Our 14 Song UnValentines Day Playlist
Our culture warrants that the airs fill with romantic songs confessing our love on February 14. Of course, the other 364 days in the year are not nearly as romantic.
Today, people worldwide celebrate Valentine's Day. They buy red roses and boxes of chocolates, and if it is a Friday, they might visit their favorite restaurant with their beloved for a romantic dinner for two.
Our culture warrants that the airs fill with romantic songs confessing our love on February 14. Of course, the other 364 days in the year are not nearly as romantic.
With this in mind, we present our Love Lorn UnValentines Day playlist. Our list of 14 songs is filled with tales of betrayal, love lost, breakups, heartbreaks, cheating, and all the other travails of love gone bad.
It features songs across genres, including County Western, the granddaddy of long-gone bad songs, and even a comedy song.
These 14 unlove songs and 14 others like Hey Joe, It's Too Late, If I Could Read Your Mind and You Lost that Loving Feeling not listed below, are on our YouTube playlist.
You Don't Love Me Anymore!
We start our list with a bit of comedy from Weird Al Yankovich. In this original Yankovich composition, Weird Al is clueless that not only does his love interest want him out of her life, but she also wants him removed from the living!
Lyrics
Black
From Grunge Rock pioneer Pearl Jam, Black was on their debut album Ten. This power ballot is dark with lyrics that include, "And now my bitter hands, Cradle broken glass, Of what was everything."
This is the darkest song on our list.
Lyrics
A Better Man
Our first Country Western entry is Clint Black's A Better Man from his debut album Killin' Time. In this country classic, Black reconciles the end of a seven-year love affair and realizes things will be better after all.
Linger
From the Cranberries well-received debut album Everybody Else Is Doing It, So Why Can't We, Linger tells the true story of the late lead singer Dolores O'Riordan's realization that the 17-year-old boy she thought was her boyfriend was not.
Teenage love can be challenging and eye-opening!
The Circle is Small
The late Canadian singer-songwriter Gordon Lightfoot had many songs about heartbreak and betrayal. One of his most popular songs, If You Could Read My Mind, was about the breakup with his first wife.
The Circle is Small was written in the late 60s at about the same time as If You Could Read My Mind, but was not released until 1978 and again references the same divorce. This song tells the story of a couple in a fractured and flawed relationship who are cheating.
Lyrics
Pages
Described as a garage rock/garage punk band, Lousiville, Kentucky-based White Reaper (check out their 90s retro website) released Pages in 2022. This song is reminiscent of 60s and 70s unvarnished straight rock n' roll.
However, lyrics that include "I guess, or maybe I don't care, I wrote it in my diary, And all my word is true, I even tore out all the pages about you" paint a picture of a post-breakup recovery.
Blame Brett
This is one song where you ought to follow the lyrics. Blame Brett by the Toronto-based The Beaches is a warning to future lovers because after ex-boyfriend Brett soured her on romance!
Lyrics
When You're Alone
After the massive success of his Born in the USA album, Bruce Springsteen was a certified superstar by the late 1980s. At the same time, his marriage to model Julianne Philips was collapsing.
His follow-up album, Tunnel of Love, touched on aspects of that breakup. When You're Alone is a deep cut from that album reflecting on the aftermath of breakups.
Still Within The Sound of Your Voice
Written by famed songwriter Jimmy Webb, this song was first performed by the late Glenn Campbell. On her 'Cry Like A Rainstorm – Howl Like The Wind' album, Linda Ronstadt belts out this song in her unique way about lost love.
Lyrics
24 Hours From Tulsa
First performed by early 60s heartbreak hit specialist Gene Pitney, this composition by Burt Bacharach and Hal David is about a guy who can only be described as a cad!
The protagonist is on his way home to Tulsa, and guess what - he meets someone along the way.
Goodbye Mr. Blue
A rather curious mix of lyrics and meaning, is Father John Misty talking about the death of a cat. Or was the death of the cat the last thing holding a couple together?
I Know There's Something Going On
Written and performed by super pop group ABBA's Frida, the title of this song is self-explanatory. The song is noteworthy as it departed from ABBA's pop sound, thanks partly to Phil Collins' pulsating drum lines.
Hard Rock Botton of Your Heart
From his 1989 album No Holdin' Back, Heart Rock Bottom of Your Heart is written from the perspective of a person who cheated on his partner and is seeking forgiveness. The person who was cheated on will have no part and threw him to the hard rock bottom of her heart!
Nothing Matters
We couldn't have a list without at least one "love" song. Nothing Matters is written and performed by the English alt group The Last Dinner Party. Our 14th song isn't about love in the classic sense.
Instead, it expresses the primal instincts of attraction. (Some listeners might find the lyrics offensive).
