From Bob Dylan to Nat King Cole: Suzi Quatro picks the four best albums of all time
A century and a half have passed since the first song was ever recorded, a rendition of ‘Au Clair de la lune’, and the music industry has come further than composers in the 1800s could have ever imagined. Millions of songs have been recorded and put onto vinyl, then onto cassette tape, then onto CD, and, most recently, online, as the music industry becomes increasingly accessible. As the tracks stack up, it becomes more and more challenging to pick a favourite, but Suzi Quatro has an answer, or four.
In the 1970s, Quatro began forging her own place in music history in the soft rock scene. She found success as a solo artist, lending her wavering vocals to gentle rockers like ‘If You Can’t Give Me Love’ and through a sparkling duet with Chris Norman. With a string of hits to her name, Quatro seems qualified to provide her opinion on some of the greatest records of all time.
Last year, the glam rocker was prompted to name the best record ever made during a conversation with Music Republic. She kicked things off with a Nat King Cole classic, ‘When I Fall In Love’, even divulging her plans to have the song played at her funeral. The song is a far cry from the sound or style of Quatro’s work, but it’s still easy to see why she adores it.
Though the song was first released almost 60 years ago, it sounds just as beautiful today. Over swirling strings, Cole sings of absolute devotion. “When I give my heart it will be completely, or I’ll never give my heart,” he sings, “And the moment I can feel that you feel that way too, is when I fall in love with you”. It’s one of the purest love songs of all time and a fitting choice.
However, Quatro refused to limit herself to just one track. Though ‘When I Fall In Love’ may take the top spot, as her first pick and her funeral song of choice, she also shouted out a Bob Dylan classic, ‘Lay Lady Lay’. Released in 1969, the tune accompanies Dylan’s playful, suggestive lyrics with gorgeous guitars and cowbells.
Quatro clearly loves a love song, but not just the happy and hopeful kind. Alongside tender offerings from Cole and Dylan, she also named ‘You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling’ by The Righteous Brothers as one of the best songs ever written. The track focuses on a love that is slowly slipping away, with devastating lines like, “It makes me just feel like crying, cause, baby, something beautiful’s dying.”
The pop-rocker rounded out the list with a track from doo-wop singer Dion, 1961’s ‘Runaround Sue’. Though it’s not quite as devastating as ‘You’ve Lost That Loving Feeling’ or as devotional as ‘When I Fall In Love’, the track still maintains a focus on love, telling the story of a boy who gets his heart-broken by “runaround Sue.” It’s playful and poppy, and perhaps the most light-hearted pick on her list.
Quatro’s picks form a solid list of classic songs, ranging from songwriting great Dylan to jazz icon Cole. With every song focusing on some form of love, perhaps her picks suggest that the greatest songs spawn from the throes of passion.
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