death

[stormsewer]

So, the other playlist I'd been wanting make for a long time was one of songs about death. I think I got the idea from High Fidelity, when they're talking about Laura's dad's funeral. Not to mention my collection just seems to have a wide variety of them, many of them among my most favorite songs. Anyway.

1. "Dead" The Pixies uriah hit the crapper (It's biblical, see.)

2. "No One Lives Forever" Oingo Boingo i'm so happy dancing while the grim reaper cuts, cuts, cuts (I especially enjoy the happy death songs. "Dead Man's Party" was a strong contender for this spot, but I just like this one better.)

3. "Leslie Anne Levine" The Decemberists still i cling to the petticoats of the girl who died with me (Last time I mentioned that the list of songs that have made me cry is pretty short. This one's on that list.)

4. "Sam Hall" Johnny Cash my name is samuel, and i'll see you all in hell, damn your eyes! (Have I mentioned that this album is AWESOME? I was astounded. This song rules. If I ever get executed, I want this played for the attendees. "I Hung My Head" was a strong contender for this spot, too, but I just don't want to be giving a shout-out to Sting here. Wait. Damn!)

5. "Five Years" David Bowie i never thought i'd need so many people (I don't have enough "impending apocalypse" songs in my collection, I think. Gee, that might be an idea for a playlist, though...)

6. "Having a Blast" Green Day i'm losing all my happiness- the happiness you pinned on me; my loneliness still comforts me (My nostalgic affection for this album knows no bounds.)

7. "The Death of Ferdinand de Saussure" The Magnetic Fields we don't know anything, you don't know anything, i don't know anything about love (This is maybe my favorite of the 69 Love Songs. Actually, "Epitaph For My Heart" was a strong contender for this spot, and that's also one of my favorites.)

8. "He Was My Brother" Simon and Garfunkle he died so his brothers could be free (If the Japanese kill me, my sister will have to play this at the funeral.)

9. "The Morning After" Faith No More i can taste you, i can hear your laughter ("Underwater Love" could go well here, actually, and "Surprise You're Dead!" is the obvious choice, but I appreciate the relative subtlety of this song.)

10. "Maxwell's Silver Hammer" The Beatles but when she turns her back on the boy, he creeps up from behind (In this case I find the upbeat nature of the song makes it all the more disturbing.)

11. "Lake of Fire" Nirvana where do bad folks go when they die? (I should learn this on guitar.)

12. "Last Stop: This Town" Eels you're dead, but the world keeps spinning (Of course there are other excellent choices from this album, but when I think of great songs about death, this is usually the first to spring to mind.)

13. "Too Old To Rock n' Roll" Jethro Tull you're never too old to rock n' roll if you're too young to die (Another of the songs that inspired me to make this list in the first place.)

14. "Matinee Idol" Rufus Wainwright whomever has looked at beauty has been marked out already by death (Fun song. About River Phoenix, apparently.)

15. "Lullaby" The Cure softer than shadow and quicker than flies (This to me is one of the stand-out tracks on Disintegration. I'm very fond of it. "Killing an Arab" was up for this spot, too.)

16. "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate" The Flaming Lips something is ending within us (One of my favorite Flaming Lips songs, and probably my favorite off that album.)

17. "Hey Joe" Jimi Hendrix where you going with that gun in your hand? (I thought about putting "If 6 Was 9" in here, what with the oddly prophetic "I know I gotta die when it's time for me to die" line in there, but no. It had to be Joe.)

18. "Dead" They Might Be Giants i'll never see myself in the mirror with my eyes closed (One of my favorite TMBG songs.)

19. "Street Spirit (Fade Out)" Radiohead rows of houses are bearing down on me (Classic. Just classic. This is one of those songs, where, when it's playing, anyone who speaks and interrupts the reverie will go straight to hell. This is my fatwa- heed it.)

[On my mp3 player, I have "To Live Is To Die" by Metallica right here, but at just under 10 minutes, it's not likely to make the cross to a CD. Which is a shame, because it's one of my favorite old school Metallica songs.]

20. "Joan of Arc" Leonard Cohen myself, i long for love and light, but must it come so cruel and oh so bright? (One of my favorite Leonard Cohen songs, and that's saying something.)

21. "Hey Fat Boy (Asshole)" Ween i'm gonna kill you (This one makes a good little coda, I think.)

Hmm... As far as classical goes, Berlioz's "Marche au supplice" from the Symphonie Fantastique coulda gone good in here, too, but it's a little long...

Anyway, Top Five Songs About Death:

5. "No One Lives Forever"
4. "Leslie Anne Levine"
3. "Last Stop: This Town"
2. "Joan of Arc"
1. "Street Spirit (Fade Out)"

Man, that was really hard. Very Honorable Mentions: sixth place to "Dead [TMBG]," seventh place to "Feeling Yourself Disintegrate," eighth place to "Lullaby," and ninth place to "The Death of Ferdinand de Saussure" (It would be higher, but it's not really about death, now is it?).

[April 15, 2005 EDIT: Took out "Skin O' My Teeth" by Megadeth, added "Sam Hall" by Johnny Cash.]

Comments

[doctor-wombat.livejournal.com]

Ooh, some great songs here. TMBG's and the Pixies' 'Dead', Flaming Lips 'Feeling Yourself Disintegrate' (probably my fave off "The Soft Bulletin", as well), 'Street Spirit', 'No One Lives Forever', and of course 'Lullaby', 'Five Years' and 'Last Stop: This Town'. It's amazing how many great songs about death are on "Electro-Shock Blues" -- it never once collapses under its own weight.