There will always be love songs, at least as long as there’s love in the world, or hope of it, and every era produces them. It doesn’t accomplish much to argue what era came up with the best love songs -- good ones always come along, along with scores of others that don’t really add a lot to the overall dialogue. But love is love, good or bad, and every era’s love songs reflect that. This set of 20 love songs from EMI’s recent stable of artists is a case in point. Some of these tracks seem overwrought, or silly and simplistic, but there are some gems here too, like
Colbie Caillat’s endearingly sweet “Bubbly,”
Natasha Bedingfield and
Sean Kingston’s “Love Like This,”
Norah Jones’ breathy “Come Away with Me,” Taylor Swift’s modern classic “Love Story,” and
Keith Urban’s hopeful and declarative “Kiss a Girl.” The songs might change, but the concept doesn’t. We want to fall in love, and we usually do, and then we just have to sing about it. It’s a good thing.