Most depressing song you've ever heard?
 

Well, I just wanted to know what the most depressing song you've ever heard was. What song really got to you?

Some of the most depressing songs I've ever heard were:

I Know You Know (This Photograph is Proof) by Taking Back Sunday
Sanctuary by Utada Hikaru

And I think it's called "Like You'll Never See Me Again" by Alicia Keys, I believe. That one's pretty depressing.

I know there are a few more, probably I could name, but what songs do you fnd to be really sad?

doesn't get much more intensely sad or emotionally heavy than this.

I think pretty much every song I hear on the radio is depressing because how lousy they are.

The 70's ruled for sad and depressing songs.

• Without You by Harry Nilsson
• Everything I Own by Bread (David Gates wrote the song for his father who passed away.)
• Us and Them by Pink Floyd
• Love Hurts - Nazareth (a song originally performed by the Everly Brothers, written by B. & F. Bryant. Jim Capaldi of Traffic also did a cover version of the song.)
• Angie by the Rolling Stones (It is so depressing I can't listen to it.)

OK, I need to make it perfectly clear, I absolutely fecking love this. But many people find this cripplingly depressing

That is an amazing choice. Definitely depressing as all get-out.

The ones that sprang to mind for me:

Jewel - Painters

This made me cry like a bitch when I got the album when I was...oh, ten or eleven. If nothing else, it's depressing as hell. And some people detest Jewel, but she had some gems - and I think this may have been one of them.

Radiohead - Like Spinning Plates

This one just makes me feel completely emotionally drained. From the get-go. Even though my friend thinks that "You feed me to the lions," sounds like, "You feed me seagulls," which is kind of weird...and it kind of does...but still. Very depressing.

Amanda Palmer - Blake Says

This one tears me all asunder. The line that says, "He tells me that he's fine / and the sad thing is he's right." really hits perfectly, and causes moisture-y eye spillage upon occasion.

Ingrid Michaelson - The Chain

Sad in general, but if you listen to it after being dumped, your world will be utterly destroyed. Trust me.

Drowning in alcohol.

It's a difficult question for me because sad songs make me happy, but this one's all-round bleak as shit..

I Would've Liked Me a Lot Last Night by Arab Strap

Last Kiss - Pearl Jam - YouTube

Everybody hurts. always depresses me.

It's funny that's labelled as a Swans song since it's from a Gira solo album but, yeah, incredibly depressing. Also, honestly one of my favorite songs he's ever written.

Frank Zappa could be even more depressing sounding than Pink Floyd.

I do know of one EXTREMELY depressing FZ song

the last ten years.... its sad because it makes me think of what the world is becoming

Any Joy division song really, especially this one

I'm not familiar with that song. Who sings it?

it actually appears on Various Failures :)....as does one or two Jarboe solo tracks....and i agree....lyrically this is one of the greatest songs ever written....and due to its brutal honesty it is also very depressing

for me many songs choke me up a bit due to personal association....Disintegration by The Cure, Blasphemous Rumors by Depeche Mode, Fall Apart by Death In June and Let The Bloodbells Chime by Current 93.....each of which are in many ways depressing to begin with but due to their reference point in my life are amplified to the tenth degree

still nothing tears me apart like Current 93s A Sadness Song....obviously with a name like that its not going to produce smiles.....but it's seriously so hauntingly despondent and again honest.....i can't see how it could not break down anybody

Thank you, I'll be hearing "You feed me seagulls" from now on.

Have you heard the live piano version? It's very beautiful, but (in my opinion) less depressing. The electronic absurdity of the studio version just drains the emotions out of you (as you said), and you're left empty in stead of in tears.

But it's originally from Drainland. :p:

The Cure - All Cats Are Grey


This song sums up Faith for me. Its bleakness and greyness mirrors the album art and the general tone of the album. The long instrumental intro sends you downwards even before Roberts vocals come in roughly around the half way point. It's like a deep void, a place devoid of all hope.

