Most haunting melodies?

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: LeTenebreux
Date: 28 Feb 08 - 10:52 PM

Anything by Leonard Cohen.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: cptsnapper
Date: 29 Feb 08 - 12:11 PM

Portrait Of My Love by Matt Monroe
Every December Sky - Beth Neilsen Chapman
'Twas On One April Morning
I Live Not Where I Love
Dark Eyes

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,Jim Peden
Date: 03 Jun 08 - 11:50 PM

Jed Marum is too modest. One of the most haunting melodies is his own Chickahominy River......

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,Volgadon
Date: 04 Jun 08 - 01:24 AM

Papirosen.
Vzyav By Ya Banduru.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,Kevin Parker
Date: 04 Jun 08 - 05:48 AM

Crazy Man Michael...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5ksWNvFbME&feature=related

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: closet-folkie
Date: 04 Jun 08 - 09:25 AM

"Into Temptation" by Crowded House takes some beating. So beautiful, it hurts.
Steve R.
...oh...and a second vote for "Lady Grinning Soul". Magnificent.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: quokka
Date: 04 Jun 08 - 01:28 PM

Lonesome Boatman
Angel (Sarah McLaughlin)
Hallelujia (Jeff Buckley live verson)
Sailing to Philadelphia (Mark Knopfler&James Taylor)
Theme from Cal (Mark Knopfler)
Night Visiting Song (Kate Rusby)
Shoheen (KR)
Soundtrack to Barry Lyndon (the Chieftains)
Haunted by the Ghost(Sinead O'C & Shane McG.)
One More Cup of Coffee (Dylan)
Rainy Night in Soho (Pogues)
The Last Resort (Eagles)
Sad Cafe - ditto
The River (Springsteen)
The Circle Game (Joni)
Ride On (Christy)
Walk Away Renee (Billy Bragg version)
I Was Only Nineteen (Redgum)
Tell Laura I Love Her (Billy Connolly) just thought I'd throw that one in!;-} I may think of some more...check back in a few days.
Cheers
Quokka

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,knowicki
Date: 31 Mar 09 - 06:46 PM

Gymnopédies - Erik Satie
Scarborough Fair- Lorena McKinnet version is best
Junk - Paul McCartney
Those Were the Days
Thank You - Dido, first half of the song in minor key
Ennio Morricone - Take your pick of the spaghetti trilogy, Ecstasy of gold
Love - John Lennon
Theme from Puppet Master 1
Some Cranberries tune That I forget the name of

There's a few more, but those melodies are all strange but good

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Gweltas
Date: 01 Apr 09 - 01:54 AM

"Siege Of A Nation" (composed by Mikis Theodorakis, Greece) as played by the Furey Brothers, Ireland............I think it may also be called A Nation Under Siege?
"Morning On A Distant Shore", "Banshee", "The Lonesome Boatman" ....all composed by Finbar Furey.
"Boadicea" by Enya, Ireland
"Song For A Winter's Night" by Gordon Lightfoot, Canada.
"White Squall" by Stan Rogers, Canada.
"Da Ewan" by Alan Stivell, Brittany.
"Arrane Voirrey" (composed by Peter Cubberly) as played by Mactullagh Vannin, Isle of Man
"The Terrace Of Celebrations" ("Follow me Down To The Sea") by Arkadia, Canada.
"The Missing Piece" by Cherish The Ladies, USA.
"So Near And Yet So Far" by the Hanging Johnny Shanty Crew, of Cornwall and Plymouth, UK.
"Courting Too Slow" as by John Spiers & Jon Boden, UK
"Widecombe Fair" (Not the traditional song of the same title!) as sung by Steve Knightley, of Show Of Hands, UK.
"Clohinne Winds" as sung by Niamh Parsons, Ireland.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Tim Leaning
Date: 01 Apr 09 - 01:24 PM

Whenever I hear the Spice Girls
I'tell you what I want what I really really want etc.
I am haunted by it for days.
IS that sad enough?

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,Minerva
Date: 03 Apr 09 - 09:33 AM

What a great thread, with so many fantastic songs.

But going strictly by the criterion of haunting, rather than merely great, good, or moving, THE most haunting song in the world is, "Llorando", sung a capella, by Rebekah del Rio. Unbelievable.

Another beautifully haunting song I don't see listed above is "Lonesome Road".

Also, the whales' melodic accompaniment to Judy Collins' "Farewell to Tarwathe" (sp?) haunts me to this day.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Jack Campin
Date: 03 Apr 09 - 10:12 AM

A few years ago I heard trumpet player play a beautiful new composition called Prayer to St. Gregory, I can't remember the composer but I remember how spellbound I was hearing it ringing through a church on a snowy December night.

