I thought I'd done this thread years ago, but I just did a search and I can't find it, so here goes...

What are the ten most heart-rending, romantic, soppy, epitomising or just plain good love songs? Songs that feel like love. (Not necessarily romantic love, though.) Here are my ten, in some particular order:

Wuthering Heights by Kate Bush
Kiss You All Over by Exile
Total Eclipse of the Heart by Bonnie Tyler
Love Will Tear Us Apart by Joy Division
I Wanted Your Heart by Magazine
Song to the Siren by Tim Buckley (but the cover version by Cocteau Twins/This Mortal Coil is definitive)
SOS by Abba (honest!)
Nothing Compares 2U by Sinead O'Connor
You've Lost That Loving Feeling by The Righteous Brothers
Romeo and Juliet by Dire Straits

Good but not quite there:

I'm not in Love by 10cc

Songs I'd reject outright include:

Anything by Phil Collins designed to make his ex-wife feel bad.
Anything overbearing and bombastic and interminable by Meatloaf.
Anything used as the theme song for an icky Robin Hood film and which remained in the charts for months because everything else was even worse.
Any overearnest songs used in films about bodyguards.

I Can't Quit You Baby by Various Artists (the Led Zep version is great)
Cinnamon Girl by Neil Young
Built to Last by Tom Petty
Lay Down Sally and Wonderful Tonight by Clapton
Sweet Little Angel by B.B. King
Cocoon by Björk

In the same vein as You've Lost That Loving Feeling I submit The Thrill is Gone

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Hwæt! We Gardena in geardagum,
þeodcyninga, þrym gefrunon,
hu ða æþelingas ellen fremedon.

Peter Gabriel's "The Book of Love" is absolutely amazing.

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My favorite:

Michelle Branch - You Get Me

Others (in alphabetical order):
Avril Lavigne - I'm With You
Ayumi Hamasaki - Evolution
Billy Joel - This is the Time
BoA - Every Heart
Chicago - Baby What a Big Surprise
DJ Sammy, Do, Yanou - Heaven
Firefall - You are the Woman
Goo Goo Dolls -Iris
Hoobastank - The Reason
Houku Kuwashima - Somewhere in the World
Jimmy Buffet - Come Monday
Knight Sabers - Asu e TATCHIDAUN
Looking Glass - Brandy (You're a Fine Girl)
Megumi Hayashibara - Going History
Mike and the Mechanics - All I Need is a Miracle
Nicki French - Total Eclipse of the Heart (techno remix)
Orleans - Still the One
Peter Cetera - Glory of Love
Shania Twain, White Broadway - From This Moment (techno remix)
Texas - Like Lovers (holding on)
Vertical Horizon - Everything You Want
Yuki Kajiura - Sit Beside Me

And of course:

Megumi Hayashibara and Masami Suzuka - A Maiden's Prayer

sorry, I couldn't resist

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'The Day you went away' - Wendy Matthews
'Time after time' - Cyndi Lauper
'When I'm 64' - The Beatles (odd choice, I know, but this song for me is the ultimate meaning of love - a partnership for life through ups and downs).

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"Certainly, in the topsy-turvy world of heavy rock, having a good solid piece of wood in your hand is often useful." - Ian Faith

The best love song hands-down is Everyone Says I Love You from Horse Feathers. There are different lyrics for each one of the Marx Brothers (except Harpo). Groucho's are the best:

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"You'd be so nice to come home to" by Cole Porter, especially when sung by Ella Fitzgerald

"Moondance" by Van Morrison

"Crash (into me)" by the Dave Matthews Band

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Carl Matherly

Offical Battlestar Galactica Apologist

Named Time Magazine's 2006 "Person of the Year"

"Moondance" is a good one.

Another Dave Matthews' song, "Lover Lay Down"

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Hwæt! We Gardena in geardagum,
þeodcyninga, þrym gefrunon,
hu ða æþelingas ellen fremedon.

Blues, Candy and Big Maybelle

Big Maybelle sang Candy - lyrics - look at these people arguing over who sang Candy on the Cosby Show.

I can’t find when or if she originally recorded it. She first sang it circa 1956.

I used to hang with the ritzy crowd around the Indianapolis night clubs back in the good old days. There was an older black gentleman that played piano and sang the blues at the upper scale joints. Every time, he saw me, he would sing “Candy” for me. It was so cute. I often wonder what happened to that man. My friend, Mary, would get so mad because he never sang anything for her.

This older man said that Big Maybelle had a lover named Candy, and this was her love song to her mate.

I've just always thought he was singing a love song to me.

You guy forgot "Only You" by Yaz (Yazoo in Britannia)

How about "Lady in Red"?

War Pigs, by Black Sabbath? No wait, that's not right....ahhh I love you Sweet Leaf

There's tons from "crap rock", ie Air Supply (actullay, I like air supply )

Can't think of stuff right now...not too many love songs by The Smiths...

