CAFFE` LATTE` TOP 2000 TRACKS

#157 YOUNG HEARTS RUN FREE Candi Staton
Southern soul vocalist Candi Staton came to the public's attention for her Muscle Shoals tracks on the Fame label, before teaming up with songwriter / producer David Crawford in the mid-1970s. He crafted a new song that would prove to be timeless entitled "Young Hearts Run Free". 
As Staton explained to me during an interview in 2002, at the time the singer was "going through a horrible divorce... We would talk at lunch sometimes and he would ask me what was going on with me and I'd tell him... Meanwhile, he's writing stuff down, and when we got ready to do the album, he told me- '...I'm going to write you a song that's going to last forever', and he did!". Staton continued: "it's actually about my life". 
After the singer recorded "Young Hearts...", Staton was confident that the song was going to be a hit. Her instincts proved to be accurate. The disc reached #1 on the US R&B chart and peaked at #20 on the Pop charts there. In the UK, the disco hit made it to #2. In Australia, the single peaked at #4. 
Staton continues to record to this day. She is also well remembered for the dance track "You Got the Love". Remixes of this song by The Source with Staton on vocals, went Top 10 in Britain in 1991 and 1997. That same year, Kym Mazelle covered "Young Hearts..." for the 'Romeo + Juliet' soundtrack.
 
This is a list made up of the songs I enjoy the most, ranked in order of preference: the higher we go, the more I cherish them. Some were released as singles, others as album tracks. Some are obscure; others were worldwide hits or have universal appeal. They aren't always the most famous or popular, but simply a personal choice. I have excluded songs from the last few years in order to get a better idea of a song's lasting impression. I hope you find some new tracks to love, or re-discover some past favourites.
A new song from the Top 200 is added each day, while another 2 are also included from positions 1501-2000 daily. Check back here every 12 hours for an update of the 2000.