Bernadette McNulty, Thomas H Green and Adam Sweeting pick out the tender top ten songs to send your Valentine and 40 more songs we all love
Champaign - How ’Bout Us (1981)
A ballad that seemed to set the template for ’80s love songs: gently throbbing bass, boy-girl dialogue, critical sax solo.
Killer line -"Some people are made for each other/Some people can love one another for life, how 'bout us?"
Lionel Richie - Hello (1984)
Richie already had form in the ’70s for super smoothies with Three Times a Lady and Still, but he blew them out of the water with this.
Killer line - "Hello, is it me you’re looking for?"
Alexander O’Neal - If You Were Here Tonight (1985)
The king of the slow jam at the peak of his career. O’Neal was playing in stadiums with a giant bed on stage on which he would invite ladies to join him.
Killer line - "When the lights go out/I cannot pretend/This bed’s too big for me/To be in alone"
LL Cool J - I Need Love (1987)
The ladies already loved one of rap’s first pin-ups but he cemented his reputation as a sensitive bad guy with this shot from the heart.
Killer line - "You can scratch my back, we’ll get cosy and huddle/I’ll lay down my jacket so you can walk over a puddle"
Chaka Khan & Rufus - Ain’t Nobody (1983)
When Quincy Jones heard the plaintive keyboard intro to this he wanted to give it to Michael Jackson. Luckily, Khan had first dibs and turns in one of her most soulful vocals.
Killer line - "I make my wish upon a star/And hope this night will last forever"
Foreigner - Waiting for a Girl Like You (1981)
Proving that soul music didn’t have the monopoly on the genre, arena rockers Foreigner shocked their fans with this moody love song.
Killer line - "This heart of mine has been hurt before/This time I wanna be sure"
Anita Baker - Sweet Love (1987)
The definitive singer of the"quiet storm" style of mid-’80s soul, Baker was working as a secretary when this propelled her to fame.
Killer line - "Hear me calling out your name/I feel no shame/I’m in love"
Style Council - You’re the Best Thing (1984)
After breaking up the Jam, Paul Weller wanted to stop shouting about the world and instead turned out a beautiful homage to his motown heroes.
Killer line - "I could run away but I’d rather stay/In the warmth of your smile lighting up my day"
Joyce Sims - Come Into My Life (1987)
Sims, a classically trained pianist, teamed up with electro-funk producer Kurtis Mantronik and kept her vocals relatively restrained for a ballad.
Killer line - "Because I can brighten up your day/If you’re feeling bad, I put a smile on your face"
Fat Larry’s Band - Zoom (1982)
Drummer Fat Larry Jones and his band nearly hit No 1 in the UK with this innocent ode to falling in love.
Killer line - "Zoom – just one look and then my heart went boom/Suddenly and we were on the moon/ Flyin’ high in a neon sky"
Sade - Your Love is King (1984)
The Nigerian-British model took her smooth jazz stylings to the top of the charts both in Britain and across the Atlantic, and this was her slick calling card.
Killer line -"Touching the very part of me/It's making my soul sing/I'm crying out for more/Your love is king."
Mary Jane Girls - All Night Long (1983)
Addictive mix of sweet soul harmonies and lewd funkiness, over a fat bumping beat.
Killer line - "climb up on the ladder honey, what I got is better than money"
Womack & Womack - Teardrops (1988)
This no-brainer groove from soul veterans Cecil and Linda is guaranteed to provoke embarrassing behaviour at parties.
Killer line - "whispers in the powder room, 'she cries on every tune, every tune, every tune'"
New Order - Bizarre Love Triangle (1986)
At the peak of New Order's powers Bernard Sumner penned this electro-disco paean to the pains of love. Its meaning may be elusive but its power is undeniable.
Killer line -"Every time I see you falling/I get down on my knees and pray/I'm waiting for that final moment/You'll say the words that I can't say."
Cameo - Candy (1986)
Thrill again to the funk/pop /R&B/psychedelic genius that was Larry Blackmon. Come back Larry, there's still work to do!
Killer line - "Strawberry! Raspberry! All those good thangs".
