPY when you   hear it. Another one, like The Makings Of You, that you can’t help   but “feel” when you listen to it. It’s pure joy and ecstasy. They   sing songs like this in heaven.

3.) Paul McCartny & Wings – My Love

From Red Rose Speedway. If Paul & The Beatles wrote so many love   songs, why pick this one? Well, I can’t answer that. I like the   chords. Its a very beautiful and well constructed song and it works   in a variety of formats. I’m wondering when some up-and-coming neo-  soul R&B artist is going to have a breakout hit with this one. John   Legend, Eric Benet, Maxwell, are you guys reading this??

4.) Bee Gees – How Deep Is Your Love and Emotion

When The Bee Gees had their late-70′s renaissance, they could not be   beaten on either a commercial nor an artistic level. It didn’t last  long, only about 3 albums worth, but these two love songs rank as the   best ever. Emotion was actually recorded by little-known disco singer   Samantha Sang, who sounds so much like Barry nobody ever really knew  the difference. Also Destiny’s Child did a very good cover of this   song too. Ever hear it? This is the song that had the words:

And where are you now
Now that I need you
Tears on my pillow
Wherever you go
Cry me a river that leads to your ocean
Youll never see me fall apart
In the words of a broken heart its just emotions…..

The Bee Gees didn’t include Emotion on any album other than greatest  hits packages. It might be one of their best songs. So is How Deep Is   Your Love, and I include both on this list. Cry me a river that leads  to your ocean? Genius. Didn’t they get that line from Shakespeare or  something?

5.) Marvin Gaye – I Want You (The whole album)

Co-written by R&B songwriter Leon Ware, this is the pinnacle of  Marvin’s work and some of the most emotional singing he’s ever done.   A musician’s album as well as a lover’s album, Marvin’s vocal  arrangements are as close to ‘jazz’ as anything any R&B singer has   ever done. This is an emotionally heartfelt record, you can dance and  sing along to it, and it conveys the pure joy of being in love and  going to the dance with your #1 lady. This is my recommendation for a
first date record. Play it twice.

6.) Help Me Make It Through The Night – Kris Kristofferson

Kris is one of the greatest songwriters of all time, in any genre.  Even though he’s most identified with country music, cover versions  of this song abound in all genres because it is such an honest song.  Everyone can identify with how sad it is to be alone. I like the  Willie Nelson version – when he does it live in concert, people go  nuts when he sings the first line “Take Those Ribbons From Your  Hair…” Gladys Knight did a Diana Ross-esqe spoken introduction on  her recorded version where she explains what the song is really  about. Even Elvis covered this. Check it out if you haven’t!

I don’t care what’s right or wrong, I don’t try to understand
Let the devil take tomorrow
Lord tonight I need a friend.

That’s right, Kris, even good friends get cold at night….

7.) Me And Mrs. Jones – Billy Paul

Well, here’s one I probably shouldn’t include – it’s about an affair,  and relationships born of affairs never work out. But it’s such a  great, soulful song. When he sings, in the accapella breaks, “Me And,  Me And, Me AND Mrs, Mrs Jones!!” you can hear the passion in his  voice. There’s a bootleg version of Stevie Wonder doing this song in  the early 70′s, and he brings that same kind of emotion to it.You’d  think to hear it that he really WAS having an affair with Mrs. Jones!

Me And Mrs. Jones
We Got A Thing Goin’ On….
We Both Know It’s Wrong
But It’s Much Too Strong
To Let It Go Now

8.) Earth, Wind & Fire

I’m not picking a song here, I’m picking a whole band! Because  nothing beats Earth, Wind & Fire. If you’re going to pick a Greatest  Hits album to set the mood, I think you’ll find Barry White is just  too campy. Nothing against Barry, but Earth, Wind & Fire brings it on  and keeps it up. The love song Reasons might be a pick here, if I  HAVE to pick a song, but there’s also After The Love Has Gone,  Devotion and Can’t Hide Love. Some of the best R&B ever, and  regardless of race, gender or preference everyone digs EWF.

9.) This Guy’s In Love With You – Herb Alpert / Burt Bacharach & Hal
David

I’m dying to include a Burt Bacharach song on this list, and Herb  Alpert’s only recorded vocal brings tears to my eyes every time.

10.) Betcha By Golly Wow – The Sylistics

Described by Prince as “The Greatest Love Song Ever” he recorded it  on his breakthrough 3-CD Emancipation and used to perform it live.

Honourable Mention:
At Your Best (You Are Love) – The Isley Brothers (also covered by
Aaliyah on her first CD Age Ain’t Nothing But A Number)
The Passion Continues – Zillatron (another pseudonym of Bootsy
Collins. Go look it up. This one blows minds!)
La La Means I Love You – The Delfonics (Did you see the movie Jackie
Brown?)
Fire And Desire – Rick James and Teena Marie (The song that launched
Teena Marie’s career)
Any song by Al Green.
Superstar – The Carpenters (also covered by Luther Vandross and Sonic
Youth!)
Love Theme from Spartacus – Alex North (there’s a great jazz version
by Bill Evans)
Maurice Ravel – Piano Concerto in G, second movement: Adagio Assai
(When the orchestra comes in, with the flute and strings, its a heart
stopping moment! And the piano melody juxtaposed over the oboe melody
near the end is heavenly.)