Pete

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"I Don't Want To Set The World On Fire" - The Inkspots (a personal fave)

"Today" - Jefferson Airplane

"At Last" - Etta James

"This Girl's In Love With You" - Dionne Warwick

"More Than Words" - Extreme

It's hard to avoid Joe Cocker's "You Are So Beautiful"...pretty drippy.

If you were including lamenting-love songs, I'd add "Oh! Darling," by the Beatles, and "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" by Crosby, Stills & Nash. Tons more of those.

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While on the subject of Crosby, Stills, and Nash, I guess Southern Cross is technically a love song, and a very good song as well. So I would probably have to add that to my list.

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I met this wonderful girl at Macy's. She was buying clothes and I was putting Slinkies on the escalator.
-Steven Wright



My Website: The Black Cat's Web Page

Yeah, I was going to add both of those CSN(Y) songs. Good stuff.

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Hwæt! We Gardena in geardagum,
þeodcyninga, þrym gefrunon,
hu ða æþelingas ellen fremedon.

Sorry, has to be said: "Can't Help Falling in Love" -- Elvis Presley

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Not a fan of sappy, or even power ballads in general. And not a fan of folks who yodel and drone on about how awful they have been treated, sorry Sinead.

I'm in Love with my Car - Queen

eclipsed by

I Love my Truck - Glenn Campbell

And I heard for the first time on the juke box recently Shania Twain singing:

If you want to touch her, ask.

(And I find out I am on the list of thousands who misheard the lyric. Google is your friend)

More seriously:

Landslide - Stevie Nicks or Dixie Chicks.

"Biggest Part of Me" Ambrosia
"Miracles" Jefferson Starship
"I'll Be Around" The Spinners

Dave Mitsky

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"There's a light that never goes out" The Smiths
"If" Divine Comedy
"Eden" Hooverphonic
"Love cats" The Cure
"Stand by me" Sam Cooke
"Close Cover" Wim Mertens
"Silent all these years" Tori Amos
"One" U2 (or the Johnny Cash version, if you prefer)
"Into temptation" Crowded House
"America (What time is love?)" The KLF

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I'm also not generally a fan of emotional outpouring songs, but there are a few exceptions:

All About Eve - Martha's Harbour
Marillion - Kayleigh
Justin Hayward - Forever Autumn
Snowy White - Bird of Paradise

Songs that will cause me to withold the DJ's fee at a wedding (i.e. repulsively awful):

My Heart Will Go On
I Will always Love You (the Whitney version. I quite like the Dolly Parton original in fact).
Power Of Love - Jennifer Rush

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"Woe" by Tom Waits. Says it all without any dripping.

Dance With my Father Again - by Luther Vandross....

Definitely not romantic, but a love song all the same.

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Suffering from wrackspurt.......

CAN'T Believe, No One's Said it Yet:

"Just The Way you Are," by Billy Joel

My Fiancée and I, It's Our Favourite Song!!!!

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Stardust (with Nat King Cole).

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More for the list:

"Something" The Beatles
"Bell Bottom Blues" Eric Clapton (Derek & the Dominos)
"Let's Get It On" Marvin Gaye
"Maybe I'm Amazed" Paul McCartney
"Have I Told You Lately" Van Morrison
"Close the Door" Teddy Pendergrass
"Are You Lonesome Tonight?" Elvis Presley
"I've Got You Under My Skin" Frank Sinatra

Dave Mitsky

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De gustibus non est disputandum.
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That is one great love song.

Dave Mitsky

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Chance favors the prepared mind.
De gustibus non est disputandum.
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.

"The Look of Love" ABC
"The Look of Love" Dusty Springfield (a different song)

Dave Mitsky

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Chance favors the prepared mind.
De gustibus non est disputandum.
Never attribute to malice that which can be adequately explained by stupidity.

Heck, yeah ...

She and I, Have had Some Ups and Downs, Over The Past, Three Years, But, That Has ALWAYS, Been Our Song!!!!

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"Thank You" - Led Zep - always gives me gooseflesh, whether listening to or playing it.

"Sea of Love" - Honeydrippers version.

"Bold as Love" - Hendrix

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"Men occasionally stumble over the truth, but most pick themselves up and hurry off as if nothing had happened." - Churchill

Can't Take My Eyes Off You - Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons. It may be corny, it may be drippy, but you can belt that chorus out at 120 decibels!

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"And I LOVE you Baby ..."

Good Song!!!

One Time, my Best Friend, Wanted me To Hear It, So he Requested It, On The Radio; Unfortunately, they Prefaced It, By Announcing, "This Goes Out, to Roy, and Roy is In Love!"

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Tears, by Rush
Master of the Wind, by Manowar
Luchanbach Texas, by Willie Nelson (at least the version I heard first was by Willie)

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441!!!! :)