Whitesnake - Is This Love? (1987)
David Coverdale is one of rock's most testosterone-fuelled singers, invariably belting it out with as much chest hair on display as possible, and 'Is This Love?' is the nearest the soft metal lothario has ever come to wearing his heart on his sleeve.
Killer line - "I can't stop the feeling/I've been this way before/But, with you I've found the key/To open any door."
Diana Ross & Lionel Richie - Endless Love (1981)
A glutinous torrent of syrup from two of pop's most shameless tear-jerkers? Coming right up.
Killer line - "Ooh woow, boom boom, boom boom boom boom boom"
George Michael - Careless Whisper (1984)
John Peel was appalled when this popped up in his listener-voted Festive 50 for the year, but it's still the song which first showed George Michael could really write.
Killer line - "I'm never gonna dance again/'Cause guilty feet have got no rhythm/Though it's easy to pretend/I know you're not a fool."
Soft Cell - Say Hello, Wave Goodbye (1981)
Great tune, gripping lyrics, heroic vocal by Marc Almond - not bad for a li'l ol' synth duo.
Killer line - "I'll find someone that's not going cheap in the sales"
Gregory Isaacs - Night Nurse (1982)
Although it eventually became synonymous with a certain brand of cough medicine, this reggae original is actually a desperate plea from one of the maestros of lovers' rock.
Killer line - "Night nurse /Only you alone can quench this Jah thirst/My night nurse, oh gosh/Oh the pain it's getting worse."
Sister Sledge - Thinking Of You (1984)
Still hugely infectious, because the Sisters' voices dovetailed perfectly with Chic's infinite groove machine.
Killer line - "What do you think brought the sun out today, it's my baby, oh help me sing"
Mac Band - Roses Are Red (1988)
Smoochy R&B opening shot from production duo LA and Babyface who went onto huge success, inventing 'new jack swing' while The Mac Band promptly disappeared.
Killer line - "Roses are red/Violets are blue/Baby/Well, if there's anything I'm certain of/It's love you."
Peabo Bryson & Roberta Flack - Tonight I Celebrate My Love (1984)
Mmm! Dig those tinkly Eighties keyboards. Almost tasteful, considering its schlockbusting potential.
Killer line - "Tonight our spirits will be climbing to the sky lit up with diamonds"
Jennifer Warnes & Joe Cocker - Up Where We Belong (1982)
A power-ballad for the end of time. Movie producer Don Simpson wanted to cut this from An Officer And A Gentleman, but he didn't and it won an Oscar.
Killer line - "The road is long, there are mountains in our way"
Atlantic Starr - Secret Lovers (1985)
Barbara Weathers' delicious lead vocal is the key to this high-flying ballad, soaring above the group's nifty arrangement.
Killer line - "How could something so wrong be so right"
Gap Band - Outstanding (1983)
Exuberant funk stomper, fired up with bass, big horns, handclaps and the mighty tonsils of Charlie Wilson.
Killer line - "You blow my mind, I'm satisfied"
Barry White - Never Gonna Give You Up (1987)
A surfeit of the Hamster of Lurve can provoke a diabetic coma, but the big man's plush sound upholstery spells "Valentine's Day".
Killer line - "I'm never ever gonna quit cause quittin' just ain't my schtick"
Mica Paris - My One Temptation (1989)
Ace! If Mica had been born in LA instead of London's East End she'd be a full-scale soul diva by now.
Killer line - "Life is tough if you find you got it all and you're not satisfied"
Art Of Noise - Moments In Love (1985)
More an intellectual treatise on the idea of "love" than the thing itself, yet its glacial fascination endures.
Killer - and indeed only -- line - "moments in love"
Spandau Ballet - True (1983)
Mock the Spands if you must, but this remains a weddings-and-bar-mitzvahs classic.
Killer line - "I bought a ticket to the world but now I've come back again"
Frankie Goes To Hollywood - Power Of Love (1984)
There must be 150 songs with this title, but Holly Johnson's awesome feat of crooning means this is the one that endures.
