Love Will Tear Us Apart: Araceli’s Favorite Love Songs

Posted: August 27th, 2009 | Author: Araceli Cruz | Filed under: Uncategorized | Tags: , , , , , , , , , | 1 Comment »

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Brian, Lille, and I are feeling a bit on the emo side as of late, perhaps because, sadly, as much as this season has sparkled with euphoric, for-the-record-book moments, the summer of death has billowed above the entire time. So rather than wait to feel even more depressed on Valentine’s Day, we’re going retrograde with these next series of posts with a list of our favorite love songs.

Four nostalgic love tunes, three from the past and one current track. I suppose in doing this top love songs post, we’ll  find some comfort in the ongoing search for treasure at the end of the rainbow. It is there. Bear with the mush, it’s comfy.

Let’s get started.

Instead of mulling over quasi-horrific “love” tunes like “I Wanna Sex You Up,” “Is This Love,” or “Glory of Love,”  that seriously engulfed my childhood-tween years,  I’d rather fast-forward to the moment in which love really entered my consciousness.

Although the Cure’s “Pictures of You” wasn’t timely during the ‘97 school year at San Francisco State, it made a significant impact on my freshman, undefiled heart with a particular comic book artist who loved the Cure. Our relationship which was construed as obsessed and drama-laced, was actually the most raw, I think, I have ever been, you know, a solid “Dawson’s Creek” sort of thing. And I was in it. He played this song for me one morning. Instantly I knew the song summed up our entire time together, and foreshadowed his departure at the end of the year.

During the next phase of my adult life (er, like a year or two later), my heart melted at any sound that was brought forth by a Latino musician from Los Angeles, who willingly opened my musical realm to bands from South America, specifically Argentina. Los Enanitos Verdes and Soda Stereo have some of the most lyrically passionate songs. One in particular track, “Luz De Dia,” is completely enchanting and sensual. It’s mainly about giving in to a lover and forgetting about everyone else. I wish I could translate it all now, but the leg-work will do you good. I honestly thought this tune would be our wedding song. Funny now, but still an amazing song.

There’s no possible way I could do a love song post without mentioning Pearl Jam. They consoled every crush that I endured through my junior and high school years, whether it was with “Black,” “Yellow Ledbetter,” “Release,” or “Breathe.” Regardless if these earlier tracks from their catalog were about love or not, they comforted me and that’s all I really needed.

“Come Back” off their self-titled album released in 2006 was especially poignant. It was the year that I said goodbye (sort of) to a writer who encompassed every particular trait I could ever imagine in a man. We had so many things in common (we even shared a love for Pearl Jam) and at times I saw him as a mentor, which in many ways twisted my vision of who he really was. Nevertheless it was probably the only time I had ever really loved selflessly. I remember listening to that song as I drove away from our job site (yes, we worked together), sobbing endlessly probably because I was leaving my old self, and him, never to return.

As for the current track that makes me feel all gooey about a particularly hard man that I fancy is from Ray LaMontagne’s debut album, Trouble. “Shelter” makes me want to soften him up. Goodnight.