My funny valentine, sweet comic valentine
Rock ‘n roll lyrics, by and large, tend to be about subjects like rebellion, sex, protest, fantasy, breakups, drugs and drinking, and sometimes just sheer nonsense. But they’re also about friendship, peace, encouragement, hope and, yes, true love.
In honor of Valentine’s Day, I have selected 15 songs that might make a good soundtrack to the time you spend with the one who makes your heart skip a beat…
“Oh My Love,” John Lennon (1971)
There are legions of Beatles fans who have never warmed to Yoko Ono b
ecause of the part they believe she played in breaking up the world’s best band. Lennon himself would tell them to get over it, that the band was starting to grow apart before she entered his life, and that he had found his true soul mate and was very very happy. Witness “Oh My Love,” Lennon’s touching tribute to Ono from his landmark “Imagine” album. Theirs is clearly one of the great celebrity love stories of our time. Sample lyrics: “I see the wind, oh I see the trees, everything is clear in my heart, I see the clouds, oh I see the sky, everything is clear in our world, oh my love, for the first time in my life, my mind is wide open, oh my lover, for the first time in my life, my mind can feel…”
“Cupid,” Sam Cooke (1961)
The gifted crooner was also a fine songwriter, and his producers asked him to write a tune for a female singer they’d seen on a TV variety show, but once they heard Cooke sing it, they decided he should release it himself, and it reached #17 here and #7 in the UK in 1961. Critics called it “the perfect pop song,” combining Latin, R&B, jazz and mainstream pop elements. Sample lyrics: “Cupid, draw back your bow, and let your arrow go straight to my lover’s heart for me, cupid, please hear my cry, and let your arrow fly straight to my lover’s heart for me…”
Glenn Frey — guitarist, singer, songwriter, party boy, co-founder and co-leader of the enormously successful Eagles — died January 18th at age 67 of complications from rheumatoid arthritis, ulcerative colitis and pneumonia. Unbeknownst to most people, he had been battling the disease for 15 years. “He had a complex medical history,” said longtime friend and collaborator J. D. Souther. “In the end, all those things ganged up on him.”
dozen tracks, including huge hits like “Peaceful Easy Feeling,” “Take It Easy,” “Tequila Sunrise,” “Already Gone,” “Lyin’ Eyes,” “New Kid in Town” and “Heartache Tonight.” Perhaps more important, Frey did a great deal of the vocal arranging, for which he deserves long-overdue credit. The Eagles’ lush harmonies were their trademark, their strong suit, from the very first recording sessions right up through their most recent tour in 2015.
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