My Favorite Love Songs

I hate Valentine's Day. It's a Hallmark holiday that sets unrealistic expectations, depresses single people and people in bad relationships, and encourages the idea of money equaling love. I do, however, have a soft spot for love songs. Here are some of my favorites.

Lady by Styx - This song is dripping with Velveeta, but for some reason I would melt if someone ever sang it to me.

Go Your Own Way by Fleetwood Mac - No one ever said they had to be happy love songs. "If I could/maybe I'd give you my world/How can I/When you won't take it from me?" Haven't we all felt this way when we were in the throes of unrequited love?

Somebody by Depeche Mode - "I don't want to be tied/to anyone's strings/I'm carefully trying to steer clear of those things/But when I'm asleep/I want somebody/who will put their arms around me/and kiss me tenderly/Though things like this/make me sick/in a case like this/I'll get away with it." This song is not only gorgeous with its simple piano accompaniment, but it perfectly sums up the way I feel about love and relationships.

Damaged People by Depeche Mode - This song is sad but sweet. It's a great song for people who have been burned in the past but are willing to give it another try. "We're damaged people/drawn together/by subtleties that we are not aware of/Disturbed souls/playing out forever/these games that we once thought we would be scared of"

Stories of Old by Depeche Mode - This song is about someone who is initially resistant to love but gives in at the end. It talks about the balance of being yourself yet being part of something larger.

I Want You Now by Depeche Mode - This is definitely a lust song rather than a love song, but I included it because Martin Gore's vocals perfectly capture the desperation of wanting and needing someone right at that moment.

Annie's Song by John Denver - This was one of my Guilty Pleasure Saturday submissions a few weeks ago. This is such a simple and sweet song and we could all be so lucky as to have someone write something like this for us.

Last Dance by The Cure - This is another love song that isn't happy, but love isn't always happy. If you've ever come across an old flame or the "one who got away" and you realize that that part of your life is over and you can never go back, you can relate to this song. "But Christmas falls late now/flatter and colder/and never as bright as when we used to fall/and even if we drink/I don't think we would kiss/in the way that we did/when the woman was only a girl."

Lovecats by The Cure - Even though this song was meant to be ironic and was written to mock the accusations that The Cure was a goth band, it's upbeat and it's fun. I love the silly cat sound effects, the scatting, and the way the melody darts all over the place like, well, cats. "We're so wonderfully wonderfully wonderfully/wonderfully pretty/Oh you know that I'd do anything for you/We should have each other to tea/We should have each other with cream/Then curl up by the fire/and sleep for awhile/It's the grooviest thing/It's the perfect dream."

Just Like Heaven by The Cure - A perfect ode to lost love. Smith and Co. have a knack for lyrics that can break your heart.

Lovesong by The Cure - I know that saying Lovesong is your favorite Cure song is like saying Stairway is your favorite Zeppelin song, but I have been madly in love with this song since the first time I heard it years and years ago and I'll never get tired of it, except for 311's version. All copies of that need to be burned. This song was a wedding present from Robert Smith to his wife; it doesn't get much more romantic than that.