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SevenPonds / Music to Express Love & Loss / Favorite Songs About Grief and Loss

Favorite Songs About Grief and Loss

These beloved songs have comforted millions through their saddest moments. With lyrics that perfectly capture the pain of loss, these favorites help you feel less alone in your grief journey.

Debut album, retitled "Wonderful World, Beautiful People."

"Many Rivers to Cross"

By Jimmy Cliff

The grandfather of reggae singer Jimmy Cliff wrote “Many Rivers To Cross” at the mere age of 21, and to this day, it is …

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“This is What Losing Someone Feels Like”

By JVKE

“This is What Losing Someone Feels Like” is a poignant conversation with the person who is gone while also offering advi…

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“Life’s for the Living”

By Passenger

“Life’s for the Living” by Passenger reminds us that it sometimes takes the looming certainty of eventual death to chall…

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"Under You"

By The Foo Fighters

When I saw the Foo Fighters perform on the main stage of the music festival Boston Calling last May, it was obvious some…

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“Get Me Through December”

By Alison Krauss and Natalie MacMaster

During a season when loss may feel especially heavy for some, “Get Me Through December” is a poignant reminder that we m…

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"Pictures of You"

By The Cure

Sometimes you just want to lean into the gloominess. “Pictures of You” is a haunting and beautiful song by America’s got…

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“Leave a Light On”

By Tom Walker

Scottish singer-songwriter Tom Walker’s 2017 song, “Leave a Light On,” is a powerful reminder that there are people out …

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Birdsong album cover

"Birdsong"

By Kina Grannis

Kina Grannis’s song “Birdsong” begins with just that: the soft chirping of birds, accompanied by gentle piano chords. Sh…

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“Everybody Lost Somebody"

By Bleachers

“Everybody Lost Somebody” is a moving song by the rock band Bleachers that dives into the universal experience of loss a…

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"Bigger Than The Whole Sky"

By Taylor Swift

When Taylor Swift’s most recent album “Midnights” was released on October 21, 2022, it was an instant hit, spawning No. …

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“I Grieve”

By Peter Gabriel

Peter Gabriel is not one to shy away from difficult emotions. His 1998 song, “I Grieve,” walks the listener through some…

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"Paint It Black"

By The Rolling Stones

The song, “Paint It Black” by the British rockers the Rolling Stones, came out in 1966 to swiftly become a No. 1 hit bot…

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"I Will Not Say Goodbye"

By Danny Gokey

It’s not at all unusual for someone who has lost a loved one to feel that they should “let go” and move on from the loss…

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Cover of Ocean album with What If I Never Get Over You

What If I Never Get Over You?"

By Lady Antebellum

Grief in all its permutations is accompanied by a wide array of emotions: sadness, anger, longing, confusion and numbnes…

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"Wake Me Up When September Ends"

By Green Day

Green Day emerged as part of the punk rock scene in the Bay Area of California in the 1980s. The front man and lyricist …

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"Slipped Away"

By Avril Lavigne

One of the most serious songs Avril Lavigne has ever penned is “Slipped Away,” which tells listeners about how she felt …

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"Killer"

By Phoebe Bridgers

The 26-year-old Los Angeles native has been recording and writing songs since her teens and released her well-reviewed d…

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"In Your Dreams"

By Stevie Nicks

Love life is the stuff of rock-and-roll legend. The ethereal frontwoman of Fleetwood Mac was famously entangled with her…

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"Shine on You Crazy Diamond"

By Pink Floyd

There is no better song to remember a loved one by than the masterpiece send-off that is Pink Floyd’s “Shine on You Craz…

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"How Can I Keep from Singing?"

By Robert Lowry

Some messages are universal and lasting, but they tend to don new robes as decades and even centuries pass and new gener…

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"So We Won't Forget"

By Khruangbin

“So We Won’t Forget” is a groovy, airy single from Khruangbin’s recently released album, Mordechai, with a message about…

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"Lean On Me"

By Bill Withers

Bill Withers, a soul singer and songwriter, three-time Grammy winner and inductee in both the Rock-and-Roll and Songwrit…

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"I'll Cover You"

By Jonathan Larson

“I’ll Cover You” and “Take Me Or Leave Me,” are duets from the smash hit musical “Rent.”  Both songs feature same sex ch…

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"One Sweet Day"

By Mariah Carey and Boyz II Men

“One Sweet Day” is a beautiful ballad that speaks to the pain of losing someone we love before we have the time (or take…

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The lyrics You Will Be Found encourages those who grieve to reach out.

