25 Of The Best, Non-Cheesy Love Songs That Give Us The Feels This Valentine's Day
Some of the greatest songs of all time have been written on the ups and downs of a little thing we call love. From club bangers to soul soothers - about devotion, lust, longtime romances and even first-time crushes - there's plenty of them out there to choose from.
But beyond the wedding floor fillers and Heart FM repeats, what, you may ask, are the coolest love songs of all time? We asked the the ELLE editors (and some friends) for the songs that move them.
1.Moon River - Frank Ocean
This Johnny Mercer song was in one of the most romantic films to date, Breakfast at Tiffanys. But when Frank Ocean dropped this version on Valentine’s Day in 2018 all our hearts stopped. 'For me the song connects mainly to myself in NYC, I remember the first time I heard it I was walking down Lafayette street at night. It's so delicate and powerful at the same time, this one song just brought up so many feelings. It still does, every time I listen to it,' says presenter and director Fenn O'Malley.
2.Love Letter – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
This hauntingly beautiful 2001 ballad will make anyone with a broken heart weep and then feel a little bit less alone. 'The actual words are really quite lovely, it’s the type of song you can put on when you’re on the train and imagine you’re in a film,' says Julia Harvey, ELLE Fashion Assistant. 'Plus you've got to love a song with a strong violin.'
I Wanna Be - Arctic Monkeys
'This is the most romantic non-romantic song ever,' says ELLE's Beauty Director Katy Young. 'Lines like "Let me be your leccy meter" and "I'll never run out", or "I wanna be your setting lotion (Wanna be). Hold your hair in deep devotion (How it deep?)" it will melt the most icy amongst us.'
Ain’t No Mountain High Enough - Tammi Terrell and Marvin Gaye
This 1967 hit single recorded by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, became a huge hit in the 70s when Diana Ross sung it and it went to number one in the US charts. All about how far we'd go for those that we love it's now a favourite of singer Joy Crookes.
Inside My Love - Minnie Riperton
This classic all about falling head over heels in love was more recently re-made iconic by FKA Twigs posting an insta video of her pole dancing to it. '70s soul music is my favourite music genre it’s what I grew up hearing my mum getting ready to go out to and now I always listen to this song getting ready for a night out,' says Whitney Harrison, ELLE Bookings Assistant.
When I Fall In Love - Chet Baker
Jazz trumpeter and vocalist first released this beautiful dedication to everlasting love in 1959 and it's not lost any of it's appeal in the years since. 'Its a timeless love song and it instantly relaxes me whatever mood I’m in,' says singer Nina Nesbitt.
Summer Walker - Baby
At just 1 minute and 28 seconds this love song by Atlanta will have those unrequited lovers singing along. 'Where do I even start with Summer Walker?! She was my favourite artist of 2019, she dropped her incredible debut album ‘Over It’ last year, but I wanted to take it back to when I first discovered her. Back in 2018 she dropped her project called ‘Last Day of Summer’ and I have been in love with her since. Not many artists make me feel the way she does' says Rebecca Judd, Apple Music host.
Friday I'm In Love - The Cure
Long before Craig David lyricised over the days of the week and their romantic appeal, Robert Smith, the lead singer of The Cure, made hearts everywhere miss a beat with this number one 1992 charting track. 'This upbeat 90s track never fails to make me feel giddy, like I'm falling for the first time type of way,' says ELLE's Culture Director Lena de Casparis. 'It's the ultimate get ready for a weekend of love anthem without any of the naff.'
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Some of the greatest love songs of all time aren't the most obvious, or the most cheesy. Heck, some of them aren't even particularly happy.
From club bangers to soul soothers - about devotion, lust, long-time romances and even first-time crushes - there are plenty of love songs out there to choose from, if you're looking to share a heartfelt moment with a special someone.
For some, it'll be the film classics like Bryan Adam’s ‘Everything I Do’ (1991) and Whitney Houston’s ‘I Will Always Love You’ (1992) that might bring a tear to the eye. For others, it’ll be more recent tunes like Adele’s ‘Someone Like You’ (2011), Rihanna’s ‘We Found Love’ (2001) and Frank Ocean’s ‘Thinkin Bout You’ (2012) that will be a reminder of a lost love, summer romance or that got you through a painful break-up.
