Almanac Music: Songs that bring a tear to the eye

Image: Wikipedia
Listening to music evokes all sorts of emotions and stimulates the brain in numerous ways. Of all the songs that I cherish, some leave me speechless while others cause goosebumps. Some have even brought a tear to the eye (or even tears to both eyes), and so I’ve thought long and hard about which particular songs have affected me in such a way that one or both eyes are prone to become watery. In no particular order, here are my top 10.
‘The Living Years’ (Mike and the Mechanics)
I find this song incredibly haunting and moving. I find the backing vocals in the chorus really give this song an extra ‘something’ special that cannot be put into words.
‘Bridge Over Troubled Water’ (Simon and Garfunkel)
This song starts quietly, before building into something magical. The part that has really gotten to me most profoundly has been the instrumental break, and the following lyrics ‘Sail on silver girl, sail on by, your time has come to shine, All your dreams are on their way, See how they shine, oh if you need a friend, I’m sailing right behind’.
‘To The Last Whale/Critical Mass/Wind On The Water’ (Crosby and Nash)
A sad, but amazing song. The harmonies in the first 75 seconds are indescribable and simply take my breath away, to say the least. And the rest of the song is just as staggering.
‘The Long And Winding Road’ (The Beatles)
In my opinion, a lot of Beatles songs have not aged too well, although the band’s legacy and influence will forever be unmatched and untarnished. Whenever Paul McCartney’s best contributions are mentioned, ‘Yesterday’ always comes to mind. Yet in my opinion, his masterpiece was ‘The Long And Winding Road’ (while Phil Spector must also be credited for the outstanding orchestral overdubs; ironically this apparently earned the ire of McCartney!). A standout classic that will never get dated.
‘Big Wheels’ (Electric Light Orchestra)
One of ELO’s lesser known songs but an integral part of their 1977 masterpiece Out of the Blue. A slow, haunting, and incredibly moving song about someone with depression and suicidal thoughts, but hoping life will improve. Memorable lyrics include ‘I see it all so clear, the tenderness, the silent tears, Out here in the pouring rain, through cold dark waiting days I see you standing there, I see the big wheels turnin’, never endin’, on and on they go’.
‘The Pride You Hide’ (Roger Daltrey)
Better known as the lead singer from The Who, Roger Daltrey also had some fine solo work. ‘The Pride You Hide’ is one such case in point. He sets the scene perfectly with the opening line ‘I’m not the kind of guy to let jealousy break me up inside’. Late in the song, the raw feeling is captured perfectly in the lines, ‘All that happened was a stupid mistake, I acted like a fool and now it’s too late, I’m another lonely guy with no heart for forgiving, without you around I find it so hard living, Lord knows, it’s the pride you hide, when you’re breaking up inside’.
‘Don’t Let It Fade Away’ (Fleming and John)
The married couple, Fleming and John, released just two albums, but in my opinion they are cruelly underrated and obscure. I doubt I will ever meet anyone who had heard of them. Many of their songs describe various relationship situations, and many of them may even be autobiographical. Fleming’s vocal range is simply staggering, even if a bit shrill on occasions.
The opening verse in this particular song captures the theme perfectly: ‘Don’t let it fade away, Be strong enough to tell me goodbye, Don’t let it fade away, Just because you don’t wanna see me cry, If it’s over now I’ll be okay, Just don’t let it fade away’. The feeling in the singer’s voice is also out of this world in the verse with the lyrics ‘Look me in the eye, and tell me you don’t love me, put me out of my misery, your silence is giving me too much hope’.
(Speaking of Fleming and John, also check out ‘Hanging On A Notion’, ‘Delusions Of Grandeur’, ‘A Place Called Love’, ‘Sssh!’, and ‘Comfortable’. They also have one highly unusual song also worth a listen, titled ‘Ugly Girl’. This is a song about feeling jealous when seeing one’s ex with their new flame. But I digress).
‘Everybody Hurts’ (REM)
Where do I start? Straightforward lyrics, haunting and breathtaking melody, and plenty more.
‘The Last Thing On My Mind’ (The Move)
A number of versions of this song are quite short, but the standout classic by The Move is more than 7 minutes long. And not a second goes to waste. The feeling is so real throughout the song, especially in the chorus. The instrumental refrain can perhaps be described as eargasmic, followed brilliantly with the lyrics ‘You’ve got reasons of plenty for going, this I know, this I know, for the weeds have been steadily growing, please don’t grow, please don’t grow’.
‘Go Now’ (Moody Blues)
The original of this song didn’t capture my attention, but the Moody Blues’ version surely did. The first words ‘We’ve already said…” followed by the opening instrumentation set the scene perfectly. Whereas Justin Hayward and to some extent John Lodge have been known as the leaders in the Moody Blues, Denny Laine deserves the accolades for this timeless gem.
Now over to you. Which songs have brought a tear to your eye (or tears to both eyes)?
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About Liam Hauser
A Queenslander through and through, Liam went out of his comfort zone as he had a thoroughly worthwhile time in Tumut and Gundagai from 2008 to 2016 before enjoying a year in Gunnedah. His strongest sporting interests are State of Origin, Sheffield Shield, Test cricket and the NRL. His sporting CV doesn’t have many highlights, although he once top-scored in a warehouse cricket match with 54 not out at number 10, and shared in an unbroken last wicket stand of 83 with the number 11 who scored an undefeated 52. Liam has written books including State of Origin 40 Years, A Century of Cricket Tests, A History of Test Cricket, The Immortals of Australian Cricket, The Immortals of Australian Rugby League, and The Great Grand Finals: Rugby League's Greatest Contests. Also a huge fan of Electric Light Orchestra.

