shannon

At 8:02 pm today, please note that it will be the impressively symmetrical 20:02, 20/02, 2002. Thanks to Rand for this piece of information.

Wow, thanks for the great response to my plea for Love Songs in Blatherchat! I had to laugh at Chris Conway's Willie Rushton quote: 'If god had meant there to be so many love songs he'd've thought of better rhymes than glove, dove, above, and shove. The French have it easier as lots of things in French rhyme with amour - but anyway - God is English.'"

I've been reading over the lyrics to Shannon. How do we KNOW that this is about a dog, anyway? Has Henry Gross ever explicitly stated this? Sure, there's the reference to Shannon finding a tree in the backyard just like the one at home, but for all we know, Shannon could be tomboy who likes climbing trees (heck, she's obviously into sports since she likes swimming so much), or maybe she's a tree-lover in general.

So where did this dog business come from, anyway?! I must know. Please post your proof in Blatherchat, thanks.

Anyway, here is a summary of people's suggestions so far (mostly for my own reference so I don't have to go searching through Blatherchat archives):

GOOD LOVE SONGS

most of my favourites are break-up songs. I should have wondered when my first boyfriend decided 'our' song was "Didn't We Almost Have It All?" by Whitney Houston. (Jwordsmith)

Personally I like "Ordinary Fool" (wr. Paul Williams) from Bugsy Malone! Very smokey & heartbreaking. (Jwordsmith)

I sang "It Had To Be You" to my brand-new husband, at our wedding. Like being the bride wasn't centre-of-attention enough! I needed a literal spotlight! (Jwordsmith)

I've always said the first dance at my wedding (if I'd had a dance at my wedding, which I didn't) would have been to The Beatles' "In My Life". (Allison)

"Wildfire" Michael Martin Murphy (he was still billing himself as Michael Murphy when he hit the charts with that one) - yeah, is it really a love song? I always kind of wished I was loved enough to have someone chase after me in a blizzard. Plus, it's a cool ghost story, too. (Bill Sutton)

"Daisy a Day" Jud Strunk - corny corny corny corny but it still brings a tear to my eye. I'm just an old romantic, I guess. (Bill Sutton)

"Chevy Van" Sammy Johns - boy, have I taken flack in the past for bringing this one up, but the whole passing in the night thing just struck some kind of chord in me back then. So there. (Bill Sutton)

"Diary" Bread - the ultimate unrequited love song for the bubblegum generation. *sigh* (Bill Sutton)

"High Flying Bird" Elton John - not a chart hit but one of many strong songs on "Don't Shoot Me I'm Only the Piano Player." (Bill Sutton)

"Today" by Randy Sparks as sung by John Denver. OK, so I can't stand to listen to John Denver anymore, but that's due to overexposure. Back then it was OK, and the fact this one wasn't WRITTEN by John Denver helps a lot. (Bill Sutton)

Kate Rusby's latest CD (Anton Lerchner)

You Made Me So Very Happy - Blood, Sweat & Tears (pmills)

Old Fashioned Love Song - Three Dog Night (Paul Williams?) (pmills)

Pickin' Up The Pieces - Poco (pmills)

"I Would I Were" by James Keelaghan. Introduced to me by one of the all time greatest Canadians ever (Tom Jeffers), and then sung to me repeatedly by my fabulous husband. Featuring lines like "I wish the Northern Lights were out... a fabric apprehended... That from these earthbound human hands, those lights could be suspended" Beautiful lyrics, beautiful tune, fabulous canadian associations. What could be better? (Annie Walker)

"Today" was the very first song I learned to play on the guitar. I learned it through the Girl Guides before John Denver made it popular. I still love it. And I'm rather fond of John Denver, too, because when I was 14 he was my favorite singer in the whole world (except for The Beatles). (Allison)

Miracles - Jefferson Starship (Chris Conway)

Today - Jefferson Airplane (Chris Conway)

Wish On Me - new one off Lisa Stansfield's new CD (Chris Conway)

Love's Theme - Love Unlimited Orchestra - Ok i know its an instrumental but it makes me soppy (Chris Conway)

Please Let Me Wonder - Beach Boys (Chris Conway)

It's Getting Better - Mama Cass Elliot (Chris Conway)

You Didn't Have to Be So Nice - Lovin Spoonful (Chris Conway)

Darlin Be Home Soon - Lovin Spoonful (Chris Conway)

Matchbox 20, "3 a.m." (Heather Munn)

"Head, Hands, and Heart" by Bill & Brenda Sutton (Jim Poltrone)

"Velveteen" by Kathy Mar (Jim Poltrone)

"Close To You" and "We've Only Just Begun" by the Carpenters (Jim Poltrone)

"Longer" by Dan Fogelberg (Jim Poltrone)

"Biggest Part Of Me" by Ambrosia (Jim Poltrone)

"As" by Stevie Wonder (Songs In The Key Of Life is just loaded with love songs!) (Jim Poltrone)

"When He Shines" by Sheena Easton (before Prince turned her into a nymphet) (Jim Poltrone)

"Chakra 4" by Mannheim Steamroller (an instrumental piece, but it's about the heart chakra) (Jim Poltrone)

"A New Life" by Annie Haslam's Renaissance (Jim Poltrone)

"In Your Eyes" by Peter Gabriel (who can forget the scene in Say Anything when John Cusack stands next to his car and holds up the boom box playing that song?) (Jim Poltrone)

"The Best Years Of Our Lives" by Patrick Moraz (off the "i" album) (Jim Poltrone)

"Valentine" by Jim Brickman (Jim Poltrone)

"You're My Home" by Billy Joel (okay, it was written as a valentine for his first wife) (Jim Poltrone)

"In My Life" by the Beatles (Jim Poltrone)

"Colour My World" by Chicago (Jim Poltrone)

"The Shelter Of Your Arms" by Neil Diamond (this was "our song" with the girl I dated in the summer of '80) (Jim Poltrone)

"Lady" by the Little River Band (Jim Poltrone)

BAD LOVE SONGS

"Butterfly Kisses" by Robert Carlisle makes me want to hurl.....unless there was a way I can strip out the vocal track. There's a very nice arrangement behind the vocals, but the words are so....sappy!.... (Jim Poltrone)

"To All The Girls I Loved Before" (Allison)

"Lady In Red" (Allison)

Whitney Houston's version of "I Will Always Love You" (as opposed to the Dolly Parton original, which I've always liked). (Allison)

"Stand By Your Man" (pmills)

'Lady in Red' by Chris DeBurgh (Anton Lerchner)

"Hero" by Whatsisface Iglesias ("The words are doggerel, the sentiment smooshy and chauvanistic and the singing is just dire. It actively makes me turn the tv or radio off if it comes on. And then I feel depressed. Ick!") (Annie Walker)

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Quiet evening yesterday. I worked on a couple songs (one's a love song :-)) in the living room while Jeff played a computer game he picked up recently.