The composer was Alan Hovhaness. Several versions on YouTube.

One that haunted me for a long time was "You got to cross that lonesome valley", after reading "Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance". The way he weaves it into the end of the story is very moving.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Amos
Date: 03 Apr 09 - 10:37 AM

I have always been haunted by "Foggy Dew", "Lili Marlene", and more recently by Kate Wolfe's "Nobody Lives Here Anymore".


A

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Bryn Pugh
Date: 03 Apr 09 - 11:17 AM

Banks of the Bann (hymn tune "Slane" ?)

The Maid of Coolmore

O'Carolan's "Morgan Meggann[sp. ?]

The Morris tune "Bumpus o' Stretton".

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Ebbie
Date: 03 Apr 09 - 11:42 AM

A tune that I've never gotten over is from the late 50s-early 60s. It quickly became bastardized into a written song not nearly as memorable as the original.

It is 'Moon over Naples', which then became a hit under 'Blue Spanish Eyes'. It became a fragmented, almost jarring tune.

Moon over Naples's pure melody with its soaring violins... lovely.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Ron Davies
Date: 04 Apr 09 - 08:29 AM

It's awfully hard to distinguish between "haunting" and "catchy"

But trying to do so, I still have a sizable list, including many already mentioned:



Tarrega--Recuerdos de la Alhambra

Bizet--    Symphony in C (second movement)

Schubert   Symphony in C (second movement)

Bruch       Scottish Fantasy--esp the part derived from "Doun for Lack o' Johnny"

Vaughn Williams:   Lark Ascending

Vaughn Williams    Fantasia on Greensleeves

Vaughn Williams    Fantasia on a Theme of Thomas Tallis

Lorena--esp. when sung by Kendall Morse

Both Sides the Tweed--esp sung by Mary Black

Beethoven: Symphony #7--second movement--as a violist I particularly appreciate this melody

Lakes of Pontchartrain

Skye Boat Song

Rimsky-Korsakov--Scheherezade--several melodies

Long Long Trail--esp for association with World War I

Til We Meet Again (1918)

Samanthra

Lili Marleen--even more now that I've read a book about the song:   poet, composer, and the singer who made it famous (Lale Andersen)

Puccini--O Mio Babbino Caro--even though I know she is singing to her father, not her baby

Flowers of the Forest--esp when sung by Joe Hickerson

In Old Chicago--when sung by Art Thieme

Beethoven--second movement of Pathetique

Borodin--Polevetsian Dances--several melodies

Tenting Tonight

Those Were The Days

California Dreamin'

Ashokan Farewell

Rodrigo--Concierto de Aranjuez--several melodies

Rodrigo--Fantasia para un Gentilhombre--several melodies

Ave Maria--as set by several composers, esp the Ave Maria from the Rachmaninoff
Vespers and sung in Russian

Rachmaninoff--Piano Concerto #2--several melodies

Ich hatte einen Kameraden

Who'll Watch the Home Place?

I'll Be Seeing You

As Time Goes By--esp with the opening verse

Bonny at Morn

Eriskay Love Lilt

Mahler--Symphony #1

Dvorak--New World Symphony--several melodies

Dvorak--Symphony #8--several melodies

Parting Glass

Mountains of Mourne

Brahms--Marienlieder--several melodies

Mozart--Piano Concerto #21--esp the slow movement melody, also used in "Elvira Madigan"

Sibelius--Finlandia

Farewell To Tarwaithe--esp in "Whales and Nightingales"

Mendelssohn--Violin Concerto in e--several melodies

Mendelssohn--Hebrides (overture) AKA Fingal's Cave--several melodies

Mendelssohn--Symphony #3 (Scottish)--several melodies

Brahms--Ein deutsches Requiem--virtually the whole thing

Allegri--Miserere

Saint-Saens--Introduction and Rondo Capricioso--several melodies

Saint-Saens---Piano Concerto #2--several melodies

Debussy--Afternoon of a Faun

Hanson--Romantic Symphony--several melodies

Bizet--Carmen--several melodies

Bizet--L'Arlesienne Suites--several melodies

Tchaikovsky--Serenade for Strings--several melodies

Tchaikovsky--Capriccio Italien--several melodies

Grieg--Peer Gynt Suites--several melodies--esp. "Solveig's Song"


And a bunch more, classical and non-classical

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: number 6
Date: 04 Apr 09 - 08:32 AM

"Bibo no Aozora" by Ryuichi Sakamoto.


biLL

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Ron Davies
Date: 04 Apr 09 - 09:46 AM

Also, many Sephardic songs are particularly haunting. One I really recommend is "Adio, Qerida". I have it on a CD called "'Songs of the Sephardim" by a local group called "La Rondinella", which I also saw in concert. Truly amazing.

