15 of the best classic house tracks about love – Mixmag

House music from the heart – here are our favourite 15 loved-up classics
House music is the epitome of love! House is the musical revelation of affection, harmony and hedonism that has soundtracked cultural movements around the world. The musical style continues to bring people of all races, genders and sexualities under one roof for timeless moments of passion and delight.
Gushy right? But we didn’t need to tell you this, because you’ve probably felt it for yourself on the dancefloor.
While the raw emotion of love is easily the most touched upon subject in almost every genre of music, house music has a tendency to focus on a unique aspect. It’s the collective perception of the enchanting sensation rather than one individual’s desire or heartbreak.
Early originators of house used its hypnotic, addictive and grooving format to get political, fight intolerance and promote diversity by appealing to the hearts of their listeners. The core message of love that was drilled into early forms of the music still rings true to this day. It has paved the way for all the dance music that has come before and all the exciting sounds that will come after.
Below we selected 15 of the most timeless house music tracks that spread love, explore feelings of desire and get you in the mood… to dance!
New York house hero Danny Krivit’s edit of ‘Let’s Lovedance Tonight’ by the American disco group Gary’s Gang is the perfect song for a romantic stroll on the dancefloor. The song sounds like step one of house music foreplay that swoons the listener with feelings of sunshine, the aroma of flowers and a seductive groove that just won’t quit.
British singer and songwriter Duke released the original version of his single ‘So In Love With You’ back in 1994. It enjoyed moderate success, but Duke decided to revisit the track in 1997 and released a jacking, deep house version of the song that quickly turned into his most popular hit – reaching #1 on Billboard’s Hot Dance Music/Club Play chart that same year.
Dance music goddess CeCe Peniston’s collaboration with pioneering DJ-producer Steve “Silk” Hurley for ‘He Loves Me 2’ is a match made in house music heaven. The track was originally intended for one of Peniston’s albums, but the LP never saw the light of day. Recognizing the single’s dancefloor potential, it was released in 1999 alongside a remix from Paul Johnson and subsequently earned Steve “Silk” Hurley a Grammy nomination for the category of Non-Classical Remixer of the Year in 2000.
Terrence Parker’s track ‘Love’s Got Me High’, taken from the artist’s 1997 album ‘No Weapon Formed Against Me Shall Prosper’, is a true testament to Detroit and all the house music love that the Motor City has to offer the world.

Lil Louis, widely considered to be one of the founding fathers of Chicago house music, released his hit song ‘French Kiss’ in 1989. A track that oozes sex appeal, it spent two weeks at number one on the American dance chart the year it was released. The tune’s sensual and moaning slowdown at the five-minute mark, followed but its subsequent BPM boost, made this clubland classic one of the most innovative dance tracks of its time.

Masters At Work (MAW) – the ground-breaking project of Louie Vega and Kenny Dope – released the track ‘To Be In Love’ in 1997 via the duo’s lauded New Jersey house label, MAW Records. Tapping the very talented India to handle the track’s vocals, it reminds us of the reality that love is HARD WORK. MAW does a proper job of showing us that when it comes to making a love song, they are masters of the art form.

‘Deep Inside’ is a perfect house tune that has solidified itself as a timeless clubland anthem through and through. Pure and true to its core, Louie Vega’s track ‘Deep Inside’ (produced under his Hardrive moniker) reminds us that deep down inside, all we ever really need… is love.

Detroit producer Kenny Dixon Jr., aka Moodymann, is no stranger to soulful love tunes. Back in 1999 he released ‘Don’t You Want My Love’ and in recent years the track’s legendary status has been cemented in the scene. Throughout his career, he’s been a master at using unique samples and on this record, he completely transforms ‘Spiral’ by The Crusaders into a grooving club track aimed directly at the dance.

This 1993 release is a lively clubland classic that features fantastic vocal work from New Jersey DJ-producer Romanthony – the singer featured on Daft Punk’s tracks ‘One More Time’ and ‘Too Long’ on the French duo’s ‘Discovery’ album.

This stone cold classic was one of the biggest club and pop hits of 1993 and continues to be played out on dancefloors of all shapes, sounds and sizes. The original Robin S. single was created in 1990 and started as somewhat of a flop before Swedish DJ-producer StoneBridge revamped the song two years later. What resulted was a diva-house classic that topped the charts all over the world and remains a testament to any dancefloor DJ.
If any house music producer can get you ‘Hooked On Love’, that man is Kerri Chandler. A cut from his 1996 album ‘Hemisphere’, the track kicks off with a clean and simple groove before a plump bassline and a soulful echo of the track’s vocal tosses you into a vat of serious dancefloor funk.

The French trio Stardust – a group made of up Daft Punk’s Thomas Bangalter, Alan Braxe and vocalist Benjamin Diamond – dropped their hit single ‘Music Sounds Better With You’ back in 1998. Released on French label Roulé, the Chaka Khan-sampling track reached number two in the UK Singles Chart and went platinum in the UK and Australia.

Celebrating the track’s 20th anniversary, the band released a re-mastered version of the song in the summer of 2018, marking the first time it has ever been available on streaming platforms.
Her first solo-debut and a massive club hit, Alison Limerick’s 1990 single ‘Where Love Lives’ – produced by house music legends Frankie Knuckles and David Morales – is one of the finest examples of dance music. In 1996, Mixmag awarded it the #1 spot on our 100 Greatest Dance Singles of All Time round-up. Here is what we had to say:

“‘Where Love Lives (Come On In)’ is the greatest dance record of all time because it’s got everything. It swings, it makes girls pout, boys preen and hearts sing. There’s a touch of sadness about it but it’s incredibly uplifting, reaching a bittersweet joy that only the most spiritual of house achieves. Ms Limerick – whose subsequent career never lived up to this – sings with a throaty, controlled abandon, hitting the high notes while arms hit the ceiling. Even the lyrics are cool: strong woman sends out her love but gives her lover a bit of a slagging while she’s about it.”
Released in 2001 as a single, ‘Digital Love’ is a classic Daft Punk ballad about unspoken love, longing and desire. The tune uses a sample of George Duke’s ‘I Love You More’ and features lyrics written by DJ Sneak. The song’s protagonist speaks of dancing beside the person he loves all night before realizing that it was all just a figment of his imagination. Touching on the tragic reality that love can sometimes feel so close when it is still so far away, Daft Punk never fails to pull at the heartstrings.

“I need your love”

Four words that say it all, and moved a generation. Frankie Knuckles we miss you.
For more on the best that house has to offer, check out the 30 best vocal house anthems and the 20 best piano house tracks.
Cameron is Mixmag’s Jr. Editor. Follow him on Twitter here

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