JPF Home Page Forums General Messages General Message Forum top fives.

Top five sad songs, and top five "feel good" songs, or happy songs for you.

I'll post mine after a few of you have posted yours.

Give me your yin and yang.

I thank you for your time, and....the grubby twenty dollar bill you sent.😎

Okay, I'll play..

Happy:

1) In Your Eyes - Peter Gabriel

I haven't seen the John Cusack scene, but have seen Gabriel perform this live a few times, each very differently, all exuberant and always a reminder why I do this music thing. Pure ineffable joy.

2) Gentle On My Mind - Glen Campbell

This was the first record album I bought. John Hartford's lyric would open me up to other writers' long, conversational yet poetic lines, like Dylan's and Joni's.

3) The Dark - Guy Clark

So many of Guy's songs bring on joyful moments. This is the one for the camping trip. Pure poetry from one of our most beloved bards, recently deceased, never to be forgotten.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q3DVNQ0JErw



4) Thunder Road - Bruce Springsteen

Many of the "Born To Run" era songs could qualify, for me. This is one that I love to sing, myself, and when I do I mean just about every word,.

5) In Pursuit of Happiness - The Divine Comedy

Irish Neil Hannon's seriously ecstatic love letter to someone, highly influenced by early Seventies Scott Walker. This cheers me up instantly if I'm in a funk.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mNMJ0E40by4




Sad had a bigger selection, for me, so was harder to narrow down..




1) Sweet Old World - Emmylou Harris

Harris' cover of this Lucinda Williams song edges out the original by a hair--both are amazing performances. This is basically a list song, about all the reasons to enjoy being alive, sung to someone who didn't..or couldn't hang around long enough..in this world..to enjoy them.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3DEjpSekNY



2) Magdalene Laundries - Joni Mitchell

Sung from the POV of a young woman forced into "convent" (more like jail) life in Ireland, as this was common practice for Catholic girls (up to I think the early Seventies) who'd have unwed relations, and some would be forced there for even lesser things, like the girl in Joni's song. What makes this song great is the very believable voice of the young woman who balances being observant of what was going on around her with more personal thoughts. Christy Moore's cover is devastating as well.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6DoAlothonQ



3) The Host of Seraphim- Dead Can Dance

Used near the end of Stephen King's "The Mist," Lisa Gerrard belts out the saddest melody imaginable over a kind of Gothic music that changes many keys, but always feels right. This instantly makes me stop what I'm doing--she's demanding you listen, and it's hard not to feel stuff..

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7iqxzURgQWg



4) Marie - Townes Van Zandt

Townes wrote some of the saddest songs. Some more abstract than others. Marie, though, is pretty straightforward and is sung from the POV of a homeless guy. I like this raw performance more than the studio version.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lk-zKjfO2E8


5) Piano Theme from "The Leftovers" - Max Richter

It's a simple melody that on paper doesn't look like much, but its simplicity is part of its beauty--it worked every time it would play in the HBO series, and still brings on a beautiful sad feeling whenever I play it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gsvda1AP6wo

Totally not what I expected, now I must investigate....thanks michael.

Hi Mac:

Your time won't be wasted. This guy knows his music... like you.

Merry Christmas, ----Dave

Evidently he does know his music, Thunder Road is a masterpeice I wonder if Dave has heard it once? Lol, just a playful dig Dave....

That's a tuff one, 5 feel good songs, some albums have 5 by themselves. Ill have to come up with 5....lets me thinks....

When i think of feel good songs, I dont think of great writing or great art, i think of what makes me happy hearing it. For which alot of the one hit wonders fit the mold. But these always did the job for me

The Beatles
"I wanna hold your Hand"

The Rasberries
"I wanna be with you"

Southside Johnny
"I dont wanna go home"

Hall and Oates
"you make my dreams come true"

"The Ramones"
Pick any....

Hi FD:

Looking forward to your five. Yes, I've heard "Thunder Road" but don't ask me to whistle the melody! LOL! Playful digs are much appreciated... as long as you are not beginning to dig my final resting place! (I know several folks willing to assist in such a "dig!")

Have a great day! ----Dave the Elder

Two minutes of sheer joy

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z6LAxfFLNgc

I have seen people with religious headwear and clothes on dancing and grooving to this. Got be up there as one of the best feelers

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rqnw5IfbZOU

Well,
Some sad songs.
1. SOMETIMES YOU JUST CAN'T WIN, George Jones
2. LIFE TO GO George Jones and some others
3. BACK STREET AFFAIR, Webb Pierce
4. THEY'RE HANGING ME TO NIGHT, Marty Robbins
5. RUNNING GUN, Marty Robbins

A couple of Happy songs.
1. MOMENTS TO REMEMBER The Four Lads.
2. THANK GOD AND GREYHOUND Roy Clark

I must be an optimistic person because i didn't even see we needed 5 sad songs....