"You Will Be Found"

By Benj Pasek and Justin Paul

There’s a reason the lyrics to “You Will Be Found” have been translated into four languages. The world has embraced this…

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"Going, Going, Gone"

By Bob Dylan

An accumulation of life’s challenges has worn down the speaker in Bob Dylan’s “Going, Going, Gone,” and, at first, it so…

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"Love Is Stronger Than Death"

By The The

“Love Is Stronger Than Death” by English post-punk band The The is an emotional song about the many facets of death and …

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Cover of Rainbow by Kasey Musgraves

"Rainbow"

By Kasey Musgraves

Every once in a while, a song comes along that tugs at my heartstrings with such force that I wonder what it is about it…

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"Ain't Wastin' Time No More"

By The Allman Brothers

“Ain’t Wastin’ Time No More,” recorded by the Allman Brothers on their their third studio album “Eat a Peach,” was writt…

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"Half a Moment" appeared in the musical comedy "Jeeves."

"Half a Moment"

By Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber and Alan Ayckbourn

“Half a Moment” is one of the few serious songs in the musical comedy “Jeeves.” Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber composed the mus…

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"Ooh Child"

By The Five Stairsteps

In 1970, the words to the Five Stairsteps release of “Ooh Child” felt like a healing balm. My fellow college students an…

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"Ordinary World"

By Duran Duran

1993 single “Ordinary World” is an homage to loved ones who have died. The song serves as a remembrance of foregone time…

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Song About Loss: "Ue o Muite Arukō (Sukiyaki)"

By Kyu Sakamoto

“Ue o Muite Arukō,” also known as “Sukiyaki,” by Kyu Sakamoto is a moving song about loss that translates across languag…

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"My Heart Will Go On"

By James Horner and Will Jennings

It was the winter of 1997, and the surprise hit in movie theaters was “Titanic.” Almost as popular as the movie was the …

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"Canon in D Major"

By Johann Pachelbel

The first time I heard Pachelbel’s “Canon in D Major” I was at a retreat for the pediatric oncology staff at Stanford Ch…

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"Anything But Lonely" from "Aspects of Love"

By Andrew Lloyd Webber

The song “Anything But Lonely” comes from the 1989 musical “Aspects of Love.” Andrew Lloyd Webber composed the music and…

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“You Are Not Alone”

By Michael Jackson

When a loved one dies, one of the first things many of us do is make a phone call. Whether it’s to those that were close…

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"Emotional Cleansing: Feminine Sound Practice with Peruquois"

By Peruquois

Have you ever felt so overwhelmed by an emotion that your body gets tense and your voice box literally closes? Have you …

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"How Could I Ever Know?"

By Lucy Simon and Marsha Norman

“How Could I Ever Know?” is a song from the musical “A Secret Garden,” which opened on Broadway in April 1991 and closed…

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"Everybody Hurts"

By R.E.M.

The experience of grief can include rapidly fluctuating, intense feelings such as depression, hopelessness, anger, apath…

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"Do Not Stand At My Grave And Weep."

By Paul K. Joyce

Since 1932, when florist and Baltimore-based homemaker Mary Elizabeth Frye wrote “Do Not Stand at My Grave and Weep,” qu…

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"Shine On"

By May Erlewine

When you are grieving a loss, there are times when simply getting up in the morning seems like too much to bear. Life it…

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"Lay Me Down"

By Sam Smith

We have all been there: standing before a stark reality and wishing against all reason that what we know to be true isn’…

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"I Hope You Dance"

By LeeAnn Womack

“I Hope You Dance,” written by Mark Sanders and Tia Sillers and performed by LeeAnn Womack, is a song about following th…

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"The Promise"

By Tracy Chapman

Tracy Chapman’s song “The Promise” is as much as song of separation as it is of togetherness. As listeners, we can place…

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"My Silver Lining"

By First Aid Kit

Swedish sister duo First Aid Kit skillfully express the need to find meaning and pleasure in life after experiencing har…

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"Into Each Life Some Rain Must Fall"

By Ella Fitzgerald

There’s something about the deep resonance of Ella Fitzgerald’s voice that is at once beautiful and profoundly sad. When…

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“Sounds of Silence”

By Simon and Garfunkel

“Sounds of Silence,” recorded by Simon and Garfunkel in 1963, remains a hauntingly beautiful folk song. The blending of …

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“Alone Again”

By Gilbert O’Sullivan

The lyrics of Gilbert O’Sullivan’s 1972 number one hit “Alone Again” beautifully weave stories in and out of many kinds …

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“The Show Must Go On”

By Queen

Queen’s incredible power-ballad, “The Show Must Go On”, radiates the unadulterated strength that bubbles to the surface …

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“Baby Mine”

By Bette Midler

Losing a child is undoubtedly a tragedy and the toughest event a parent could ever face. No parent ever dreams of outliv…

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“The Rose”

By Bette Midler

If you’re looking for a funeral song to instill hope in you and your loved ones, look no further than “The Rose.” Sung b…

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“Landslide”

By Fleetwood Mac

If you watched the Superbowl or any Budweiser commercials lately, then I’m sure you’ve seen the touching scene where a h…

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