An interesting blog over at the Guardian recently about funeral music.
I devote a chapter to this topic in Reno, using a recent poll of 45,000 people as a starting point. The poll found that the ten most popular funeral songs in Europe are:
1. Queen - The Show Must Go On
2. Led Zeppelin - Stairway To Heaven
3. AC/DC - Highway To Hell
4. Frank Sinatra - My Way
5. Mozart - Requiem
6. Robbie Williams - Angels
7. Queen - Who Wants To Live Forever?
8. The Beatles - Let It Be
9. Metallica - Nothing Else Matters
10. U2 - With Or Without You
I make my opinions clear in the book (especially about 'My Way'), but what are yours? Do any of these songs ring your bell? Are you generally in favour of using pop music at funeral services? If not, why? And if so, what would you play?
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About Me
Regular contributor to the Guardian, The Word, Uncut, New Statesman, the Herald and theartsdesk. My work has also appeared in the Observer, the Telegraph, Esquire, Mojo, Time Out, Rolling Stone, HMV Choice, Oxford American, the Sunday Business Post and Record Collector. Occasionally I’m allowed to break cover on Radio 2, Radio 4 and Radio Scotland.
Author of five books: Complicated Shadows: The Life & Music of Elvis Costello (Canongate, 2004); Willie Nelson: The Outlaw (Virgin, 2006); I Shot a Man in Reno (Continuum, 2008); and Under the Ivy: The Life & Music of Kate Bush (Omnibus, 2010). I’ve just published The Resurrection of Johnny Cash (Jawbone, 2011).
I’ve sat on a sofa in the control room of Abbey Road's Studio 2 and watched Paul McCartney remove his socks. Keith Richards phoned me at 4 a.m. to ask, 'Whatya doing up so late, old boy?'. I've been offered a potentially fatal Camberwell Carrot by Willie Nelson. I've made Bob Geldof cry into his meat loaf, and Elvis Costello once threw a peach stone in my general direction. He's even less friendly these days.
LINKS
- Word magazine
- Under The Ivy: The Life & Music of Kate Bush
- Time Out articles
- The Herald
- The Arts Desk
- Reviews: The Outlaw
- Reviews: I Shot A Man In Reno
- Reviews: Complicated Shadows
- RENO at Amazon US
- RENO at Amazon UK
- Powell's
- Once Upon A Time A Song
- Observer articles
- New Statesman
- Last Year's Girl
- Journalisted
- Jeremy Thomas
- Jenny Brown Associates (Agent)
- Guardian music
- Guardian articles
- Continuum
- 33 1/3 blog
4 comments:
I'm all in favour of it, Graeme. Could make funerals much more fun. My Dad, who is 86, is planning on using Bruce's "No Surrender" - a little weird, but whatever! And because I want everyone to cry at mine, I like the idea of "Lazy Calm" by the Cocteau Twins.
I'm not sure funerals are meant to be fun, are they?
Each to their own, but that 10 list is horrible. I'd hate to think of someone I loved passing on to the sound of Queen, it would kinda tarnish their memory!
Luke
David - good for him! Are you planning floor slides at the ceremony....?
Luke - I tend to agree, but the question underlying all this is: Who is a funeral for?
Queen is only acceptable at a funeral if the deceased is wearing a unitard.
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