This one, easy.
Coming up in the next one: A list of all of the posters who are currently eligible for the payment (thus far, as long as they keep doing the challenge with me).
“Crockett’s Theme” by Jan Hammer
Say what you want about Miami Vice, synths, 80’s music, etcetera, but this is damn near guaranteed to hit me in the feels every time I hear it…some of the most beautiful and decadently pensive music ever crafted.
Billie Holiday singing “Strange Fruit”. I kinda wish I’d never heard this song.
I’m not linking to it; you’re on your own.
Another easy one: the Mountain Goats - Matthew 25:21. It’s about the singer’s mother in law dying of cancer. One day, I may be able to listen to it without choking up.
You were a presence full of light upon this Earth
And I am a witness to your life and to its worth
I could list ten. But rules is rules.
Bronte by Gotye. About the death of a dog.
I hate sad songs…
So I’m picking an obvious one
Somewhere Over The Rainbow / What a Wonderful World by Iz
Happy song + happy song + ukulele = sad song?
I don’t know how because it doesn’t make a damn bit of sense but it gets me every single time. I love the song but it makes me very reflective.
John Mayer’s Dreaming with a Broken Heart. Ostensibly it’s about a lost lover but the first time I heard it was shortly after my mother’s unexpected death. I woke up to it playing on my clock radio and it about paralyzed me. Even without that I would still find it an incredibly melancholy and very relatable song.
Not eligible for the challenge but couldn’t stay out of this one.
Waiting on June - Holly Williams
I still can’t get through the whole thing without tears, though that’s mostly circumstances. I first heard it around the time my dad passed and so it’s tied in with that very strongly.
Ride-Unfamiliar. Haunts me every time it plays.
He Stopped Loving Her Today, but it has to be the cover Johnny Cash did very late in his own life. The combination of the lyrics and Cash struggling to sing them is haunting.
I don’t know that it gets much sadder than Bonnie Raitt’s “I Can’t Make You Love Me.”
Dave Mason and Jim Capaldi - The Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys. I don’t know why. It’s so beautiful, I think. Jim’s rougher vocals suit the tone of this version, and Mason’s soaring guitar was never better.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZQzMt0M8fRc
“Little Green” by Joni Mitchell always brings tears. The song was Joni’s tribute to her daughter, Kelly (hence the “green”), that she gave up for adoption early in her career. It is so wistful and full of loss and hope, both at the same time. Joni is always a wonderful lyricist, but you could tell that this one came straight from her soul.
I’m not doing the challenge but couldn’t help myself. This one wins for me, and I don’t even like country music:
Also not doing the challenge, but also couldn’t resist.
Father and Son by Cat Stevens
It’s not a happy father/son bonding song.
John Doe No. 24
Mary Chapin Carpenter
Reptile by Nine Inch Nails
I don’t even know if it is a sad song, as I hardly understand the lyrics. However, it puts me off in a way that makes me sad. It is one of his most underrated songs and could be considered the best track on the classic album Downward Spiral.
I also highly recommend the remixed version found on the March of the Pigs single.
Bruce Springsteen - Stolen Car. Ever feel like a movie, book or song was made just for you, even if it waited for years to make its way to you at just the right time in your life? Yeah. That’s all I’m going to say about that.
(Runner-Up: Joni Mitchell - River.)
Mogwai - “Cody”