Oh man, there are tons of gut busting sad ones.

Ill give the others a chance but ill close with

Top Feel good song

You Better you Bet by The Who. I had the 45, and im not kidding i listened to this a thousand times, byt the time I was done with it, it was scratched from beginning to end

I would play this in my room, with either a wiffle ball bat, or tennis racket, as an air guitar. Literally jumping all over the place, sometimes in my underwear to this song.

It made me feel invincible. It made me wanna play guitar
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6LEF2xltgtY

Saddest song... for me has to be Empty Sky by The boss, because while I was actually listening to this, I got a call that my dad had took a turn for the worse in the hospital, as I was getting the news this was still playing in the background

ironically, its a song about loss at 9/11, which strengthened the whole sadness.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GwpcTn1djC8

Here are mine:

Feel good:

Dance, Dance, Dance - The Beach Boys
I Want to Hold Your Hand - The Beatles
Mess Around - Ray Charles
Werewolves of London - Warren Zevon
Feeling Groovy - Simon and Garfunkel

And a special one for the holidays: Santa Claus is Coming to Town (Bruce and the E Street Band)

Sad:
Everything I Own - Bread
Keep Me In Your Heart - Warren Zevon
All I Know - Art Garfunkel
Carefree Highway - Gordon Lightfoot
Cats in the Cradle - Harry Chapin

As Fdemetrio suggests with Empty Sky, I suspect these are heavily influenced by context. For instance, my choice of Mess Around was heavily influenced by John Candy's joyful pantomime in Planes, Trains and Automobiles.

Scott

Just by reviewing these for this post picked my spirits way up.

The Dubliners: Maids When You're Young Never Wed and Old Man
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S8mfGX4Z1dE

The Dubliners: Seven Drunken Nights
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u8Hb5nzwE4I

The Pogues: If I Should Fall From Grace Of God
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r1NyWs_rtSk

Pogues and Dubliners: The Irish Rover
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cZXnJ4UYh40

One for Christmas: Pogues and Kirsty MacColl Fairytale of New York
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l14aDp-4NKk

Happiest;

#1) Walking on Sunshine recorded by Katrina and the Waves

Can't get happier than that.

Wow.....y'all are spot on!

Happy:

September: earth wind and fire.
Sir duke: stevie.
Ventura highway: america. (lyric was sketchy, but who cares).
My sweet lord: george. (because it feels joyful and real).
Penny lane: beatles.

Sad coming later.

Well Mac, here are five songs each category, (however not necessarily my "top fives)," as that would take a lot of time and consideration and I'd wrestle with that concept! However, I'm going to just see what songs pop into my head that feel good or sad spontaneously! I tried to select some interesting music diversity along with different genres just for the fun of it! My mind just remembers older stuff better, and these are just a small sample of songs I've enjoyed through both theatre and pop music.....I threw the Walter Brennen song in for a hoot--just to see if a few old-timers would remember it!



Feel Good Songs:

1) Surrey with a fringe on top - Rodgers & Hammerstein (Oklahoma) -- https://youtu.be/Ss1CXo8QMi8
2) If I fell - Beatles -- https://youtu.be/FcOTExcE2dM
3) I Feel Good - James Brown -- https://youtu.be/QXCGnTy-v2M
4) I've got the music in me - Kiki Dee (Elton John) -- https://youtu.be/SsNl9zaWJdQ
5) Simply the best - Tina Turner - (I like this teenage Russian singer Alisa Kozhikina's cover in which the link represents) -- https://youtu.be/N8uhuytWkGQ

Sad Songs:

1) Better Days - Graham Nash -- https://youtu.be/aTE0EIwWUXM
2) Desperado - Eagles (but love Linda Ronstadt's cover) -- https://youtu.be/yUg10CPelvo
3) New York Mining Disaster - Bee Gees -- https://youtu.be/F9Q5_ttJBUI
4) A time for us - Henry Mancini (Romeo & Juliet) -- https://youtu.be/z66YxLygpro
5) Old Rivers - Walter Brennen -- https://youtu.be/S0JsYKHTJlg

I hope these links work for you and you enjoy my music potpourri.

steady-eddie