Killer line - "I'll protect you from the hooded claw, keep the vampires from your door"
Kool And The Gang - Cherish (1985)
The Gang's bittersweet and surprisingly metaphysical ballad must be the epitome of Simon Bates' long-lost Our Tune.
Killer line - "If you receive your calling before I awake could I make it through the night?"
Luther Vandross - So Amazing (1987)
Luther's best-loved moment was this exquisite soul soufflé. Makes you believe a man can fly.
Killer line - "I'll follow you to the moon and the stars above".
The Jets - Crush on You (1987)
The career peak of a large family of soulful Tongan Mormons who later quit the pop industry in favour of making religious music.
Killer line -"No more charades/My hearts been displayed/You found out I've got a crush on you."
ABC - All of My Heart (1982)
Old romance from new romantic fops fronted by Sheffield smoothie Martin Fry who famously promoted the song in a gold lamé suit.
Killer line - "Spilling up pink silk and coffee lace/ You hook me up, I rendevouz at your place/ Your lipstick and your lip gloss seals my fate"
Madness - It Must Be Love (1981)
The Nutty Boys showed they were lovers as well as dancers with their deliciously optimistic cover, replete with timeless video, of the Labi Siffre classic.
Killer line - "Nothing more, nothing less, love is the best"
Tina Turner - What's Love Got to Do With It (1984)
Out from under Ike's shadow this was the number that launched Tina Turner as the wild-haired senior soulstress who could sell by the million.
Killer line - "You must understand/ That the touch of your hand/ Makes my pulse react."
Pet Shop Boys - Always On My Mind (1987)
Unbelievably the wry electro-pop duo took on an Elvis number and came out of it OK. Like all the best covers it goes in a completely different direction from the original.
Killer line - "Little things I should have said and done/I just never took the time/You were always on my mind/ Your were always on my mind."
The Cure - Love Cats (1983)
Robert Smith's lyrics were enigmatic, to say the least, but this was the song where his wild-haired doom-laden goth persona suddenly bloomed into accessible pop stardom.
Killer line - "We're so wonderfully, wonderfully, wonderfully, wonderfully pretty/Oh you know that I'd do anything for you."
Cyndi Lauper - I Drove All Night (1989)
Lauper had long ceded the Queen Of US Pop title to Madonna but had one last moment in the Sun with this plaintive Roy Orbison cover.
Killer line - "I drove all night/Crept in your room/Woke you from your sleep/To make love to you."
Nina Simone - My Baby Just Cares for Me (1987)
Simone cut this song back in 1958 (although it dates from the '20s) but it shot into the British public consciousness when it was used in a TV ad and went to No.1.
Killer line -"My baby don't care for shows/My baby don't care for clothes/My baby just cares for me."
Whitney Houston - Saving All My Love For You (1985)
The song that launched Whitney, also inventing a newly minted variety of globe-storming soul diva. Bobby Brown and crack cocaine were not even a twinkle in her innocent eye…
Killer line - "Though I try to resist, being last on your list/But no other man's gonna do/So I'm saving all my love for you."
The Smiths - There Is A Light That Never Goes Out (1986)
Although never released as a single, this song from their finest album, 'The Queen Is Dead', became one of The Smiths' definitive numbers and a fan favourite.
Killer line - "And if a double decker bus crashes into us/To die by your side is such a heavenly way to die."
Alyson Williams - I Need Your Lovin' (1989)
A love song for the cooler end of the warehouse rave scene, Alyson Williams' hit has the requisite dubbed out Soul II Soul percussion and a lovely ethereal laziness.
Killer line - "I can't stop thinking of you/I can't get you off my mind/I need your lovin' tonight."
Stevie Wonder - I Just Called To Say I Love You (1984)
Stevie Wonder created some of the most seminal funk records of all time and is an icon, but his greatest commercial success remains this thoroughly syrupy ballad.
Killer line - "No new years day/To celebrate/No chocolate covered candy hearts to give away."
REO Speedwagon - Keep On Lovin' You (1981)
The hairy behemoths of Adult Orientated Rock bestrode America like kings in 1981 when this was a huge No.1 hit alongside its parent album, 'Hi Infidelity'.
Killer line - "And though I know all about those men /Still I don't remember/'Cause it was us, baby, ready for them//And we're still together."
Fresh 4 feat. Lizz E - Wishin' On A Star (1989)
Long before Roni Size won the Mercury Music Prize, his Reprazent associate DJ Krust took this 1979 Rose Royce song into the charts, rejigged for the rave generation.
Killer line - "And I wish on all the rainbows that I see/I wish on all the people who really dream."
The Whispers - It's A Love Thing (1981)
The Wisps' synth-powered knees-up is as super-synthetic as it's comically camp.
Killer line - "The look in your eyes is more than enough to make my poor heart burst into flames"
Jeffrey Osbourne - Stay With Me Tonight (1982)
This is the acme of aerobic funk pop, so get it on your iPods, all you Marathon wannabes.
Killer line - "Oh, give me feelings of delight, please turn out the light"
Phyllis Nelson - Move Closer (1985)
Phyllis's sleek and sultry soul classic has a way of sliding itself up your spine, whether you asked it to or not.
Killer line - "Move your body real close until we feel like we're really making love"
Where is "Suddenly" by Billy Ocean, "Save Your Love" by Renee and Renato, "Lady in Red" by Chris De Burgh ??
that's great "job"!!!
I Think Wind Beneath My Wings Should Be On There
its good that they tried to sample across various musical genres, but i think the listing is devoid of " true colors, take my breath away, eternal flame, total eclipse of the heart,hall and oates, every step u take..." I'm no expert but those deserve greater ranking
I think that "right here waiting" by richard marx and "true" by spandau ballet should be on there...
The 80's were woefully short of good,well written Love songs,this is made crystal clear by your list. Tamla Motown songwriters gave us True Love songs that are timeless in their ability to touch hearts and send us back to when the records were new. The Temptations Four Tops Marvin Gaye Smokey Robinson, all these true stars have given us brilliant voices and musical arrangements to go with excellent lyrics from such as Holland and Dozier.Some of the sub-musical drivel you list is simply dross.
Friends: full 80s, 1880 best songs 80s: www.uruguay80s.com.uy
The 'The story of my life' was my wedding song... Good. Frozen Ghost, "Dreams Come True"... better.
i think listen to youe heart and i anna know what love is
i wonder why None of Bon Jovi songs are not on the list.Like thank you for loving me,even phil collins,please come out tonight,
Say Hello Wave Goodbye. The Dave Tofani / long clarinet opening version is perhaps the best, most emotional song to come out of any era (in my opinion). You did right by including the song in general in your list. It's incredibly addicting.
Who compiled this rediculous list. Most of the best have not been included.
Killer line - "And though I know all about those men /Still I don't remember/'Cause it was us, baby, ready for them//And we're still together." Real "killer" line should have read /'cause it was us, baby, way before them// Excellent "killer line" researching
maria - Always on My Mind was actually a Brenda Lee song covered by Elvis then Willie. Do your research!!
At least I agreed with a few of them! My top 10 80s love songs are: Romeo and Julie(Dire Straits) Good year for the roses (Elvis Costello) It started with a kiss (hot chocolate) Love cats (Cure) Careless whisper (Geeorge Michael) Power of love (FGTH) I want to know where love is (Foreigner) Kayleigh (Marillion) A different corner (George Michael)
These should be on the list : "Your Eyes" by Cook Da Books, "Love Is Forever","Suddenly" by Billy Ocean, "After All" by Al Jarreau, "Should We Carry On" by Airplay, "It Might Be You" by Stephen Bishop, "Christie" by Jon Anderson - John Paul Jones, "Shower Me With Your Love", "Never Gonna Let You Down", "The First Time" by Surface, "Born To Love You" by George Duke, "The Past" by Ray Parker, Jr., "Love, Look What You've Done To Me" by Boz Scaggs, and lots more to put on the list! I'm a collector of songs just like these and I'm a heavy fan of 70s - 90s love ballads! Oh, I forgot ... how about soft balladeer Norman Saleet?
