“The poetry is so pure when we are on the floor together” Gnarls Barkley

Last week in honor of Valentine’s day I have posted a play list of my favorite love songs on face book. The list consisted of: Gnarls Barkley's “Last time”, Alanis Morsette's “Head over feet” and Jim Croce's “I'll have to say I love you in a song”. It had got me thinking as to what made these songs my favorite.

Mainly, the common tread is the conversational tone that each song is written in. Each is like a poetic excerpt from an actual talk between a couple. The second person pronouns like “I”, “you” and “we” conveys a very personal feel. There's also an appeal to each songs simple, genuine phrases like “what I've got to say can't wait, I know you'd understand” or “you're so much braver then I give you credit for”. They make the story sound real even if the context my be sensationalized.

For a love song to work, it has to be personal and intimate. If it's gonna tug on your heart strings, it has to feel real. That's the word that sums up my favorite love songs; real.