Songs have been written about every topic imaginable, but the best ones - from swooning '50s ballads to contemporary club bangers - have been penned about the ups and downs of being in love. We are counting down the top 50 Hot 100 hits with a form of the word "love" in the title.
The romantic tunes cover every era of the Hot 100's history, ranging from 1958's "To Know Him Is to Love Him" by the Teddy Bears to 2019's "Someone You Loved" by Lewis Capaldi. Love is a many splendored and many faceted thing, and this list has all types of love songs: tunes about "The Power of Love" (Huey Lewis), "The Greatest Love of All" (Whitney Houston), eternal love (Donna Lewis' "I Love You Always Forever") and NSFW lovin' (Madonna's "Justify My Love").
It's sonic proof that while musical fads and fashions will change with every generation, love - and the songs inspired by it - will never go out of style. And we have the numbers to prove it: 9.6% of all Hot 100 No. 1s feature the word "love" in the song title.
40. "Dreamlover" - No. 1 for eight weeks (1993)
Carey and producer Dave Hall did not have the title "Dreamlover" when they started writing the song. "Usually I do an untitled song," says Hall. "We'll grab the hook and use that as a title." Their collaboration gave Carey her then-longest-reigning No. 1 hit.
23. "Vision of Love" - No. 1 for four weeks (1990)
Right after she was signed to Columbia, Carey wrote her debut single with Ben Margulies. She described the composition as being not so much a love song as a celebration of her life at the time.
21. "Love Takes Time" - No. 1 for three weeks (1990)
Her first album was being mastered when Carey played a demo of this song for label president Don Ienner aboard a plane. Carey was told the song was a "career-maker" and despite her protests, the presses were stopped and the song was added to her debut release.
(Billboard)
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