# Songs you can't listen to without crying **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 17, 2004, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870 "2004-03-17T16:53:17Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![MaxTheVool](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/9fc29f/32.png) [@MaxTheVool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MaxTheVool)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 3:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/61 "2004-03-18T03:26:06Z")
There are a bunch of sad moments in musicals, although I suppose it’s the show, not the song, that really makes me cry. Among them: -The tributes to Angel, and the finale, in _Rent_ -The death of Fantine, and the finale, in _Les Miz_ -The monologue (I think the character’s name is Paul) about the drag show in _A Chorus Line_ and perhaps most of all -The brave and glorious but doomed finale, in _Porgy and Bess_ ---
**Author:** ![PastAllReason](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f07891/32.png) [@PastAllReason](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastAllReason)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 3:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/62 "2004-03-18T03:28:04Z")
Mostly mentioned already, two of Sarah McLachlan’s songs: _I Will Remember You_ and _Angel_, Eric Clapton’s _Tears in Heaven_, and Judy Garland’s \*Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas \*. These make me cry because of the deaths of loved ones. For as long as I can remember, many WWI and WWII era songs such as Vera Lynn’s _We’ll Meet Again_ have made me cry. And then there’s the previously mentioned culprit _Puff the Magic Dragon_…gah…I always try to stop listening by the time it gets to “A dragon lives forever, but not so little boys…” ---
**Author:** ![emekthian](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/ecae2f/32.png) [@emekthian](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/emekthian)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 3:31am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/63 "2004-03-18T03:31:09Z")
Don’t you forget about me- Simple Minds Whenever I hear it, I think of that Futurama episode where Fry thinks his brother stole his 7 leaf clover. They play this song as the camera pans out at the end of the episode. That ep always makes me cry, and by extension the song too. ---
**Author:** ![Ranchoth](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ranchoth/32/1066_2.png) [@Ranchoth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ranchoth)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 3:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/64 "2004-03-18T03:36:21Z")
Futurama also ruined Connie Francis’ _I Will Wait for You_ for me. ☹ :…( ::Sniff::…SEYMOUR LIVES! ---
**Author:** ![Dhuwhap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/898d66/32.png) [@Dhuwhap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dhuwhap)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 4:36am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/65 "2004-03-18T04:36:22Z")
> [@cowgirl](#): > > Joni Mitchell, _Both Sides Now_, and _Case of You_, particularly the line > > I don’t udnerstand why. But I’m crying right now. > > There are many more ! I will be back … “Case of You” has to be one of the richest, greatest songs ever written. The mixing of the art, the liquor, and the sexual images has never been deeper or more playful. ---
**Author:** ![Dhuwhap](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/898d66/32.png) [@Dhuwhap](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dhuwhap)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 4:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/66 "2004-03-18T04:42:46Z")
“Catch the Wind” by Donovan is a great “late night driving around and feeling sorry for self” song Personal association, I get chocked up every time I hear or sing “Be Thou My Vision,” both funeral connection and I remember singing it right after 9/11…the line “thou my high tower” I think the entire choir went to pieces. ---
**Author:** ![FilmGeek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/b19c9b/32.png) [@FilmGeek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FilmGeek)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 5:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/67 "2004-03-18T05:03:14Z")
> [@emekthian](#): > > Don’t you forget about me- Simple Minds > > Whenever I hear it, I think of that Futurama episode where Fry thinks his brother stole his 7 leaf clover. They play this song as the camera pans out at the end of the episode. That ep always makes me cry, and by extension the song too. :::points and laughs::: oh wait. I cried at this too… :o ---
**Author:** ![koeeoaddi](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/koeeoaddi/32/408_2.png) [@koeeoaddi](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/koeeoaddi)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 5:08am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/68 "2004-03-18T05:08:54Z")
> [@cowgirl](#): > > Joni Mitchell, _Both Sides Now_, and _Case of You_, Her [_Song for Sharon_](http://www.lyricsdepot.com/joni-mitchell/song-for-sharon.html) gets to me, especially this: \ A woman I knew just drowned herself The well was deep and muddy… …my friends were calling up all day yesterday All emotions and abstractions It seems we all live so close to that line And so far from satisfaction" \ and “you still have your music And I’ve still got my eyes on the land and the sky You sing for your friends and your family I’ll walk green pastures by and by” ---
