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My Funeral Set List - What Song Would I Want Played?


Charles J. White

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Your Funeral - What Songs Would You Want Played?

My buddies were sitting were sitting around my place a few years ago, and over the course of the conversation one of them asked, "Hey man, what song would you want played at your funeral?", so of course a bunch of sappy love songs were discussed, which annoyed me, I'm not a big ballad/love song guy.

I call the idea, "My Funeral Set List", since that time, my ski buddies all joke about it

So what is your "Funeral Set List"?

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Interesting thread, Charles. I am definitely going to play along. The songs I would want to play at my funeral, are (in no particular order):

The Lantern - The Rolling Stones

I Shall Not Be Moved - Charley Patton

Lord, I'm Discouraged - Charley Patton

Jesus Make Up My Dying Bed - Blind Willie Johnson

Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground - Blind Willie Johnson

Let Your Light Shine On Me - Blind Willie Johnson

God Moves On The Water - Blind Willie Johnson

It's Nobody's Fault But Mine - Blind Willie Johnson

Going Down Slow - Howlin' Wolf

Preaching Blues (Up Jumped The Devil) - Robert Johnson

Crossroad Blues - Robert Johnson

If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day - Robert Johnson

The End - The Doors

In The Light - Led Zeppelin

In My Time of Dying - Led Zeppelin

Sea of Joy - Blind Faith

Presence of the Lord - Blind Faith

Sorrow Evoker - Witchcraft

Be Forewarned - Pentagram

Great Gig In The Sky - Pink Floyd

Lily of the Valley - Queen

The Night Comes Down - Queen

Spread Your Wings - Queen

Who Wants To Live Forever - Queen

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I love this thread, Charles!

Here is mine:

"American Girl", Petty

"I Won't Back Down", Petty

"Crossfire", Stevie Ray Vaughan

"Tightrope", Stevie Ray Vaughn

"I made it thought the rain", Manilow...judge me all you want ;-)

"Heavy", Collective Soul

"Ventura Highway", America

"Back in Black", AC/DC

"Have you Ever Seen the Rain", Credence Clearwater Revival

"All I Need", the Hollies

"Trampled Under Foot", LZ

"Dancin Days", LZ

"29 Palms", RP

"Tall Cool One", RP

"BillyJean", Michael Jackson

"Bohemian Rhapsody", Queen

"Gold Digger", Kanye West

"I got a Woman", Ray Charles

And Whitney Houston's "Star Spangled Banner" live performance...you know the one...;-)

Thanks for starting this thread, CJW!!

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Interesting thread, Charles. I am definitely going to play along. The songs I would want to play at my funeral, are (in no particular order):

The Lantern - The Rolling Stones

I Shall Not Be Moved - Charley Patton

Lord, I'm Discouraged - Charley Patton

Jesus Make Up My Dying Bed - Blind Willie Johnson

Dark Was The Night, Cold Was The Ground - Blind Willie Johnson

Let Your Light Shine On Me - Blind Willie Johnson

God Moves On The Water - Blind Willie Johnson

It's Nobody's Fault But Mine - Blind Willie Johnson

Going Down Slow - Howlin' Wolf

Preaching Blues (Up Jumped The Devil) - Robert Johnson

Crossroad Blues - Robert Johnson

If I Had Possession Over Judgement Day - Robert Johnson

The End - The Doors

In The Light - Led Zeppelin

In My Time of Dying - Led Zeppelin

Sea of Joy - Blind Faith

Presence of the Lord - Blind Faith

Sorrow Evoker - Witchcraft

Be Forewarned - Pentagram

Great Gig In The Sky - Pink Floyd

Lily of the Valley - Queen

The Night Comes Down - Queen

Spread Your Wings - Queen

Who Wants To Live Forever - Queen

That's going to be a long service. I hope mourners will be forewarned to bring lunch.

For me:

In My Time Of Dying

Both Sides Now (Joni Mitchell)

Un Bel Di Vedremo (from Madam Butterfly - preferably the Maria Callas)

Simple Twist of Fate (or perhaps Ballad Of A Thin Man. Or Like A Rolling Stone) - Bob Dylan

I Know There's An Answer - Beach Boys

All Bells In Paradise (John Rutter)

I Cover The Waterfront (Billie Holiday)

Mississippi Goddamn (Nina Simone)

Heroes (Bowie)

and, very loud, as they leave:

Drive My Car (The Beatles).

Snacks will be provided.

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There's going to be some long (expensive) funerals for some people around here, two or three is songs is the norm for services I have been to. One each for the walk in/out and sometimes one to split the eulogy.

I once had the morbid discussion with a good friend, well he brought it up, said he wanted 'Iggy Pop's Passenger' for the walk in and 'Frank Zappa's Watermelon In Easter Hay' for the walk out. A month, six weeks later the fucker went and died. He was a really really good friend more like a brother and I was so pissed off when he went, I thought " you fucking knew you were dying an then you have to go and die two days before my daughters second birthday party you bastard"

The night he died there was a huge rain, thunder and lightning storm the weather had been hot for weeks and this was the night the weather broke, July 11 1995. Anyway I made the tape he wanted. I did a really nice edit of "Watermelon" it was perfect, his mother and girlfriend were so grateful, his mother had never heard "watermelon" before and after the funeral she took the tape and played that tune a lot over the next few months

I know for my own funeral I want "Jimi Hendrix All Along The Watchtower" for people to walk in to, but for the other one or two tunes I've not really given it any thought, maybe "David Crosby's Song With No Words" will be in there..I'll have to think about it.

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"Always look at the bright side of life" Monty Python.

I went to a funeral a few years back - it was a female friend of mine who died of cancer. She was only 36... she knew she was dying, and told me she was going to have this song played at her funeral. When it came through the speakers, I cried so hard. R.I.P.

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I've already passed on my 'funeral music list', so this is something I've given considerable thought to before now.

Pretty much any Joy Division song would do, but I think 'Atmosphere', 'The Eternal' and 'New Dawn Fades' made it.

'In The Light', the Beatles' 'Long, Long, Long' and Pink Floyd's 'Speak To Me/Breathe' and 'Us And Them'.

I also like Allegri's 'Miserere' a lot, all of the versions of it I've heard, but perhaps not quite appropriate for a funeral.

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It's interesting because recently I have been considering something like this.
However, I'm thinking more of the setlist for a party AFTER the funeral service itself.

I really think I'd like to have this done.

I'm at work so I won't make my list now, but yes, I have been entertaining the idea of a 3 or 4 hour or so funeral after-party! LOL

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I used to like the thought of "Who wants to live forever" by Queen at mine, but really looking at it now it may be a bit on the cheesy side.

This is probably one of the ones I would have. It is Sarabande by Handel and it's a beautiful piece of music.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JSAd3NpDi6Q

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I will never have a funeral, nor do I want to be laid out for people to see at a wake. What I would want is for everyone I know and love to get together and have a party in remembrance, with much food and drink, and plenty of music I cherished.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Soon And Very Soon (the choir should march in on this song)

Goin' Up Yonder (the spiritual; not the gospel song)

The Great Gig in the Sky

Pass Me Not O' Gentle Saviour

Das himmlische leben (The Heavenly Life) from Mahler's Fourth Symphony

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  • 2 years later...

Set list would be- Stairway to heaven-Led Zeppelin

Misty mountain hop- Led Zeppelin

Rocket-Goldfrapp

Utopia-Goldfrapp

Clairvoyant-Iron Maiden

Love will tear us apart-Joy Division

Grand old Team-Everton

Theme from Z-Cars.

Ended with I dont care-Guns n Roses.

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