TNOCS’ Worst Nightmare? Thirty Songs From Diane Warren

I’ve a confession to make. 

One that might shock TNOCS:

No, it’s not about “Backstabbers” (which is still a 10), or Olivia’s “Magic” (which, I’ve recently said, is third to Pilot’s and the Cars’). 

Rather, it’s something our pal Tom Breihan got me thinking about recently.

In a non-TNO Stereogum piece, Tom wrote about Diane Warren’s track record of nominations but losses in the Best Original Song category at the Oscars. He ranked the compositions.

That got some of us at TNOCS talking about the much-maligned songwriter.

It also sent me to my copy of Fred Bronson’s Billboard’s Hottest Hot 100 Hits, 4^th Edition. Specifically, to the list of Diane Warren compositions to remind myself of her hits and misses.

Yes, No. 1 was a big miss: Toni Braxton’s ungrammatical, chart-topping slog, “Un-break My Heart.” Also in the top 30 were songs I consider among the respective acts’ worst: Aerosmith’s “I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing” and Chicago’s “Look Away.”

At the same time, there were songs I genuinely enjoy. Like Michael Bolton’s “How Can We Be Lovers?” and Starship’s “Nothing’s Gonna Stop Us Now.”

Others – ballads more typically associated with her – are, to my mind, well-done: Celine Dion’s “Because You Loved Me,” and LeAnn Rimes’ “How Do I Live?”

So, using Bronson’s list as a foundation…

… and getting some help from Wikipedia (confirming the citations on Spotify), I came up with my own playlist of 30 Diane Warren songs that I like.

I realized my favorite Warren songs fell into a few kinds:

The (over?)-emotive pop/rockers:

In addition to the Starship and Bolton songs, other Warren songs like Rimes’ “Can’t Fight the Moonlight,” Kathy Troccoli’s “Everything Changes,” Cheap Trick’s “Ghost Town,” and lots of Cher singles fit here.

Cher actually edges out Bolton in this countdown, with her four to his three. I wrestled with whether to include “Time, Love and Tenderness,” but his shoutfest with Patti LaBelle, “We’re Not Makin’ Love Anymore,” was just too much fun not to include.)

Cher’s “If I Could Turn Back Time” is No. 1 in my Warren playlist.

The R&B/pop ingenues:

Aaliyah, Brandy, Samantha Mumba and the group Xscape all place singles in the Warren playlist. (Monica and Christina Aguilera could have, too, but I didn’t really care for their singles.) And a few R&B/pop stars who were a bit too mature to be considered ingenues, Whitney Houston, Regina Belle (with James “J.T.” Taylor) and Natalie Cole, also shine here.

The surprises: (also known as: “That’s a Diane Warren song?”

In some cases they’re co-writes, in others: her own compositions.

But whatever the case, I was surprised to learn Michael W. Smith’s “I Will Be Here for You,” Laura Branigan’s “Solitaire,” Milli Vanilli’s “Blame It On the Rain,” and Gloria Estefan’s “Live for Loving You” all featured Warren credits.

The expected ballads:

Even among what most people recognize as a Diane Warren song, there are performances that elevate the track.

Aaron Neville’s “Don’t Take Away My Heaven,” Celine Dion’s “Love Can Move Mountains,” Edwin McCain’s “I Could Not Ask for More.” are examples.

Take a listen to the playlist – if you dare – and share what tracks you love, hate… or are surprised to learn she wrote or co-wrote.

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