**Author:** ![Gadfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/aeb1de/32.png) [@Gadfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Gadfly)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 5:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/69 "2004-03-18T05:26:24Z")
Ramshackle, by Beck. Late at night, with the lights dim. ---
**Author:** ![zoogirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b9bd4f/32.png) [@zoogirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/zoogirl)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 5:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/70 "2004-03-18T05:27:03Z")
“Whisperin’ Pines” by Johnny Horton, mostly because it reminds me of my friend and former boyfriend who passed away at 34. “When I Call Out Your Name” which was played at my baptism. Gets me every time. Just for the record, I can’t _stand_ “Tears In Heaven”. I’ve lost a child too, but I sure wouldn’t try to make money off it! Sure, write the song, play it at midnight by yourself, but don’t sell it! Tacky, tacky, tacky. ---
**Author:** ![askeptic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/eb9ed0/32.png) [@askeptic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/askeptic)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 5:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/71 "2004-03-18T05:40:42Z")
> [@](#): > > Considering she saved you from a potential banning, I’d say she wasn’t the least bit harsh. What didn’t I put in enough smilies to make it clear I was just funnin? Back to the topic: Jose Luis Perales sang a song called Y Como Es El, a beautiful song about a man letting his cheating lover go, with love and compassion and sadness without any bitterness. Never fails to bring a tear. ---
**Author:** ![pepperlandgirl](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/f17d59/32.png) [@pepperlandgirl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pepperlandgirl)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 6:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/72 "2004-03-18T06:21:53Z")
**Something**. I just watched **THe Concert for George** this weekend, and near the end, Paul starts playing **Something** on the Ukelele, and he sings about a verse of it, and then the other musicans start playing quietly, and then the music swells and then Clapton started singing with Paul and then I started bawling and now I can’t listen to the song without getting all emotional. ---
**Author:** ![kezami](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eb8c5e/32.png) [@kezami](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kezami)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 6:41am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/73 "2004-03-18T06:41:29Z")
**I’m Not in Love** by **10cc** I was a heartbroken teenager when that song got airplay. ---
**Author:** ![partlycloudy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/partlycloudy/32/3114_2.png) [@partlycloudy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/partlycloudy)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 9:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/74 "2004-03-18T09:18:24Z")
My short list: \*\*Tears of Rage \*\* - _The Band_ \*\*Holy Mother \*\* - \*Eric Clapton \* - written in memory of Richard Manuel, member of The Band (and incidentally, the guy who sings “Tears of Rage”) after he killed himself - heartwrenching song, really! **Songbird** - _Fleetwood Mac_, although Eva Cassidy’s version is almost sadder \*\*Let It Be Me \*\* - _Everly Brothers_ \*\*Starry Night \*\* - _Don McLean_ **Operator (That’s Not the Way It Feels)** - _Jim Croce_ \*\*Tennessee Waltz \*\* - various artists, most recently Norah Jones \*\*Oh, Girl \*\* - _The Chi-Lites_ \*\*Let Me Know \*\* - _Robert Cray_ \*\*Helplessly Hoping \*\* - _CSN&Y_ \*\*Someday Never Comes \*\* - _CCR_ (since we’re on the initials 😉 ) \*\*A Song For You \*\* - \*Leon Russell \* (then covered by Ray Charles, but Leon’s version is actually more “emotional” - his voice is so darn cool!) **MLS** , The Jim Croce song you were looking for is called **Time in a Bottle** , and it definitely gets my vote as well. Logan. ---
**Author:** ![spiralscratch](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/dfb087/32.png) [@spiralscratch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/spiralscratch)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 12:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/75 "2004-03-18T12:37:58Z")
Some that have always gotten me. Even more so lately, given recent heartache… [_New #1_](http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/NEW-1-lyrics-Bob-Mould/0D8E8EFF3C00E624482568BA000EFBDE), Bob Mould: Sometimes I try too hard to separate the Good times from sadness that we’ve had together Balancing, I need to keep it all in some perspective Calm me down, I need you more than you will ever comprehend I don’t want this to end / I can’t lose one more friend I go through my regrets and I return the compliments and Hope I find that innocence, I’ve got to be here no matter what happens * * * [_Willing To Wait_](http://www.letssingit.com/sebadoh-willing-to-wait-4dh3zpr.html), Sebadoh: but oh, when i saw you again a beautiful friend, she opened up her heart and let me in no, i cannot lie to you i’m still in love with you and i only wanna be with you * * * [_Pictures Of You_](http://www.lyricsdepot.com/the-cure/pictures-of-you.html), The