This. Still incredibly beautiful though, his voice really goes beyond a lot of singer songwriter's voices, he almost sounds supernatural at times!


Damien Rice - Orchard (Rare) - YouTube

Words by Low
Heroin by The Velvet Underground
Hold On Hope by Guided By Voices
Sunday Morning by The Velvet Underground
Isolation by Joy Divison
I'm So Tired by Fugazi
As Tears Go By by Marianne Faithful
You Know You're Right by Nirvana (More angry than depressing but whatever)
Radio Cure - Wilco
Jesus etc - Wilco
Ashes on the ground - Yo La Tengo
Maps - Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Who loves the Sun - The Velvet Underground
Final Day - Young Marble Giants

the call-regina spektor
what sarah said-death cab for cutie
no it isn't- +44

these songs are all so beautiful but the lyrics really hit you hard.

As a fan of Alice in Chains. I can appreciate the inspiration with this one. But, it also depresses me whenever I listen to it.

and when i'm lying in my bed
i think about life and i think about death
and neither one particularly appeals to me

Funeral For A Fallen Leaf - Jamie Samson (Irish Death Song) - YouTube

I've shared this before, but it deserves to be re-posted. So very sad.

The marriage of form and content Mangan uses works well. Towards the end you can picture someone with Alzheimer's and their confusion. ****, it depresses me.

Feelings of depression/sadness are subjective. I happen to find this one of the saddest songs I've ever listened to:

It's a bit dated, but man this tune can just suck the joy right outa me at any given moment:


Enya - (1988) Watermark - 01 Watermark - YouTube

Great choice. I'd also like to add a C93 track here as well.



For my Joy Division song here...



Then there's Lou Reed's Berlin album. Great music.



I still get the discs out to listen to from time to time (C93 and Lou Reed, vinyl; Joy Division, CD)

Imperium is one giant bucket of depression :)

as is Thunder perfect Mind....and well pretty much all of their discography :)

I went digging through my music to find the perfect song then I realized that I don't listen to anything too depressing.

I'm pretty sure that I have a Bright Eyes or Patrick Wolf song that would fit but I haven't listened to either of them in awhile.

The most recent ones I can think of are.



A little suicidal goodness from Lupe Fiasco



The first verse in this song just cuts pretty deep. It's hard to say goodbye to your own stillborn children


This song always got to me, the violins and the build up near the end are just beautiful.

I'm not really much of an Alice in Chains fan, but goddamn if this isn't one of the most depressing songs in all of popular music. Honestly, I wish they did a lot more like this. They're much better at wrist-slitters than rockers.

I always thought that "You are my Sunshine" is probably one of the most depressing songs I ever heard. I never really understood why it seems to be one of the more popular songs to be taught to young kids but then, it is edited quite a bit :).

My God, this is a good thread. I have a couple more that have made me weep more openly than seeing Monster's Inc in theatres.

Tim Buckley - Hallucinations

I think this is actually more emotive than anything his son ever did. I also maintain that Rufus Wainwright and Ari Hest had more emotionally devastating versions of "Hallelujah," but I digress.

Queen (sans Freddie) - No One But You (Only the Good Die Young)

Never heard more emotion in Brian May's voice than on this track. And Rog sounds strangely like Rod Stewart, if he had more edge.

AND ****, I know that this isn't a song, but this is Jimmy V's Espy speech, and I have it on my iPod. I can't listening to it without doing the three things Jimmy Valvano said every person should do every single day of their lives: Laugh, cry, and think.



Weirdly, this is one of my most vivid childhood memories. College basketball...I've been brought up with it. And Jimmy V was one of my heroes growing up. Hella off topic, I know, but it came on my iPod today, and I felt like I had to share.

It probably speaks much about me that songs many people find depressing I find beautiful.


Warren Zevon says goodbye to the world




AC/DC says goodbye to their lost bandmate

What about a group?
 

I'm uncertain of any specific song, but bright eyes put out some albums that were pretty depressing. Basically just look up bright eyes and play any song, you will see what I mean.