Get into a romantic mood with your partner with some of these romantic hit songs that can stand the test of time. There’s a song in here for everyone – from lovers of old tunes to rockers and even to those who love the blues!
Nat King Cole – When I Fall in Love
While it was Doris Day who originally recorded this romantic hit, it was Nat King Cole’s version that cemented it in pop culture. When I Fall in Love is one of those classic love songs that stands the test of time. It’s a song about wanting one’s first love to be the last, and if you happen to fall in love with someone and it doesn’t last forever, then perhaps it was never truly love at all.
Romantic lyrics: When I fall in love it will be forever
Or I’ll never fall in love
In a restless world like this is
Love is ended before it began
And too many moonlight kisses
Seem to cool in the warmth of the sun
The Temptations – My Girl
According to writers Smokey Robinson and Ronald White, My Girl wasn’t written about a specific girl. Instead, it was “written with all the women in the world in mind.” This super catchy song is about how that one girl can instantly brighten up your day. Any woman you sing this to, no matter what age, will definitely swoon!
Romantic lyrics: I’ve got sunshine on a cloudy day
When it’s cold outside
I’ve got the month of May
I guess you say
What in the world will make me feel this way?
My girl, talking ’bout my girl
Etta James – At Last
At Last is a very popular song for weddings, and we can definitely see why! This song is all about finally finding your one true love set to the backdrop of a violin orchestra. It’s a song that celebrates the end of your search for the one you love because the one you love is yours at last.
Romantic lyrics: At last my love has come along
My lonely days are over and life is like a song, oh yeah
At last the skies above are blue
My heart was wrapped up in clovers the night I looked at you
The Drifters – Save the Last Dance for Me
Save the Last Dance for Me may have the sweetest history of all the songs in this list. It’s a story about a couple at a dance. The man tells his wife that she can dance and socialize with anyone she likes, as long as she remembers that she’s going home with him. This was inspired by writer Doc Pumus on his wedding day. Doc had polio, so he could only watch as his new wife danced with his brother. So he wrote this song once he got home as a reminder that even if she would like to dance with other guests, the last dance is still for him.
Romantic lyrics: Oh, I know that the music’s fine
Like sparkling wine go and have your fun
Laugh and sing but while we’re apart
Don’t give your heart to anyone
But don’t forget who’s taking you home
And in whose arms you’re gonna be
So darlin’, save the last dance for me
Elvis Presley – Can’t Help Falling in Love
Can’t Help Falling in Love is one of those classic love songs that you’ll want to sing to someone you love when you’re feeling romantic. But did you know that the melody of one of Elvis’ most popular love songs is actually based on a French song called Plaisir D’Amour?
Romantic lyrics: Like a river flows surely to the sea
Darling so it goes
Some things are meant to be
Take my hand, take my whole life too
For I can’t help falling in love with you
Minnie Ripperton – Lovin’ You
Minnie Ripperton’s only hit was actually produced by Stevie Wonder. However, Stevie Wonder’s name couldn’t appear on the credits, so he was instead listed as “Black Bull Productions.” This sweet and soothing song is about how easy it is to love someone, and how that person can make each day feel like springtime. While not a popular wedding song, it’s still one of the sweetest songs ever written.
Romantic lyrics: No one else can make me feel
The colours that you bring
Stay with me while we grow old
And we will live each day in springtime
‘Cause lovin’ you has made my life so beautiful
And every day of my life is filled with lovin’ you
Bee Gees – How Deep Is Your Love
There are many songs out there about finding your soulmate, but we think no other song could top the way the Bee Gees have done it. How Deep Is Your Love is about having such a strong and deep connection to the one you love. And while the world is filled with people who might want to break your relationship down, it’s the strength of this connection that keeps you love alive.
Romantic lyrics: I know your eyes in the morning sun
I feel you touch me in the pouring rain
And the moment that you wander far from me
I want to feel you in my arms again
And you come to me on a summer breeze
Keep me warm in your love, then you softly leave
And it’s me you need to show
How deep is your love
Celine Dion – Because You Loved Me
Now this is another popular wedding song that stands the test of time. Celine Dion’s Because You Loved Me, however, was actually written by Diane Warren for her father. Warren states that the song became a way of thanking her father for all the support he had given her from when she started her music career at just 15. And while the song has a familial origin, that doesn’t stop it from being a top wedding song choice.
