(no subject)

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Magic FM are doing a compilation or chart or something of "the nation's favourite lovesongs." The advert heavily features Leona Lewis' cover of 'Run' by Snow Patrol so obviously they will be wrong but I thought it might be time, in the wake of the end-of-year-poll madness, for some essential poptimist groupthink.

[Poll #1343130]

The results of the poll are only viewable to me for future orga-polling purposes. I obvs. did not actually think this through very well with regards to the second question so please just put any answers in the comments.

Comments

[friend-of-tofu.livejournal.com]

For public viewing,

"If I Die I Die" by Dream City Film Club.

[andthatisthat.livejournal.com]

Argh, trying to narrow down a favourite love song is so difficult. I do get really irked by compilations and whatever that just assume anything with a slow tempo or a plaintive vocal is automatically a love song, irrespective of what the lyrics are actually going on about.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the number of incredibly sad songs that get touted as 'omg slushy lurve' is ridiculous.

It took me about twenty thousand years to think of my favourite due to the fact my brain kept getting blocked by 'First Day Of My Life' by Bright Eyes which I kind of... refuse to nominate.

[andthatisthat.livejournal.com]

I know, I've been struggling to come up with one. Most of the ones I like are, on reflection, not so much love songs as angry breakup songs, which would probably still fit some people's description of "a love song", but not mine.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Mmm, I was very, very tempted to nominate 'Alone' by Heart but then whilst that's definitely a love song of some sort, it's totally one-sided and ultimately rather sad, so I'm not sure I count it. :/

[andthatisthat.livejournal.com]

I dunno, I think that would count in my admittedly-loose definition. Though it's whether it fits your own personal definition that's the issue here, I would think.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

Nobody has nominated 'Romeo and Juliet' yet. Take this as you will.

[freakytigger.livejournal.com]

Classic rock was better at love songs than modern pop, is my unexpected conclusion.

I'd use a tightish definition of love songs as a subset of "songs about the messy business of human relationships": it needs to be credible (i.e. the singer must get across either what makes the loved person worth loving or what makes the love worthwhile), it should really be reciprocated or at least offer the possibility of it, it should probably be present tense (tho "He Stopped Loving Her Today" is surely a love song). My actual pick falls at the first hurdle, so I'll change it.

[skyecaptain.livejournal.com]

"songs about the messy business of human relationships"

This is why I nominated Ashlee Simpson's "Better Off."

But there are also ur-love-songs, songs that seem archetypical. The only one I could bring myself to nominate (sorry I picked two) was Olive Oyl's "He Needs Me."

[skyecaptain.livejournal.com]

Er, not ur, uber maybe? Can't speak deutsch.

[alexmacpherson.livejournal.com]

I mentally excluded sad/unrequited love songs - not that I think they don't count, but it's a different category to the devotional, reciprocated love songs I think we're talking about here. Plus, not enough attention is paid to positive love songs.

[piratemoggy.livejournal.com]

i think the thing about sad/unrequited love songs is that they obviously count somewhere within the genre (such as there is one) but it seems like there ought to be a delineation between 'songs that could be played as a first dance at a wedding' (or whatever) and 'songs which talk about love. the over-discussed 'hallelujah' is, of course, a love song (and imminently featuring on a million supermarket compilations of such, no doubt) and so is 'unbreak my heart' but there's something that makes them less automatically 'love song-esque' than, say, 'unchained melody' or something (although possibly that one's sad, too... i cannot really remember the lyrics) ...i think possibly the whole thing would be easier if people talked about 'slush songs' and 'love songs,' where slush isn't a bad thing but is ...happier or something.

/endlessrambling

[jel-bugle.livejournal.com]

Love song=

* Starts acoustic, singer sounds softer than normal
* Big chorus
* Awesome guitar solo
* Subjects: Loss - "oh I cheated on you, but you're the only one I love", Regret - "oh, I spent too much drinking/on the road and I lost her", Aspirational - "I'll be better this time, I'll never let her go", Tenderness - "You're so awesome"

[jeff-worrell.livejournal.com]

haha I didn't see this was a sekrit poll until after I hit submit. Probably for the best given what I wrote.