Valentine's Day is the best day for flowers sellers and movie theathers but a few decades ago it was the perfect chance to give a forgotten gift: a mix tape. Before spotify, before YouTube, before mp3, before Cds, there was the tape.

That cassette people see at museums, or call vintage or retro, lived its glory days on the eighties, and a great way to show love to your loved one it was recording different songs from different artists to make a singular unique tape. So with that spirit I bring to you today 20 songs to dedicate to that special person on Valentine's Day! I wanna make two things clear: first of all, these songs reflect the beautiful, sweet side of love; so if you're angry, or sad, or you wanna get back after a break-up or something like that, these is not your list. And second, you don't have to dedicate them all, pick one, the one that suits you better and make it special. Make it your song. If you're a musician or a singer and you can do a live performance, even better.

Do you wannna get her/him?

Do you like someone and you pretend to declare your love this Valentine's Day, but you don't know how to say it? Well, you can quote Sinatra and ask: "Fly me to the moon, let me play among the stars", every mention of moon or stars at the beginning is a success and the message is clear by the end of Fly me to the moon, when he sings "...in other words I love you". So there can't be any misunderstanding. But if your guy/girl doesn't like Jazz, you can appeal to the British titans of love songs, Elton John and Adele. Elton's Your song is a great gift he left us. He sings: "I hope you don't mind that I put down in words how wonderful life is while you're in the world". Plain, simple, straight to the heart of your loved one. In One and Only Adele sings:

You've been on my mind
I grow fonder every day
Lose myself in time
Just thinking of your face

[...]

I dare you to let me be your, your one and only
I promise I'm worthy
To hold in your arms
So come on and give me the chance
To prove I am the one who can walk that mile
Until the end starts

She totally nailed it. So that might be your song. But if you still don't like any of these, I bring you one love anthem from the nineties, by maybe the most talented love ballads makers of that time (along with Roxette), Savage Garden. Their Truly, madly, deeply must have been played millions of times on Valentine's day and you can use it if you wanna say "I'll be your dream, I'll be your wish, I'll be your fantasy / I'll be your hope, I'll be your love, be everything that you need" or "I'll love you more with every breath, truly madly deeply do" this is the one. And for those with a little more particular taste, I can recommend a brief lovely funny song called I wanna gow old with you which if Adam Sandler could sing it, I'm sure you can sing "So let me do the dishes in our kitchen sink / Put you to bed if when you had too much to drink / I could be the man who grows old with you" to say you're gonna be the only person through her/his whole life.

When you've already found that someone

You've done the hard part. Now you gotta keep him/her. Start by telling her/him he or she is One in a million in the voice of Miley Cyrus/Hannah Montana. "Thought the chances to meet somebody like you were a million to one" or "They say that good things take time / But really great things happen in the blink of an eye" will make him/her understand how special and meaningful your relatioship is. If you're religious you can use God as a help. Mariah Carey with 98 Degrees say in Thank God I found you things like " When you brought the sunlight / Completed my whole life / I'm overwhelmed with gratitude / 'Cause baby I'm so thankful I found you. Her/his love is a bless and you want to express that. Nineties Pop sensation 'NSYNC gave us "God must have spent a little more time on you", a very long title with intentions clear as water:

How can it be that right here with me
there's an angel?
it's a miracle
your love is like a river
peaceful and deep
your soul is like a secret
that I never could keep
when I look into your eyes
I know that it's true
God must have spent
a little more time on you

Another great pop ballad is I turn to you by Christina Aguilera, from her first album, long before The Voice or Your body. On that sweet song a young Christina with a powerful voice mentions someone to turn to "For a shield from the storm, for a friend for a love to keep me safe and warm, I turn to you / For the strength to be strong, for the will to carry on" and her voice makes this song a great emotional piece. Going to earlier days on pop ballads we find that memorable duet between Diana Ross & Lionel Richie which you can perfectly use as a wedding song: Endless Love. I wont quote it, 'cause I believe you all know it and those who don't, well you can imagine what is the song about. As no playlist would be complete without The Beatles, among her many, many love songs I've picked this time And I Love Her from one of their first album. Very simple words "A love like ours could never die as long as I have you near me". Only a few can say so much with so few words and it's incredible how some times we can't find how to express ourselves with this clarity.