But beyond the wedding floor fillers and Heart FM repeats, what are the ultimate greatest love songs of all time?
Here are the best love songs of all time:
'I'm On Fire' - Bruce Springsteen
While many understand Bruce Springsteen's 1984 single to be a tale of impossible and unattainable love, it's interpreted by others as a profession of a deep and undying adoration for somebody; a love so searing, Springsteen's 'on fire'.
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'Tiny Moves' - Bleachers
Is there anything more romantic than featuring the love of your life as a protagonist in your new music video? Frankly no, and that's the unanimously held opinion of Bleachers fans everywhere too.
In Bleachers' new single, 'Tiny Moves', not only does the band's lead singer, Jack Antonoff's new wife Margaret Qualley, feature in the video, but the lyrics are also representative of their young and burgeoning love too. 'The tiniest moves you make, the whole damn world shakes,' Antonoff sings.
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'Everywhere' - Fleetwood Mac
That intro... makes us inhale and exhale calmly, followed swiftly by a smile instantly breaking out when the beat starts. The lyrics speak to the consuming stages of love where all you want to do is be with a person all the time.
Written and performed by the group's Christine McVie, she sings: 'Something's happening, happening to me. My friends say I'm acting peculiarly. Come on, baby, we better make a start, you better make it soon before you break my heart.'
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'Lean On Me' - Bill Withers
First released in 1972, Bill Withers' 'Lean On Me' explains the importance of learning to lean on those who love you and who you love in return. 'Lean on me, when you're not strong, and I'll be your friend, I'll help you carry on...,' he sings.
Whether it's platonic or romantic love, there's something to be said for be a rock for those in your life.
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'You and Me' - Penny and The Quarters
A classic soul song to warm the cockles of your heart. With lyrics like 'If you love a soul more than fame and gold and that soul feels the same about you, it's a natural fact, there's no turning back... You and me, nobody baby but you and me' it's the perfect song for forever loves. Without a doubt, one of the greatest love songs of all time.
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'Never Knew Love Like This Before' - Stephanie Mills
If you're looking for a toe-tapping love song that's crying out to be danced to, Stephanie Mills' 'Never Knew Love Like This Before' is worthy of blasting out.
In it, she sings: 'I never knew love like this before, now I'm lonely never more, since you came into my life.'
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'Something Stupid' - Frank and Nancy Sinatra
Now hold on, this 1967 song is actually not just another contrived love song, says writer Lian Brooks.
'Even though it's a classic, it's refreshingly self-conscious in its effort not to be just another love song: "I can see it in your eyes, you still despise the same old lines you heard the night before". I love it because of that and because Frank and Nancy Sinatra are just the best.
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'The Best' - Tina Turner
A classic. An anthem. An icon. But also, this is a love song as ELLE's former beauty editor George Driver tells us: 'I love the lyric, "I'm stuck on your heart". Obviously, I have a lot of love for Tina anyway, but this song slowed down actually makes a great ballad like when Patrick serenades David in Schitt's Creek.'
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'I Wanna Be Yours' - Arctic Monkeys
If you like your Indie rock, 'I Wanna Be Yours' is about as close to a profession of undying love as it gets in this genre. With lyrics like 'I wanna be your vacuum cleaner, breathing in your dust,' it's a playful, and yet somehow still soulful, choice.
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'Some Sweet Day' - Sparklehorse
'Some sweet day, you will be mine, you will be mine' - a song for a love that hasn't quite got itself together. This song is about pining after someone special. It's the sort of song you'd play out of a boombox, standing underneath someone's bedroom in a Dawson's Creek style declaration of intention.
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'Moon River' - Frank Ocean
This Johnny Mercer song featured in one of the most romantic films to date and had Breakfast at Tiffanys’ star Audrey Hepburn singing it with a guitar on the window sill of her New York City apartment.
But when Frank Ocean dropped this version on Valentine’s Day in 2018 all our hearts stopped.
'For me the song connects mainly to myself in NYC, I remember the first time I heard it I was walking down Lafayette street at night,’ says presenter and director Fenn O'Meally ‘It's so delicate and powerful at the same time, this one song just brought up so many feelings. It still does, every time I listen to it.’
