# Singing to a Dead Lover **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** movies\ **Created:** [November 22, 2024, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623 "2024-11-22T20:10:13Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![CalMeacham](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/calmeacham/32/35_2.png) [@CalMeacham](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CalMeacham)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 8:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/1 "2024-11-22T20:10:13Z")
After I suggested Stephen Foster’s _Beautiful Dreamer_ as one reminding me of a movie (_Mighty Joe Young_, in this case. What? You think I’d pick _Jezebel_ or _The Secret Life of Walter Mitty_?) I looked it up, and found this on Wikipedia: > [@](#): > > The song tells of a lover serenading a “Beautiful Dreamer” who is oblivious to worldly cares _ **and may actually be dead** _. Foster’s works feature many dead young women, including his sister Charlotte and “Jeanie with the Light Brown Hair” **…AND MAY ACTUALLY BE DEAD** Boy, that puts a different spin on that song. “I Dream of Jeannie”, too. I have to admit, I’d never considered that, and probably wouldn’t even have thought of it, even reading the lyrics. It’s easy to forget that life expectancy was lower and the mortality rate much higher as recently as the end of the 19th century. They had lots of photos of dead children and poems and essays lamenting the lost, and the same factors affected young adults as well as kids. > **[Taken from life: The unsettling art of death photography](https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-36389581)** > > In Victorian England after-death photographs became a way of commemorating the dead and blunting the sharpness of grief. > **[Haunting Victorian Family Photos Show Loved Ones Who are Already Dead](https://petapixel.com/2023/10/31/haunting-victorian-family-photos-show-loved-ones-who-are-already-dead/)** > > These portraits were a source of comfort. > **[Victorian Poetry About Death](https://friendsofoakgrovecemetery.org/victorian-poetry-about-death/)** > >       Because I could not stop for Death – He kindly stopped for me. The Carriage held but just Ourselves – And Immortality. We slowly drove – He knew no haste And I had put away My labor and my le… > **[Poetry and Pain: Reading the Victorians through Grief](https://www.debbiechallis.com/post/poetry-and-pain-reading-the-victorians-through-grief)** > > At some point, I stopped reading poetry regularly. Yet, it is the first thing I turn to in an emotional crisis and particularly in grief. Maybe I prefer abstraction to clear thought. Maybe it’s a habit. Maybe it’s not being able to read more than a... ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 8:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/2 "2024-11-22T20:22:55Z")
_Paint It Black_ by The Rolling Stones features a part where Mick is singing to a dead partner (“ No more will my green sea/Go turn a deeper blue/I could not foresee this thing/Happening to you”). ---
**Author:** ![running\_coach](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/running_coach/32/15836_2.png) [@running\_coach](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/running_coach)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 8:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/3 "2024-11-22T20:38:34Z")
> [@Superdude](#): > > _Paint It Black_ by The Rolling Stones features a part where Mick is singing to a dead partner (“ No more will my green sea/Go turn a deeper blue/I could not foresee this thing/Happening to you”). - It’s the _whole_ song. Both the loss and the aftermath. _I see a line of cars_ _And they’re all painted black_ _With flowers and my love_ _Both never to come back_ _Maybe then, I’ll fade away_ _And not have to face the facts_ _It’s not easy facing up_ _When your whole world is black_ ---
**Author:** ![Superdude](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/superdude/32/13450_2.png) [@Superdude](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superdude)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 8:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/4 "2024-11-22T20:48:32Z")
True, but the part I quoted is the only part where he’s singing _directly_ to her (at least, the only part where he’s addressing her directly). The rest of it always sounded to me like he was taking _about_ her, but not _to_ her. But that’s just how I took it. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Q](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/898d66/32.png) [@Johnny\_Q](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Q)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 9:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/5 "2024-11-22T21:58:59Z")
An obvious one… [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/56B7iWrDkV8/maxresdefault.jpg "I Am Stretched on Your Grave (Live Remastered)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=56B7iWrDkV8) ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [November 22, 2024, 11:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/6 "2024-11-22T23:32:19Z")
I suppose the [video for Mary Jane’s Last Dance](https://youtu.be/aowSGxim_O8?si=5fI99sPMWLQHPJpW) could fit in here. ---
**Author:** ![Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/q.q.switcheroo/32/5713_2.png) [@Q.Q.Switcheroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Q.Q.Switcheroo)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/7 "2024-11-23T00:57:47Z")
A few tracks on Frank Sinatra’s album _Watertown_ might qualify, if you subscribe to the theory that the narrator is in denial that his wife has died. ---