And the last one, which also could be a perfect wedding song, is one of those beautiful songs I've discover as part of a movie soundtrack. Is the main theme from How to lose a guy in ten days and it has lines like "There's something in your voice / makes my heart beat fast / hope this feeling lasts / the rest of my life" or this one "Feels like I'm all the way back where I belong". It's called Feels like home by Chantal Kreviazuk. What can be more beautiful than telling someone he/she feels like home to you?

Turn off the lights, turn on the love

So, now it's time to spice things up a bit. Sure you can listen to "Sexy saxo instrumental great love songs" or somehing like that on YouTube but I care more about the lyric than the rhythm. So here they are, some tracks to play if you wanna take the relationship to the next level and wanna say it in a romantic way. Let's start with the anthem for young people to lose virginity: Your body is a wonderland by John Mayer.

We got the afternoon, you got this room for two
One thing I've left to do, discover me discovering you
[...]
And if you want love, we'll make it, swim in a deep sea of blankets
take all your big plans and break 'em, this is bound to be a while

That "sea of blankets" must be the nicest way to call a bed. It's the perfect song when you wanna do what all the reggaeton says but you can do it like a real poet here. Don't say I'm not helping you guys. In that order of ideas we have Shakira who says Underneath your clothes it's the place where "There's an endless story / there's the man I chose / there's my territory / and all the things I deserve for being such a good girl". She's actually wanting for that to happen but she makes it sound like she's Emily Dikinson or something.

A little softer, a country ballad in the voices of Garrett Hedlund and Leighton Meester, says "I'm gonna start a fire / You're gonna feel the heat / I'm gonna burn for you / You're gonna melt for me" and burn, heat and melt suggestes what we all know. It's called Give in to me, from the movie Country Strong. Now, a personal choice. In my personal opinion there's nothing sexiest than a great jazz ballad. So if we find a jazz song that starts with "Like a flower waiting to bloom" and then it says: "Like the desert waiting for the rain / like a school kid waiting for the spring / I'm just sittin' here waiting for you / to come on home and turn me on" and if it's a Jazz song, and if it's Norah Jones (voice and piano), and if you combine it with roses and wine, that can only end one way: with a happy ending. It's called Turn me on by the way (obviously). To me this is the song for these ocasions. Now, if you don't like poetry and you just wanna make your point clear, use the Boyz II men and say I'll make love to you. By the time the song says "Throw your clothes on the floor / I'm gonna take my clothes off too it would be an unnecessary request, 'cause this song it's the perfect tune, you know "It's gonna be a long night". Like a night in Christian Grey's room. Not the red one. The other one.

Keep telling her/him the right words

If "She's so beautiful, and I tell her everyday" keep reminding her that with Just the way you are by Bruno Mars. "And when you smile / The whole world stops and stares for a while" is one of the most romantic lines on a song lyric ever, so this can be the perfect happy, kind of moved song you need. But if you're not so young and wanna dedicate your couple a more mature song that says kinda the same, go ask for help to Eric Clapton, he knows that "And then she asks me, do I look all right? And I say, 'Yes, you look wonderful tonight'". Use that line every time. There can be no better answer. And if you feel, or your partner say so, you're not as romantic as you were, you can go to the music archive and consult Rod Stewart to ask for you "Have I told you lately that I love you?". Believe me, you'll be forgiven every single time you remind her/him what you feel. But of course, the mainly thing is not forgetting to say it, so this is a song to use maybe just once. Like in case of need or emergency.

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So buy some roses, chocolates, cards, whatever you want but be sure the message you wanna say is clearly understood. You still have three days to play this list, listen to it, pick a song, the one that suits you better, and dedicated it to that special someone on that special day. You wanna use several songs from the list? be my guest but try to combine them according with the stage on the relationship you have (or wanna have) cause if you use the Boyz II men on the first day, it might not be a very smart thing to do. Spread the love with songs. Happy Valentine's Day!