I mean the song gives you chills because it is so stunning and beautiful, or because it is creepy or otherwise.
My nomination for the former: “If you wait,” by London Grammar
Hannah Reid’s voice…Wow.
“He Hit Me (and It Felt Like a Kiss)” - this was written by Gerry Goffin & Carole King, produced by Phil Spector, and performed by the Crystals. It was written after Goffin’s & King’s babysitter (Little Eva of “Locomotion” fame) told them that her boyfriend was beating her. This fact was lost on the general public, and the song never received significant airplay. It is an (intentionally) very creepy production.
Yeah, Wasting My Young Years is another moving example.
Yeah, Wasting My Young Years is another moving example.
mrs jones by Billy Paul. Cool crescendo.
For sheer technical Composition, and originality, Smells like teen spirit by Kurt Cobain.
Groove is in the heart - nice retro music video.
tyomnaya noch’ from a black and white Russian film has the best exprressive lyrics.
Bruce Springsteen’s “Rosalita” at the line “Because the record company, Rosie, just gave me a big advance.”
This is gorgeous and has me in tears. Thanks for sharing.
Gordon Lightfoot’s The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.
I have a slight personal connection to the shipwreck. My Grandfather was working on a great lake freighter boat (The Baie St Paul)when the Eddie Fitz went down.
I remember the day vividly, I was in Grade One and usually went to my grandma’s for lunch and sometimes after school. The next day was Rememberance day, so I would be off school and stayed for supper and a sleep over. Grandma was a nervous wreck, and made me sleep in her bed that night. The next day dad picked us up to take us to the cenotaph ceremony and he started giving his mother a hard time for being anxious “when you know it’s not his ship.” Then mom started yelling at Dad for stressing out his mother. Then my brother who wasn’t even two yet started crying because of all the yelling.
I feel all of that when ever I hear that song. My scalp actually prickles. I love the song, just… not too often, ok?
Look on Down from the Bridge - Mazzy Star
Cold Desert - Kings of Leon
How to Disappear Completely - Radiohead
“Little Green” by Joni Mitchell. The emotion is so real and raw that it brings me to tears every time. I’ve often hoped the little girl in question heard her mother’s song and realized that she wasn’t given away lightly. I heard recently the two had met in 1997, so hopefully I didn’t hope in vain.
Gorgeous song! Here’s an article about their meeting, though I know I have read that they’ve fallen out since then and no longer have a relationship.
My chills song is also by Joni Mitchell. The original version of Rainy Night House (not the jazzed up rerelease). The piano intro alone is enough to qualify it.
“One Day More” from Les Miz. I particularly like the 10th anniversary version.
“Willing to Wait” by Sebadoh.
“Hay Una Mujer Desaparecida” - I would listen to this song over and over as a child, not really understanding what it meant, but enjoying the chills it gave me every time. I’m glad to discover as an adult that it’s still as moving as I remember, only now there are tears with the chills, because I understand it.
“At Seventeen” - a beautiful song when she was young, but even more affecting now that she’s older. I could barely hear her in concert over my own sobs.
“Leaving On A Jet Plane” - my dad traveled a lot on business until he and my mom divorced. Every time I’d wake up and he wasn’t home, I’d play this song on my record player. I’m sorry, Mom. I didn’t realize how much that must have hurt. 
“Wedding Song (There is Love)” - This one doesn’t bring tears, but great chills. I feel like it’s the most perfect Christian song ever written.
And for something a little more recent, “The Sound Of Silence” as done by Disturbed. To me, it’s everything a cover version should be - it’s not just a new version, but a new *vision *of an old favorite. The original was detached social commentary, this is…feels.
“Signal to Noise” by Peter Gabriel. The crescendo in that song is positively orgasmic, especially when performed live.
For sheer creepiness, nothing beats the spooky ambiguity of the Jaynetts’ “Sally Go Round the Roses.”
Forbidden lesbian love affair? Heroin addiction? Pregnancy? Suicide? MADNESS? Golly, so hard to choose…
A couple from the past handful of years that will probably still make the hair stand up on the back of my head decades from now:
A Little Bit of Everything - Dawes
What I’m Doing Here - Lake Street Dive
This video game soundtrack: