There are some great ones mentioned already like This Woman's Work (Kate Bush) and Fast Car (Tracy Chapman), and a couple of different tracks came to mind from Tori Amos' Little Earthquakes album, but hands down the saddest song I personally know is Little Green by Joni Mitchell. She wrote it to/for the child she was forced to give up in adoption, in real life, two years earlier.
Gamma Knife is a song about a ghost who can't kill itself because it's already dead. "Dust on the glass, I have nowhere to go today." Love it so bad. Toby Driver had on money so he recorded it with crappy gear in his home studio. When he cries "Why is there no one in my life?" -- gets me every time. Saddest Mars Volta song ever.
I found this song the day my grandfather died. It is called The Garden. <iframe width="560" height="315" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/J3eS3BbP4mg?list=PL-7gDlaHdaPUD6X2qH_UKIEtCz80RoqvN" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>
Maybe it's "Somewhere over the rainbow" IE's version, or "What a wonderful World" sad in the sense that they remind me of happiness that I may never truly feel.
When I was a little boy it was 'Seasons in the Sun.' I asked mother what it was about. She said it was a daddy who had died - talking to his little boy. Years later I found the Jack Brel [sp] original, but really it's not much better in the way of these things. Normally you become all evangelical about authentic version, and I was for a while, but really the Belgian's not my scene. Then I heard that Terry Thomas or Jerry Jackson, I can't remember his name exactly, was a jobbing folk musician, didn't really give a toss for death or dads, took all the romance from the song for me. Today it is kind of schmaltz. Right Down the Line, Jerry Rafferty, very sad, for same reasons, probably.
I already posted (and I stand by my Puff the Magic Dragon sorrow) but I actually wrote a novel mostly inspired by another sad song... I'm Canadian, raised on The Tragically Hip, but I was in a grocery store a few years ago and 38 Years Old came on the radio and I listened to lyrics for the first time in a long while and I started crying, right there in the store. It was just all so hopeless, and pointless, and fucking tragic.
Hi, Got a few myself. Cat Steven's already been mentioned for "Lady D'urbanville" and "Cat's in the Cradle". There's also Elton John's "Daniel". (Oddly I find his "Sad Songs" is quite uplifting - go figure!) Crosby, Stills and Nash's "Southern Cross" is awesome. And fairly much everything from 10CC sounds sad even when it isn't - eg "I'm not in love". Cheers, Greg.
Hi, Ah, but maybe you do! Maybe we're all such sad sacks that someone should write a song about us! Cheers, Greg.
There's a few but "I Hung My Head" written by Sting but performed by Johnny Cash is really deep. It's the way Cash delivers it.
Oh, man. So many songs I can think of: Jay Ungar's "Ashokan Farewell" Eric Bogle's "The Band Played Waltzing Matilda" Tom Paxton's "The Last Thing on my Mind" John Prine's "Sam Stone" and "Donald and Lydia" I'll stop now.
This song makes me cry. Maybe I'm misinterpreting it, but its sounds a lot like it's describing being massively friend-zoned. Plus, it just has that sad voice, rhythm and sound. .
cowboy junkies - sweet jane (the only person to love is marijuana? damn) sybille baier - tonight I don't know, just sounds really melacholy
No, I won't. I just thought of one more: Ian Tyson's "Four Strong Winds." And Eric Bogle's "The Gift of Years." You MUST play this song on Memorial Day. I do.
"The End of the World" by Skeeter Davis never fails to make me feel sad. Her voice is just so emotive and beautiful.
I'm surprised Keep Me in Your Heart by Warren Zevon hasn't made it up here yet. He had been diagnosed with terminal cancer and wrote this for his wife.
Nefelis Tango - Music Loreena McKennit, Lyrics Haris Alexiou. The golden rag Which Nefeli wore on her hair, To differ from everyone else in the vine, Two little, little angels came And stole it. Two little angels, That in their dreams they wanted Nefeli, (wanted) To feed her pomegranate and honey, (for her) to not remember, to forget what she wants, Seduced her. Hyacinths and Lilies Stole her scent and wear it And loves (amores), throwing paper planes (insinuations), make fun of her. But good Zeus Takes the water of adolescence away from her, He turns her into a cloud and he scatters her So they (the angels) won’t find her. Two little angels, That in their dreams they wanted Nefeli, (wanted) To feed her pomegranate and honey, (for her) to not remember, to forget what she wants, Seduced her.
My friend Danny's favourite song in the whole world, that is. (Maybe I should have posted this in 'Useless facts'?)