The History Of Love Songs

[00:00:10] Speaker A: Come on. Good morning, good afternoon, or good evening, babies, depending on where you're listening to this. It's me, your host, Abby Danger, back with another episode of From Studio to Stage now, babies. Before we get into today's episode, I just want to apologize for not uploading an episode last week. I was just taking a break and I think I might do that after every fourth episode just to try balance my life. Remember I mentioned in the tips for DJs how you need to take care of your mental well being and your physical well being. Well, I was doing just that. But nonetheless, I'm back. Hi, how are you? And I am ready to jump into today's episode. So since it is the month of love, I love love. Personally speaking, just it makes me very happy. So to honour the month of love, I thought it would be fitting to make our episodes love focused. So in the history episode, which is today's episode, we are going to be talking about the history of love songs. So buckle up because we're about to take a journey through time. Love songs have always been a very universal language, transcending cultures and time. But what is it about a love song that makes them so enduring and relatable? Before we go into the history of love songs, I thought it would be fitting to discuss the philosophy behind a love song. Now, during my research, I found a really, really cool quote. I couldn't find the person who said this quote initially, but this just made me think, wow, okay. Oh my gosh. This makes all the sense to describe a love song. And the quote says, a good love song has to make them say, that's how I feel. Love songs are often a raw expression of human emotion. They tap into our deepest feelings and desires and vulnerabilities. Well, I know that, mind you, when I write love songs or when I try write love songs, philosophers like Aristotle and Plato believed that emotions were a key aspect of the human experience and that music was a powerful way to express and process those emotions. Love songs can also be considered a universal language, so they've always had a way of transcending language and cultural barriers. As I mentioned before, they speak to something fundamental in the human experience and something that we can all relate to. The philosopher Ludwig Wittgenstein wrote about the concept of family resemblance, where certain concepts or experiences share a common thread, even if they don't have a single defining feature. Love songs tap into this family resemblance, speaking to our shared human experience and underlying desire to simply be loved. Love songs often perform intimacy, creating a sense of closeness and Vulnerability between the listener and the artist. The philosopher Jean Baudrira wrote about the concept of simulacra, where copies or representations of reality become more real than reality itself. Love songs can be seen as a form of simulacra, creating a simulated experience of intimacy and connection. Now we get to one of the main themes of love songs, which is the catharsis of heartbreak. So love songs often deal with heartbreak, loss and longing. I mean, that's basically the trifecta of most great love songs. Somebody's been hurt, somebody needs ice cream, and it's just a lot of heartbreak going into these songs. The philosopher Aristotle believed that art could provide a form of catharsis, a purging of emotions that allows us to process and heal. Love songs can provide a safe space for us to experience and process our emotions, allowing us to heal and move forward. And finally, one of the biggest philosophies behind a love song is the celebration of love. Love songs often celebrate the beauty and joy of love, not just the heartbreak. They are the good ones as well. Let's sing about all the goodness of love. The philosopher Friedrich Nietzsche believed that art could be a form of affirmation and celebration of life and its beauty. Love songs can be seen as a form of affirmation, celebrating the power and beauty of all love in all all its forms. So in conclusion, love songs tap into the fundamental aspects of the human experience and form an expression of emotion to celebrate love. They provide a universal language, a performance of intimacy and a catharsis of heartbreak. Whether you're a romantic or whether you're a cynic, love songs have the power to move and inspire us by speaking something deep within our shared human experience. Now let's get to what we came here for. The history of love songs through the ages. So this time I'm actually going to go from the beginning and work to modern day times. Unlike my first history episode where I started in modern times and worked my way back. Don't ask me why. I'm just trying something here, guys. Just go with it. So it turns out that the oldest known love song is a song called Shu Sin, which dates back to 2000 BCE. And y'all guys, that is damn old. I mean, like, that's older than my granny's gossip. So come on, that is like 2,000 years before Jesus, people were writing about love. But anyways, okay, I digress. Seriously. This song was discovered in the library of Ashura Bunny Powell. I tried really hard, guys. I tried really hard. But anyways, this library was found In Mesopotamia. And it's a real heart melter. I mean, who wouldn't fall in love with the lyrics like, my king, my lord. You are my lord, my king. Okay, maybe it's not that romantic, but anyways, you know, it was about love. [00:06:50] Speaker B: Cool. [00:06:50] Speaker A: Yay. Go Mesopotamia. I mean, if you think about it, it's kind of like a Mesopotamian version of I will always love you. Okay, maybe not. But I'm trying, I'm trying to defend this song here, guys. And also, if you don't know that song, I'm not gonna sing it because I might get sued. But anyways. But love songs definitely did not stop there. Oh, no, they just kept it coming. In ancient Greece and ancient Rome, love songs were all the rage. And I mean all the rage, babies. These guys were singing love as much as they could. The Greeks even had a special word for love songs, Scholion. And the Romans, well, they just love to write about love, I guess. I mean, who can forget the great Roman poet Ovid and his famous love poem, ars amatoria. Now we're gonna fast forward. Bloop, bloop, bloop. That's my fast forward sound to the middle ages. And love songs were still going strong. The troubadours of southern France were writing love songs that would make your heart melt. And in the Renaissance, love songs became even more elaborate with sonnets being written by people like the bard himself. And if you all don't know who the bard is, go read a book. It's Shakespeare. And then of course, we move into the modern era of love songs. Love songs have been a staple of popular music for decades. From Elvis to the Beatles to Taylor Swift. And let's not forget about the power ballads of the 80s and 90s. I mean, who can forget classics like I want to know what love is and Every rose has its thorn? And again, if you don't know those songs, guys, please go listen to them. They are absolutely fantastic. [00:08:41] Speaker B: So there you have it, babies. [00:08:42] Speaker A: Short and sweet this week, but that's. [00:08:44] Speaker B: A wrap of the history of love songs. It was very short, but I thought. Let me just give you the hard hitting facts. So from ancient Mesopotamia to modern day pop music, love songs have been a staple of the human expression for thousands of years. And who knows, maybe one day we'll discover a love song that's even older than Shu Sin. But until then, I think we should all just keep singing our damn hearts out. Thank you guys for tuning in to from studio to stage and everything in between. I will be back next week with another love focused episode and I am so excited for that. If you're enjoying the episode and the podcast, please subscribe to the POD on all of the major podcast channels. Also, you can give us a follow on Instagram, which is from Studio 2 stage. And if you want to keep in touch with me during the week, you can find me on Instagram. Jabby Danger that's a bi danger. But until then stay musical and keep on loving guys. I will see you next week and bye.