Along with the John Prine mentions (I’d also add his Mexican Home), I’ll throw in a vote for Warren Zevon’s Keep me in your heart for a while, mainly because of the situation it was recorded under - he was literally on his deathbed. They had to set up a recording deck in his bedroom to allow him to lay down the final vocals as he was dying of cancer.
I love the album it came from, The Wind, but I almost never listen to it because it’s all just so depressing.
Ditto!
No one has mentioned any Tracy Chapman songs yet?
From Fast Car :
You see my old man’s got a problem
He live with the bottle that’s the way it is
He says his body’s too old for working
I say his body’s too young to look like his
My mama went off and left him
[ LYRICS DELETED BY MODERATOR ]And from Behind the Wall , a cheerful little ditty about domestic abuse:
Last night I heard the screaming
Then a silence that chilled my soul
I prayed that I was dreaming
When I saw the ambulance in the road
[ LYRICS DELETED BY MODERATOR ]
Hey wow, finally a thread where I know what I’m talking about!
There are so many levels of depressing.
There are songs that are just so beautiful that you can’t help but be awed and saddened. There are songs that detail something specific that some people can relate to (loss of a child, break up/divorce, death). There are songs that are musically depressing but not so lyrically, and vice versa. There are songs that carry sentimental value that might not otherwise be considered depressing by anyone else.
Keeping that in mind, I’ll list my top 5 (you cannot ask me to limit it to one, it’s impossible) and try to keep it universal:
Honorable mentions: Nine Inch Nails A Warm Place (short instrumental that is very pretty out of context, but downright powerful within the context of the concept album), Pantera’s (yes, that Pantera) cover of Planet Caravan, Smashing Pumpkins’ Mayonnaise, Sarah McLachlan’s Angel…
I could go on, but I’ll spare you.
Other nominations, now that I"ve had time to think on it:
• Bloodrock (of DOA fame), “America” — ow.
• Tori Amos — Me and a Gun, from Tales of a Librarian
• Pink Floyd - One of the Few, from Final Cut
• Alan Parsons Project - Day After Day, from I, Robot
• Melanie - I Really Loved Harold
“Wish You Were Here,” Pink Floyd. Floyd did a lot of depressing stuff, but MAN!
It’s originally from Little Earthquakes, which has a number of wrenching songs on it, but that’s absolutely #1 in my book.
Also “The Same Old Sun,” from APP’s “Vulture Culture”:
*
Tell me what to do
Now the light in my life is gone from me
Is it always the same
Is the night never ending
Tell me what to do
All the hopes and the dreams went wrong for me
There’s a smile on my face
But I’m only pretending
Taking my life
One day at a time
Cause I can’t think what else to do
Taking some time
To make up my mind
When there’s no one to ask but you
*
How about “Picture” by Sheryl Crow and Kid Rock
Thank God no one mentioned
Bee vomit
Oh. We’ve got one Radiohead song in here, and it’s not “No Surprises?” That’s a first-class downer.
Everybody Hurts - R.E.M.
Lonesome Town - Ricky Nelson
And honey, I miss you
And I’m bein’ good
And I’d love to be with you
If only I could
One day while I was not at home
While she was there and all alone
The angels came
Now all I have is memories of Honey
And I wake up nights and call her name
Now my life’s an empty stage
Where Honey lived and Honey played
And love grew up
And a small cloud passes overhead
And cries down on the flower bed
That Honey loved
Honey
Bobby Goldsboro
In the context of the album, I find that one’s actually uplifting. “Try Not to Breathe” is depressing, but it’s hard to write a happy song about assisted suicide.
That’s supposed to be depressing? To paraphrase Oscar Wilde, one must have a heart of stone to listen to Bobby Goldsboro’s “Honey” all the way through without laughing.
I was going to mention Tracy Chapman. Also…
Springsteen- Stolen Car and Downbound Train.
One on my list is the obscure Billy Joel song “Got to Begin Again.” To me, it sums up the depression surrounding the moment when you realize that a relationship’s over perfectly.
And me, a huge Counting Crows fan, would be remiss if I didn’t include their song Chelsea:
I notice** “DOA” by Bloodrock** has received a few votes so far and I’ll add that to my list too.
Since **Janis Ian **was mentioned once, how about her other hit - “Society’s Child”? The thing that really gets me about that song is the chord progressions more than the topic. It just has an incredibly depressing sound to it.
How about “Remember Walkin’ In The Sand” by the Shangrilas? Man that is one sad sounding song. (Interesting tidbit - “Shadow” Morton was the producer of this song as well as “Society’s Child”).
And for real industrial strength depression there’s “Still I’m Sad” by The Yardbirds. (Sung in the style of a Gregorian chant)
See the stars come falling down from the sky.
Gently passing, they kiss your tears when you cry.
Feel the wind come softly blow the tears from your face.
See the rain hide away in disgrace.
Still I’m sad, how I’m sad.
[hijack] My sister had a huge crush on Bobby Goldsboro and named her horse after that song. Then insisted I name my horse after the song on side B of the record, Danny Boy. [/hijack]
I came here just to mention 30KFT - I can’t even listen to it. It makes me bawl like a baby.
My ex thinks Divide is depressing, but I* love * it.