So, you just finished a classy Valentine"s dinner. Now you"re at home cuddled up on the couch in candle light with a fine bottle of red wine to add to the atmosphere, you go over to the stereo and put on some music. But what do you choose? The sexiest man in music. A man with a voice so deep that it will make you quiver. It"s Stephen Merritt and The Magnetic Fields.

Stephen Merritt is the founder and brains behind The 6ths, Future Bible Heroes, The Gothic Archies and The Magnetic Fields. The type of songs that mix pop melodies with timeless war ballads and experimental electronic extravagance.

His most recent release from The Magnetic Fields is "69 Love Songs," which actually started out as 100 love songs intended to be performed at various cabarets in New York. However, after realizing the enormous amount of time and energy that would go into the project, Merritt settled on what he thought was the next best number, 69.

The three-CD set is one of the most eclectic, witty, and brilliant projects in recent years. With a revolving cast of singers and musicians, the album sounds more like a collection of show tunes than anything else. It is this movement that makes the album so engaging. The work seems to be devoid of the artist"s own emotional obligations. Merritt creates and writes through the voices of 69 different characters as they ponder the meaning of love.

Half of those songs are full of biting intellectual sarcasm like "The Death of Ferdinand de Saussure." The other half of the album is full of poignant songs about suffering and joy of love. On "Asleep and Dreaming" Merritt proves that simple is best in the expression of love.

So if you have a Valentine, you might want to pass over The Magnetic Fields in favor of Marvin Gaye who can really help you heal that lovin" feelin". But if you"re alone, don"t feel bad. You can lay in your wrinkled clothing, staring up at the bubbled paint on your ceiling and fulfill your voyeuristic impulses by listening to 69 stories of other people"s love.