See the original post on Youtube
'A&E' - Goldfrapp
This is a sort of melancholy love song. Perhaps about a love that hasn't quite seen its course, but is nonetheless in jeopardy. 'Think I want you still, but it may be pills at work...I'm amazed at you, the things you say that you don't do' - a song full of complicated feelings.
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'Sweetest Decline' - Beth Orton
An LGBTQ+ lament for a petering relationship, about a love that can't be fully captured and a butterfly that won't be pinned down. Sweet and slightly sorrowful at the same time.
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'Love Letter' – Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds
The hauntingly, beautiful 2001 ballad will make anyone with a broken heart weep and feel a little bit less alone in the world.
'The lyrics are really quite lovely – it’s the type of song you can put on when you’re on the train and imagine that you’re in a film,' says fashion editor, Julia Harvey.
'Plus you've got to love a song with a strong violin.'
See the original post on Youtube
'Nothing's Gonna Hurt You Baby' - Cigarettes After Sex
A slow burn, but a wistful modern classic. With lyrics like 'Nothing's gonna hurt you baby, as long as you're with me you'll be just fine. Nothing's gonna hurt you baby, nothing's gonna take you from my side' - it's a statement of bold intent, almost as good as a wedding vow to be honest.
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'True Love Waits' - Radiohead
A break-up song? Perhaps. Or at least a plea to reinvigorate the dying embers of a relationship. With lyrics like: 'I'll drown my beliefs, To have your babies, I'll dress like your niece, And wash your swollen feet, Just don't leave, Don't leave, I'm not living, I'm just killing time, Your tiny hands, Your crazy kitten smile, Just don't leave, Don't leave', it certainly brings a tear to the eye.
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'Ain’t No Mountain High Enough' - Tammi Terrell and Marvin Gaye
The 1967 hit single, recorded by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, became a huge hit in the 1970s when Diana Ross sung it and it went to number one in the US charts and since then, it's become widely accepted as one of the greatest love songs of all time.
It’s all about how far we'd go for those that we love and it's a favourite of singer Joy Crookes.
See the original post on Youtube
'Inside My Love' - Minnie Riperton
The 1975 song is about falling head over heels in love and was more recently brought back into the social conscious by FKA Twigs, who recently posted an Instagram video of her pole dancing to it.
Whitney Harrison, a casting director, says of the song: ‘1970s soul music is my favourite music genre – it’s what I grew up to while hearing my mum getting ready to go out. Now, I always listen to this song when I'm getting changed and putting my make-up on for a night out.’
See the original post on Youtube
'Little L' - Jamiroquai
Love songs can be alternative disco anthems too, don't you know?
'It's a guy half explaining how obsessed he is with this person, half grumbling about not getting much back from them - all wrapped into some quintessential funk,' says Lian.
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'Under Your Spell' - Desire
'I don't eat, I don't sleep, I do nothing but think of you, you keep me under your spell' - this is a song for the dance floor, for a couple that either hasn't quite got it together, or one in the throws of early lust, when all you want to do is drink the other person in and stay in bed all day making love.
See the original post on Youtube
'When I Fall In Love' - Chet Baker
The jazz trumpeter and vocalist first released this beautiful dedication to everlasting love in 1959 and it's not lost any of its appeal in the years since.
'Its a timeless love song and it instantly relaxes me, whatever mood I’m in,' says singer Nina Nesbitt.
See the original post on Youtube
'Baby' - Summer Walker
At just 1 minute and 28 seconds, this love song by Walker will have unrequited lovers singing along.
'Where do I even start with Summer Walker?’ says Rebecca Judd, Apple Music host. ‘She was my favourite artist of 2019, she dropped her incredible debut album Over It last year but, back in 2018 she dropped her project called ‘Last Day of Summer’ and I have been in love with her since. Not many artists make me feel the way she does.’
See the original post on Youtube
'Friday I'm In Love' - The Cure
Long before Craig David lyricised over the days of the week and their romantic appeal, Robert Smith - the lead singer of The Cure – made hearts everywhere miss a beat with this number one 1992 charting track.
'This upbeat track never fails to make me feel giddy, like I'm falling for the first time type of way,' says Lena de Casparis, ELLE's culture director. 'It's the ultimate get ready for a weekend of love anthem without any of the naff.'
See the original post on Youtube
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