Cure: If only I’d thought of the right words I could have held on to your heart If only I’d thought of the right words I wouldn’t be breaking apart All my pictures of you Looking so long at these pictures of you But I never hold on to your heart Looking so long for the words to be true But always just breaking apart My pictures of you * * * [_Another Song About The Rain_](http://www.thesonglyrics.com/c_song_lyrics/cracker_lyric1.html), Cracker: Gotta knife straight from my heart Another time went to you Another place where we were smart Before the flood and time was through I sing myself to sleep at night I sing myself to sleep Another song about the rain Coming down it burns through me Another song about the rain * * * [_Trouble_](http://www.lyrics007.com/Coldplay%20Lyrics/Trouble%20Lyrics.html), Coldplay: Oh no, I see The spider web is tangled up with me And I lost my head And thought of all the stupid things I’d said Oh no, what’s this? A spider web and I’m caught in the middle So I turn to run And thought of all the stupid things I’d done * * * [_Come Talk To Me_](http://www.lyricsdepot.com/peter-gabriel/come-talk-to-me.html), Peter Gabriel: Won’t you please talk to me If you’d just talk to me Unblock this misery If you’d only talk to me Don’t you ever change your mind Now your future’s so defined And you act so deaf so blind Come on, come talk to me Come talk to me, come talk to me I can imagine the moment Breaking out through the silence All the things that we both might say And the heart it will not be denied 'Til we’re both on the same damn side All the barriers blown away * * * [_Mercy_](http://www.mojave3online.com/modules.php?name=Sections&op=viewarticle&artid=7), Mojave3: your life is like a song, you’re living like a fool you’re living like a fool, but i can’t tell you right you’re taking all the time, you’re taking all my time you’re living like a fool, and i can’t tell you right mercy i can’t see your heart i can’t feel your love mercy i can’t see your heart i can’t feel your love * * * For those who don’t know these songs, I wish there was some was some way better than listing lyrics to convey the emotion in them. I can only recommend that you try finding them someplace and giving them a listen if you haven’t heard them before. Sorry if this post is a bit long. ---
**Author:** ![Mycroft\_Holmes](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a5b964/32.png) [@Mycroft\_Holmes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mycroft_Holmes)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 12:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/76 "2004-03-18T12:47:15Z")
> [@FisherQueen](#): > > Not to go all highbrow or anything, but the one piece of music that reliably makes me cry is ‘E lucevan le stelle,’ in _Tosca_. For me it’s “Signore, Ascolta!” from _Turandot_, “Un Bel Di Vedremo” from _Madama Butterfly_, and “O Mio Babbino Caro” from _Gianni Schicchi_. Is it obvious that I’m a Puccini fan? ---
**Author:** ![Lamia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/8e7dd6/32.png) [@Lamia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Lamia)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 12:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/77 "2004-03-18T12:58:22Z")
I can rarely make it through Roger Waters’ “Watching TV” without tearing up. I might be able to handle the song in and of itself, but as soon as it gets to the sound clip of the sobbing Tiananmen Square Massacre survivor saying “Long live the Republic!”, I lose it. And I don’t even speak Chinese. ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 1:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/78 "2004-03-18T13:34:47Z")
“Anthem” from Chess, lyrics by Tim Rice, music by Bjorn Ulvaeus and Benny Andersson: No man, no madness, though their sad powers may prevail Can possess, conquer my country’s heart, they rise to fail. [http://www.abba-world.net/songs/lyrics/anthem.htm](http://www.abba-world.net/songs/lyrics/anthem.htm) Tommy Korberg’s version from the Original Cast Album is amazing. ---
**Author:** ![Walkabout](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/46a35a/32.png) [@Walkabout](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Walkabout)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/79 "2004-03-18T13:49:10Z")
_[Streets of Heaven](http://www.cowboylyrics.com/lyrics/austin-sherrie/streets-of-heaven-1101.html)_ by Sherrie Austin > [@](#): > > Hello God, it’s me again. 2:00 a.m., Room 304. > Visiting hours are over, time for our bedside tug of war. > This sleeping child between us may not make it through the night. > I’m fighting back the tears as she fights for her life. That’s the newest one that brings tears to my eyes, but a whole lot of the other ones mentioned have in the past. ---
**Author:** ![HoviBaby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a88e4f/32.png) [@HoviBaby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HoviBaby)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2004, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870/80 "2004-03-18T14:29:26Z")
Ive got 2. Tell Me There’s a Heaven by Chris Rea off of the Road to Hell album always gets me a bit misty, and I’m Not Feeling It Anymore by Van Morrison off of Hymns To The Silence. That one kind of wells it up in me for no discernable reason. Both great songs tho. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870.md?page=3) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/songs-you-cant-listen-to-without-crying/234870.md?page=5)