Romantic lyrics: You were always there for me
The tender wind that carried me
A light in the dark shining your love into my life
You’ve been my inspiration
Through the lies you were the truth
My world is a better place because of you
Percy Sledge – When a Man Loves a Woman
This slow blues track was recorded by Percy Sledge one night when he was upset about his broken relationship. The woman in question was Lizz King, whom he dated for three years before she left for a modeling job in Los Angeles. Nevertheless, the song is romantic in how the singer is willing to give up everything just for her to be by his side.
Romantic lyrics: When a man loves a woman
Down deep in his soul
She can bring him such misery
If she plays him for a fool
He’s the last one to know
Loving eyes can’t ever see
Shania Twain – You’re Still the One
You’re Still the One is a song about proving to the world that your love will last no matter what they say. It was written by Shania Twain for her then-husband Robert “Mutt” Lange. Sadly, the nay-sayers were right about them as they eventually divorced after 14 years of marriage. Despite this, it has still become a staple in hit lists for wedding songs.
Romantic lyrics: Looks like we made it
Look how far we’ve come, my baby
We mighta took the long way
We knew we’d get there someday
They said, “I bet they’ll never make it”
But just look at us holding on
We’re still together, still going strong
Jeff Buckley – Everybody Here Wants You
Jeff Buckley has never been known for straightforward lyrics, which is why his songs are more up the alley of music lovers who prefer a poetic touch. Everybody Here Wants You is about a man who’s aware that there are many other guys who want his girl. He is, however, confident that he’s the only one for her. At a glance, it may not seem all that romantic, but if you look at the lyrics, it’s actually one of the most romantic songs ever penned by the late Jeff Buckley.
Romantic lyrics: I know everybody here wants you
I know everybody here thinks he needs you
I’ll be waiting right here just to show you
Let me show that love can rise, rise just like embers
Love can taste like the win of the ages, babe
And I know they all look so good from a distance,
But I tell you I’m the one
Norah Jones – Come Away with Me
Norah Jones evokes such a specific image – lounging about with the one you love as the rain falls outside. Come Away with Me, as the title implies, is about wanting to run away with the one you love. It gives no context as to why the lovers are running away, but that makes it all the easier for couples to fill it in with their own love story.
Romantic lyrics: And I want to wake up with the rain
Falling on a tin roof
While I’m safe there in your arms
So all I ask is for you
To come away with me in the night
Come away with me
Paramore – Still Into You
Of course, we also need at least one upbeat alternative track in this list, so we chose to go with Paramore’s Still Into You. It’s a realistic song about how a relationship has its own ups and downs, and yet you still choose to be with each other.
Romantic lyrics: I should be over all the butterflies but I’m into you, I’m into you
And baby even our worst nights
I’m into you, I’m into you
Let ’em wonder how we got this far
‘Cause I don’t really need to wonder at all
Yeah, after all this time
I’m still into you
Ed Sheeran – Thinking Out Loud
Even though this song is quite new, we just know that it’s going to be one of those songs that will still be played at weddings decades from today. Thinking Out Loud is a song about loving someone through the years, even when you’re both no longer at the prime of your youth.
Romantic lyrics: So honey now
Take me into your loving arms
Kiss me under the light of a thousand stars
Place your head on my beating heart
I’m thinking out loud
Maybe we found love right where we are
Beyonce – Love on Top
At the top of our list is none other than Queen Bey’s Love on Top. This feel-good song is about feeling like you’re on top of the world because of the person you love. A memorable performance of this song was at the MTV Music Awards in 2011, where she said, “Tonight I want you to stand up on your feet, I want you to feel the love that’s growing inside of me.” At the end of her performance, she opens her blazer to reveal that she is pregnant with Blue Ivy.
Romantic lyrics: Baby it’s you
You’re the one I love
You’re the one I need
You’re the only one I see
Come on baby it’s you
You’re the one that gives your all
You’re the one I can always call
When I need to make everything stop
Finally you put my love on top
Get on up and dance with your special someone to the tune of these romantic songs!