**Author:** ![velomont](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/v/8491ac/32.png) [@velomont](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/velomont)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 3:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/8 "2024-11-23T03:10:12Z")
Well, the obvious winner is Evanescence’s “My Immortal”, possibly the saddest song ever written. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/5anLPw0Efmo/maxresdefault.jpg "Evanescence - My Immortal (Official HD Music Video)") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5anLPw0Efmo) ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 3:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/9 "2024-11-23T03:13:56Z")
Still You… Turn Me On by Emerson, Lake, & Palmer is about being a little too dedicated to a dead lover. “Someone get me a ladder” indeed, Greg. ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 3:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/10 "2024-11-23T03:53:25Z")
What bothered me more about that song was Greg chewing gum [when he played it live](https://youtu.be/yoxHGxQw9ws?si=QVr0B_MrYaBINiZk) ---
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/11 "2024-11-23T13:53:57Z")
[“Am I Too Late”](https://youtu.be/pI6ve32Fwl0?si=YSbOVaGOhIvKpyHP) by Old 97s, although maybe doesn’t fit since he’s not telling her he loves her until _after_ she’s dead. ---
**Author:** ![MrAtoz](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/45deac/32.png) [@MrAtoz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrAtoz)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 2:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/12 "2024-11-23T14:04:05Z")
There were a lot of pop songs about death in the late 50s-early 60s. “Leader of the Pack,” “Last Kiss,” “Tell Laura I Love Her,” to name a few. But I think that Mark Dinning’s “Teen Angel” is the only one in which the singer is directly addressing his dead girlfriend. ---
**Author:** ![whitetho](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/whitetho/32/1059_2.png) [@whitetho](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/whitetho)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 2:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/13 "2024-11-23T14:18:14Z")
The novelty song, I Want My Baby Back, by Jimmy Cross [https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zo8DhbQw\_O4](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Zo8DhbQw_O4) ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 4:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/14 "2024-11-23T16:00:52Z")
“Don’t, This Way” by The 77s—I don’t know whether it’s necessarily addressed to a dead lover, but that’s one reasonable interpretation. _Don’t leave this way, so many words unsaid Don’t lie this way, stretched straight from feet to head Don’t look this way, closed eyes, unmoving lips Don’t feel this way, cold hands and fingertips_ [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/D9k8D79euvs/maxresdefault.jpg "The 77's — 5. Don't, This Way") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D9k8D79euvs) ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 4:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/15 "2024-11-23T16:16:10Z")
Don’t forget this haunting ballad. [![](https://img.youtube.com/vi/kjPhFSlhOuQ/hqdefault.jpg "Tom Lehrer - I Hold Your Hand In Mine") ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kjPhFSlhOuQ) ---
**Author:** ![blondebear](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/blondebear/32/1022_2.png) [@blondebear](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/blondebear)\ **Post date:** [November 23, 2024, 4:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/16 "2024-11-23T16:22:29Z")
Not mentioned yet: “Pull The Plug” by Starz ---
**Author:** ![Labdad](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/439d5e/32.png) [@Labdad](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Labdad)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2025, 6:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/17 "2025-01-06T18:50:30Z")
From the 1880’s: “Oh My Darling, Clementine.” ---
**Author:** ![Ellecram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellecram/32/18948_2.png) [@Ellecram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellecram)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2025, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/18 "2025-01-06T18:52:47Z")
Little Rosewood Casket Lyrics There’s a little rosewood casket Resting on a marble stand With a packet of old love letters Written by my true love’s hand Go and bring them to me, sister Read them over for me tonight I have often tried, but I could not For the tears that filled my eyes When I’m dead and in my casket When I gently fall asleep Fall asleep to wake in heaven Dearest sister, do not weep Take his letters and his locket Place them gently on my heart But this golden ring that he gave me From my finger never part There’s a little rosewood casket Resting on a marble stand With a packet of old love letters ---
**Author:** ![What\_Exit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/what_exit/32/10652_2.png) [@What\_Exit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/What_Exit)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2025, 7:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/19 "2025-01-06T19:16:41Z")
**Moderating:** Please note when a song is Public Domain/Traditional. We’re getting flags on your post. [Little rosewood casket | Library of Congress](https://www.loc.gov/item/afc9999005.15322) ---
**Author:** ![Ellecram](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ellecram/32/18948_2.png) [@Ellecram](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ellecram)\ **Post date:** [January 6, 2025, 7:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623/20 "2025-01-06T19:17:32Z")
Sorry I thought it was an old song from the early 1900s. My mother used to sing it to me. Her you go from the internet: The “Little Rosewood Casket” is a traditional folk song, with the earliest known version credited to songwriters Louis Goullaud and Charles A. White from Boston, who wrote it around 1870; the song is about a dying person leaving behind love letters in a small rosewood casket, signifying the sentimental value of their memories [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/singing-to-a-dead-lover/1010623.md?page=2)