Some great calls in there, LH and Bridge stops me in my tracks every time.
Three that move me to a tear or two, even after having played the damn song hundreds of times are:
Lonesome Whistle, by Hank (just a kid acting smart, I went and broke my darling’s heart, I guess I was too young to know)
I Still Miss Someone, by Johnny (there’s someone for me somewhere …)
Amazing Grace by Aretha (her voice!).
I Think It’s Going to Rain Today – Randy Newman
Ruby’s Arms – Tom Waits
Opening Farewell – Jackson Browne
and, call me an old sook, Daisy a Day – Judd Strunk
We belong together – Rickie Lee Jones
Little Decisions – Paul Kelly
Let it be – the Beatles
Long gone whistle – Maurice Frawley
Which will – Nick Drake
Levi Stubbs’ Tears by Billy Bragg has a special place in the Swish boo-hoo pantheon.
The Modern Lovers’ Hospital and Jonathan Richman’s Affection evoke a watery-eyed response at the right moment.
My imaginary cover of There Is Power In A Onion by Tony Abbott would probably do the job too.
I’m a sook from way back, Definitely concur with those Beatles & S&G tracks above. Good to see Jackson Browne mentioned. Sleeps Dark and Silent Gate is another.
Tenterfield Saddler is one that usually gets me as well.
And the soundtrack to Cinema Paradiso. I hear the opening piano notes, and I’m a wreck. Salty discharge. Must be the Italian in me.
Well. This lead me down a rabbit hole. The song that immediately came to my mind that bought a tear when I first heard it around 35 years ago is “Factory” by The Flying Pickets. It took me a while to find it on utube, and just now found out it was a Bruce Springsteen song. Just loved the emotion of TFP version, and all the other songs on the cassette tape I’ve still got lying around somewhere. Lost Boys was the album.
‘Cry’ (1985), written and performed by Kevin Godley and Lol Creme of 10 cc fame. Groundbreaking video clip, too.
Don’t dream it’s over and Better be home soon by Crowded House we’re ones I thought of.
‘Yesterday’ – The Beatles Has become a forgotten song by them, if any song by them could ever be forgotten but it’s a plaintiff plea from PM about lost love.
Dylan of course wrote many songs that can bring a tear to the eye but two in particular stand out:
‘I Threw It All Away’ from National Skyline, and ‘If You See Say Hello” from Blood On The Tracks.Both are heartfelt pleas of lost or faded love.
Mother by John Lennon is the most raw and heartfelt song I’ve ever heard. Gets me every time. The agony in it is extraordinary.
And The Band Played Waltzing Matilda by The Pogues is one that catches the corner of the eye too.
My old man went out of the church in his coffin to The Parting Glass by the Clancy Brothers. Very emotive. Their Connemara Lullaby is also a beauty. Also known as the Connemara Cradle Song.
Closer to home, Gang of Youths’ 2022 album “Angel in Realtime” was a tribute to lead singer David Le’aupepe’s late father. For real tear-jerkers on this album, have a listen to “You In Everything” and “Brothers”.
Many, many songs for me but among recent releases, Josh Pyke’s ‘A Town You’ve Never Been To.’ The gratitude and joy in the out chorus is terrific.
Thanks Liam.
Thanks Liam for initiating this thread. I scarcely dare participate, given my limited knowledge of music, but I did want to ensure that Tom Paxton was credited as the writer of Last Thing on My Mind. Wiki informs us that it’s been covered by sixty plus artists, so I’d guess that there are some others worth investigating. His own version does it for me.
My eclectic preferences, Judy Collins: Send in the Clowns (and frankly just about anything offered by that purest of voices).
The Fureys: The Old Man. Their version of Eric Bogle’s Green Fields of France is very powerful.
The Clancy Brothers: Wild Mountain Thyme.
Far from an exhaustive list
Well said Rick Kane, Lonesome Whistle by the great Hank Williams sits well in the pantheon of tear jerkers.
Whilst we’re on Hank, you can’t leave out this great duet involving Hank,and Hank Jnr.
There’s a tear in my beer.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rM8tROzp4Dc
Glen!
I’ve just played a really sad song, one that certainly brings a tear to the eye, Eddie Cochran’s Three Stars.
The song is about three of Cochran’s friends, Ritchie Valens, Buddy Holly, J P Richardson, ‘The Big Bopper’, who died in a plane crash back on 2/3/1959. It was a challenge for Cochran to perform this tribute song so soon after the death of his friends. You hear Cochran’s voice quivering, possibly sobbing, in the latter part of the second verse.
Sadly Eddie Cochran did not have a long career dying in a car crash on 17/3/1960, aged 22.
There’s truly a great band in the Rock’n’Roll heaven in the sky.
Glen!
Caught an old episode of Rockquiz last night and I have a song to add to the list. From Small Things. Teared up a number of times. Archie Roach and an ensemble including Richard Clapton, each taking a verse. So please add to the playlist.
And, of course add a couple of Archie Roach songs, Took the Children Away and Down City Streets. Yep, they get me going.
Finally, add the Tom Waits song, Georgia Lee which I can barely get through.
That should read, From Little Things, Big Things Grow.