Ooh…good one. I agree, and it also made me think of Calling All Angels, by the artist formerly known as Jane Siberry. Her recent break with her record label and capitalism have, I believe, led to the terrible tragedy of her being unable to sing it publicly ever again due to licensing issues, which is an inexpressible shame. I was lucky enough to hear it several times in concert, and it, and she, are amazing. I quickly learned to bring a whole box of tissues to her concert, and just pass it down the row when people get sniffley.
(And, of course, my condolences for the loss of your grandson.)
However, the movie soundtrack features several instrumental versions of the verse that begins, “Oh bang the drum slowly…” Since this verse has slightly different cadences than than the other verses, the effect is to create an instrumental song distinct from “Streets of Laredo” (which is at one point in the movie sung by a character).
What is with you people and Jeff Buckly??? A lot of Leonard Cohen’s songs have been done better by other people. But this isn’t one of them. The covers are wondreful, you hurthat song. (Well you could ask Britniny Sprears to sing it)
The Very Last Time Alan Parsons Project, from 2002 with Mare Brennan of Clannad singing.
I need to remember the day
when we said goodbye
for the very last time
There was still so much to say
But time came between us
and quietly stole you away
Mercy Street Peter Gabriel
Life is Sweet Natalie Merchant
The First Time U2
Afterglow INXS Came out just after I’d lost a very close friend
Jeff Buckley died young–so perhaps that tragic loss touches affects people’s opinions. Maybe they haven’t even heard Leonard Cohen’s version. I still miss Tim Buckley–Jeff’s father & another magical artist who left too early. But I’m glad that Leonard is past 70 & going strong.
(Another vote for “He Stopped Loving Her Today” by the amazing George Jones. And for “Killkelly Ireland”–which I heard on a Green Fields of America album.)
There’s a few songs that get me misty, but there’s two that actually get me breaking down into sobs when I hear them – most especially if I haven’t prepared myself for it.
The one that other people might have on their lists is Into the West. The one that only a very few people are likely to have is The Rainbow Connection. They’re both songs from funerals for people I loved very much – the former a friend from college killed in a motorcycle accident, the latter my fourth grade teacher and one of the finest human beings I have met. That’s a more distant memory but it’s almost 20 years later and I still get a little misty. I can’t even think about Into the West without starting to cry.
The other song that reminds me of my buddy is… well, I don’t know the name of it. It’s a country song that came out shortly after his death with a refrain that ended “to live like you were dying”. He’d been a common friend among a whole bunch of people who’d mostly lost track of one another for one reason or another. We all used to be very close, and after his death a few of us tried to get close again. I was thinking about how bitter an irony it was that some of us couldn’t reconcile our differences without the tragic death of one of our own when the song came on and, well, I had to pull over and stop driving for a few.
The song itself is about peter Gabriel leaving Genesis to be with his wife, who had health problems. It’s a good song to listen to if you are struggling with quitting something or cutting ties with a person, but know in your heart that it’s the best thing to do.
“Somebody Saved Me” - Pete Townshend
The title’s pretty self-explanatory, and the song describes difficult situations in my life that friends have helped me through.
I’m not much of a crier, but when I was pregnant and we just found out we were having a daughter, I heard John Mayer’s “Daughters” and cried. But then, I was pregnant and I cried when my husband brought home the wrong food once, too. Dammit, I wanted onion rings, not fries! ::sniff::
Also, “Baby Mine” from Dumbo. I was driving back from a family party and that song came on the radio during one of those sappy request shows. I looked in the rearview mirror and looked at my daughter and wept.
I’ll second (or third) “Amazing Grace”.
And “Oh Holy Night” is such a beautiful song that I get teary.
I don’t have the self control to turn this song off when it comes on the radio, so I have to pull over. I bawl like a baby.
London Homesick Blues -Gary P Nunn
It’s the theme song to Austin City Limits, which I watched with my dad when I was young. If it weren’t for that show, I would have had one less thing to talk to him about.
Her name is now Issa. She broke her contract with her record company, sold all her possessions and hit the road. She decided to get rid of pretty much everything but her clothing - even her instruments, I believe, have to be provided by her venues. As part of this, she decided to stop charging a set fee for her music - it’s all available at her website, through downloads, with a suggested price, but you can pay whatever you like, or nothing at all. Her intent is to let her fans support her directly and pay her what they think she’s worth.
Her record label, of course, wasn’t exactly on board with this decision. So the stuff they own the rights to is no longer “hers” and she can’t play it in concert anymore.
I first heard this song on** Scrubs ** as it played over the scene where three transplant patients die after receiving rabies-infected organs… The scream of anguish when Dr. Cox loses his patient gets me every time.
I’m ashamed to admit it, but “Concrete Angel” by Martina McBride gets me every time --and I hate myself for it. It’s blatantly manipulative glurge about an abused child, and normally the kind of thing I’d roll my eyes at. But somehow, it gets me.