Just Like Heaven- The Cure Should definately be on the list...
One of the greatest & sexiest love songs has got to be..By Your Side.from Sade.
You're all I need to get by' by Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell surely has to be there. a truly beautiful song, made more tragic by Tammi's early death at the tender age of 24.
There are still a lot of songs not mentioned in the list but I cannot blame the writer for the list since there are ALOT! Of songs. I can mention about 20 songs or more 10 yrs is alot of time and there's many of good songs out there during that time.
Kaleo, On My Mind is also an Elvis song it was only remade by WIllie Nelson. Do your research!
Julia Fordham - Love Moves In Mysterious Ways. Its an 80's song, Julia has impeccable diction and the lyrics (thanks to Tom Snow and Dean Pitchford) are sublime. Like the ticking of a clock two hearts beat as one But I'll never understand the way it's done
hey hey what about "The Search is Over" by Survivor huh? Or "Open Arms" "Faithfully" by Journey... You're missing some of the BEST ballads EVER!
Hey when it comes to the 80's Duran Duran is the definitive group, so Save a Prayers' sombre melody has to capture love in all its conflicting guises...
wow this is the best site ever i love this site because it has all my fav songs on it xxxx
I'm shocked that Journey isn't anywhere on this list. I'm sure that 1981's classic 'Open Arms' is surely a power ballad to behold. I LOVE that song, and hope I can get a guy some day that would like to play it for me... Yes, yes I am cheesy. Thanks for asking.
How bout Twisted Sister - I love your dog. The Dead Kennedies - Love by the river.
Now wait a minute. No songs by the man who dominated the 1980's ,Michael Jackson? Sad to say the 1980's was a pretty bad era for pop music. Thanks to videos it was more important what you saw than what you heard. Many of the songs listed here are corny and just plain bad.
Many from Swans, Momus, Love and Rockets etc
How about "Stop Draggin' My Heart Around" by Tom Petty and Stevie Nicks? Remember, the list was limited to the '80's. So the "Love Hurts," "Nights In White Satin," etc don't count.
There are two I want to send - but I'm not sure about time and whether they are 80's or not. It's all the same to me. Phil Collins' Sad Eyes and Lauren Wood's Fallen. Mine is too many moon rises away, so unreachable, that decades make no difference. But, my love, as ever...
I'm not sure I completely agree with all the choices a few more I thought could have been on there are songs like Marvin Gaye's 'Sexual Healing ', Rick James and Teena Marie's ' Fire and Desire ', Pebbles 'Always', Shalamar's 'This is for the Lover in you' . Just to name a few , either way love the 80's great time.
Against All Odds- Phil Collins. A fabulous song with bags of emotion. Philis Nelson *shudders* I still remember her front teeth and purple Dynasty-esque dress!
how bout some tracks by Alison Moyet Climy Fischer " Love changes (everything) Deacon Blue
The Pogues - Rainy Night in Soho
My vote: The 50 most specious page fillers for a newspaper devoid of intelligent content. Please stop filling your rag with this 'Hello Magazine' mental chewing gum and do your job: Report the news that acually affects us; provide intelligent analysis; and provoke thought. Should I stop reading the Telegraph and switch to an equally barren intellectual wasteland such as the Express or Mail? Probably not, but I'd rather read the Guardian than this NME waste of space
Yes the 80s were great. But as a fifty-soomething, I believe that there are many great love songs since. Snow Patrol's Chasing Cars must be the best love song EVER!
Dodge - I did know about the Paul Hardcastle remix of Barry White's Never Never Gonna Give You Up, but surely a remix has no place in a list like this one. You're right as well about the '12" 80s Love' boxset. I think Quincy Jones should be here somewhere. "The Secret Garden" 1989 would be a worthy addition to this questionable Top 50. I could go on and on and on.....
