Celine Dion Tops 20-Song Ranking With 1996 Hit 'It's All Coming Back to Me Now'

Q: What hidden magic in Céline Dion's delivery turns deliberately overblown, Wagnerian pop into an undeniable triumph?

The hidden magic is Céline Dion’s total emotional conviction paired with extraordinary technical control. She does not wink at grand material or try to tame it; she commits to it completely, which makes even Jim Steinman’s intentionally huge, “Wagnerian” pop feel sincere instead of absurd. That is why “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now” is so often singled out. The song is built to be excessive, with gothic melodrama, surging dynamics and near-operatic scale. Dion makes it work by treating every line as lived experience. Her phrasing gives the drama shape, her breath support keeps the long climactic lines steady, and her shifts from soft intimacy to full-force belting make the emotion feel earned rather than merely loud. The broader ranking makes the same point about her catalog. On songs such as “Because You Loved Me,” “The Power of Love,” “All By Myself” and “My Heart Will Go On,” her gift is not just vocal power. It is her ability to make outsized songs sound believable, even effortless. She brings clarity, precision and story to arrangements that could easily collapse under their own weight. That mix of force and credibility is her defining advantage. Dion has the range and volume for spectacle, but the crucial element is that she sings as if she believes every word. In her hands, overblown pop stops sounding overblown and becomes cathartic.

3 articles · Updated · The Guardian · Sep 10

A 20-song ranking of Celine Dion’s greatest tracks puts 1996’s “It’s All Coming Back to Me Now” at No. 1, praising her vocal power against Jim Steinman’s theatrical production.
The top five rounds out with “The Power of Love” at No. 2, “Because You Loved Me” at No. 3, “My Heart Will Go On” at No. 4 and “That’s the Way It Is” at No. 5.
The list highlights the breadth of Dion’s catalog, from English-language power ballads to French hits such as “Pour Que Tu M’Aimes Encore” and later-career songs including 2018’s “Ashes.”
Several entries stress her success with reinterpretations and soundtrack staples, including “All By Myself,” “Beauty and the Beast” and “The Prayer,” underscoring how her voice defined songs across pop, film and crossover balladry.