Liz, I agree with you that La Lauper's "I Drove All Night" is a fine rendition (great arrangement with those throbbing cellos, and a much better version that Orbison's flat and insipid take on it); I guess what I was saying was that if you were going to pick ONE Cyndi Lauper love song from the 80s, it would surely have to be "Time After Time". Actually her song "Heading West" is terrific as well, but I don't think it made any impact on the charts.
How about the Jim Diamond song which starts 'I should have known better'
Some people are made for each other Some people can love one another for life How 'bout us?
Dire Straits Romeo and Juliet should be there, as should So Far Away from Brothers In Arms. Also, I Guess Why That's They Call It The Blues by Elton John, and of course, the theme from Arthur by Christopher Cross..and just to be really schlocky, Lady In Red by Chris de Burgh.
Good music died in 1750 - for a brief moment the Time Line continuem popped a hole - in MoTown in the '60s - nothing "happened" in the '80s I am afraid. All Crap! Hair Spray and Pubic Facial Hair. There it is. Sorry.
always on my mind was written by Willie Nelson; Yankee Girl - that is Kaleo's point and suggests it is you who needs the google lesson
Why on earth does your list not include "Right Here Waiting for You" recorded by Richard Marx. This must be one of the best love songs ever written.
I probably have apalling musical taste but what about: 'Nights in White Satin' by the Moody Blues' 'Lady in Red' by Chris de Burgh 'The First Time That Ever I Saw Your Face' by I don't know who but it might be a traditional song. 'Your Song' by Elton John. 'The Man with the Child in his Eyes' by Kate bush 'Walking in Memphis' by Mark Cohen 'You're Beautiful' by James Blunt A bit corny, I know but I still think they are great romantic songs.
Don't you forget about me, Simple Minds, 1985. A wonderful song to communicate your feelings at the disco. And give us British smooch over the American stuff any day.
What about - Rolling Stones "wild horses" or "dead flowers" U2 "One" The Police "Tea in the Sahara"
Talking Heads - This Must Be The Place (Naive Melody) Such a lovely song
Always On My Mind was a UK hit for Elvis in 1972. The Willie Nelson chart entry came 10 years' later. The original Elvis version (without strings) is peerless, though I accept that Brenda Lee may have had the earliest hit version.
Chris Issacs Surely!!
I can't believe Brenda Russell's "Piano in the Dark" wasn't on your list. Its far better than most of the others.
The Sensual World - Kate Bush "And his spark took life in my hand and, mmh, yes, I said, mmh, yes, But not yet," A real lovers love song - hot gorgeous and passionate
Just how old are the people making these selections? Their "killer lines" include some excruciatingly bad lyrics. Phyllis Nelson's Move Closer is the ultimate one hit wonder classic tune and as somebody above mentioned, another in that category is Judi Tzuke's Stay With Me Till Dawn, but gawd almighty there's some crap in that list! That's ignoring the slight problem of Barry White's entry missing the 80's by at least six years. Woeful!
Sinaed O'Connor - Nothing compares to you. Recorded 1989. Should be right in there at the top!
'Crazy For You' by Madonna should be there by right! "Swaying room as the music starts, strangers making the most of the dark" Classic!
I've always thought that Move Closer was dedicated to Phillis Nelson's two front teeth
Oi! No Air Supply? The kings of angst? Sacrilege!
'Woman' by John Lennon - love it.
Move Closer the most emotional and sensual record ever made.
What about The Fatback Band - I've Found Love" ? Surely an all-time classic.
HEY, THANX A LOT,MADE ME GO BACK WHILE I AM STILL HERE... NO COMPLAINTS ABOUT THE COMPILATIONS... EACH MAN TO HIS OWN AND "THE CROW'S KID IS ALWAYS A "GOLDEN CHILD", FOR IT,IS'NT IT SO?
There was a remix done of Barry White in 1987 by Paul Hardcastle... Incidentally this is pretty much the same setlist as a new compilation called "12"/80s Love"...
What about Peter Gabriel and Kate Bush "Don't give up". Great ballad and a wonderful video.
Ummm...Always on My Mind is most certainly an Elvis song. It was originally recorded by Brenda Lee. Use Google before making comments like that Kaleo.
80s love anthems very overrated, insincere and stylised - try looking to 70s for the real McCoy. Northern Sky by Nick Drake would be a good start.
I'm pretty sure it's 'Cos it was us babe, way before them' in REO's pretty awful song. And where is Foreigner's 'I want to know what love is'?
Includes a lot of instantly forgettable songs but in The Smiths and The Cure there is true quality and greatness. Are they love songs? They are adored by hundreds of thousands of adoring fans. That is true love...and Morrissey's light will never go out.
Plenty immitations of Theopolous P Wildebeest in the list but no mention for Nick Heyward, Prefab Sprout or Lloyd Cole eh? Hmmm. Also, I seem to recall the college disco always finished with "Vienna" which was not particularly romantic but was always a slow dance favourite.
C Phillips, I agree with you about 'Time After Time', it's peerless. But 'I Drove All Night' is pretty fine too. It's full of melancholy and sultry yearning in Cyndi's hands, whereas the Big O sadly sounded like a terrifying old pervert courting a restraining order. And don't even get me started on Celine Dion's version - she sounds like a personal trainer coming to whup your ass. One addition to this list would surely be Peter Garbriel's 'In Your Eyes', immortalised by John Cusack and his boombox in Say Anything.
I don't know who that is in the picture indicating the group Champaign, but it's not champaign!
I think you got the killer line from Jeffrey Osbournes "Stay with me Tonight" wrong. It should have been.... "We start to kiss, ooh we start to neck, you know what comes next and you love it girl".
Always on My Mind is a Willie Nelson song, not an Elvis song!
I have to to confess to loving rock ballads, so there would be more REO Speedwagon (how could you miss 'Cant fight this feeling'?), Foreigner and Chicago on the list. No to mention the wonderful song 'Alone' by Heart. Bon Jovi have done a few ballads to melt the heart too, not sure quite how many were in the 80s though, but an evening of rock ballads can be a pure joy. Not to take anything away from any other genre of course, just stating my own personal preference!
list is very good, BUT Relax is omitted AND Hello should be higher AND where's Nik Kershaw's "Wouldn't it be good" lastly - Thank you, Thank you, Thank you
Good list, but no Marvin Gaye tracks or Barry White?
This list of songs (barely half of which I have actually heard of) just reinforces my prejudice that the 80's were a musical black hole. The Smiths? Love Songs? Bring back the 60's!
man you brought back the 80's and sweet memories thanks a lot you man my day
Songs missing from the list: Nazareth - Love Hurts Bob Seger - We've Got Tonight Judi Tzuke - Stay With Me Till Dawn Too many killer lines in all of them.
"Barry White - Never Gonna Give You Up (1987)" .... Sorry but you've got this wrong. Never Never Gonna Give You Up was released in 1973 - NOT 1987! There may have been a cover version or a live recording available back in 1987, but the original recording was released in 1973. Just wanted to set the record straight. What a diabolical pun!
One song overlooked. The story of my life by Neil Diamond. Beautiful. Gets you in the heart.
Art Of Noise - Moments In Love (1985) There was more to the song: 'Aaaaaah...' 'No!' 'Aaaaaaaaaaaaah...' 'No!' 'Aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahhh...' 'No! No!' Then the harp solo, which must have meant 'Yes!'
Lawks-a-mercy, surely Cyndi Lauper's "Time After Time" stands way above her version of "I Drove All Night" in the panetheon of love song greats. Another scandalous non-inclusion is "The Boys of Summer" by Don Henley. Fantastically evocative song about the twilight of a relationship and the memories that remain. AND it features a synth pretending to be a lone seagull. What more could one ask for? And "Come Into My Life" is a rubbish song. Admit it.
Got to include Guns'n'Roses Sweet Child O'Mine. Timeless rock love song, ace guitar riff, magnificent guitar solo. Killer line - "She's got eyes of the bluest skies, and if they thought of rain, I'd hate to look into those eyes, and see an ounce of pain"
I think "Up where we belong'should be #1,followed by "The story of my life" sung by Niel Diamond written by Bert Backrachas #2. Thanks. bp