And some Balkan songs--among many others "Sto Mi e Milo"

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,leeneia
Date: 04 Apr 09 - 09:49 AM

Bryn Pugh mentioned a certain Carolan song, upthread. That song is 'Planxty Morgan Magan,' and it can be heard on Contemplator's site:

http://www.contemplator.com/carolan/caroltun.html

Bryn's idea puts me in mind of one of my favorites, 'Blind Mary,' also by Carolan.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Ron Davies
Date: 04 Apr 09 - 10:11 AM

Also: Mascagni:   Cavalleria Rusticana: Intermezzo. Never should have left that one out.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Cruiser
Date: 04 Apr 09 - 04:27 PM

Two more haunting melodies/songs, especially the first one:

'If I Only had Time' (Instrumental version or by John Rowles, or Earl Grant)

'It's Not the End of Everything' (Tommy Edwards)

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,Igor
Date: 05 Jun 09 - 08:03 PM

Lili Marlen
Colonel Bogey's March (Bridge on the river Kwai)

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,rayvongeezer
Date: 20 Oct 09 - 06:24 PM

Through the Barricades by Spandau Ballet. The pipes & drums end refrain just stays in your head man

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: meself
Date: 21 Oct 09 - 12:40 PM

I have refrained from reading this thread for this reason: to me, the description of a tune as "haunting" is the equivalent of an exorcism - once someone says, "That's a haunting tune", all the haunting just flies out of it, and it's never haunting again ....

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Old Vermin
Date: 21 Oct 09 - 01:45 PM

The Dark Island and Lilli Marlene get mentions above of course.

The couple or so I think worth mentioning:

are Dirty Old Town in its original - Ewan McColl - version

Pleasant and Delightful

and especially something Home Lads Home

http://www.mudcat.org/@displaysong.cfm?SongID=7819

similar to or the same as something sung at Horsham round about Remembrance Sunday

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: VirginiaTam
Date: 21 Oct 09 - 02:16 PM

Song of the Siren?

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Stringsinger
Date: 21 Oct 09 - 05:04 PM

Most of them have been covered. There is an obscure one called" Beautiful Lake Anconi",
a fiddle tune from Cape Breton by a Laurie ( ? )

One of the most simple plaintive tunes to me is "Little Birdie".

Pete's songs would qualify. Where have" All the Flowers Gone" and" Turn Turn", "Bells of Rhmyney".

"Come All You Fair and Tender Ladies",    "Pretty Saro", "Wagoner's Lad"

One of the great early popular songs written which is a jazz standard is Jerome Kern's
"All The Things You Are".

Thomas Moore. "Believe Me If All Those Endearing Young Charms"

"Tiurse Moi Chroi" from Ireland

Texas Gladden's version of "I Never Will Marry".

"The Foggy Dew" from Ireland

"Been In The Storm So Long" (sung during the Civil Rights Movement)

"Summertime" George Gershwin

Cole Porter could write a melody.

For a simple, clear heart-felt tune "Dink's Song" collected by Lomax.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,McGee
Date: 21 Oct 09 - 08:51 PM

Jay Unger and Molly Mason's Ashokan Farewell   still brings shivers....

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,rob_o
Date: 11 Dec 10 - 07:25 PM

"Gold Wedding Ring" by Barry & Barry; "Evergreen" by The Stone Poneys; "Winter Winds" and "Banks Of The Nile" by Fotheringay; "Evening Falls" by Enya;

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,rob_o
Date: 03 Jan 11 - 02:40 PM

"Aisling" by Anuna (Ireland), from Behind The Closed Eye Album

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,Curtis
Date: 03 Jan 11 - 10:59 PM

Many Stan Rogers songs had that haunting effect on me to the point where I had listened to some of them over and over again before I ever paid attention to the words.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Joe Offer
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 03:38 AM

Listening in the dark to Peggy Lee singing "Fever."

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Mr Red
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 04:06 AM

Salut d'Amour

Made the career of one man.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Iains
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 04:09 AM

Starry night. A traveller's song with a provenance earlier than Davy Spillane and Sean Tyrrell. This song has several threads on mudcat.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,Sol
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 05:57 AM

Wonderful Land -The Shadows
The good the bad and the ugly - Hugo M.....
American trilogy - Elvis
Aria -Acker Bill
The Shian Road -Isla St Clair
The Flowers o'The Forest (on the bagpipes)
Hector the Hero

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,David Carter (UK)
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 05:59 AM

Ewan MacColl's "You and I" (from Hot Blast)

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,silver
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 10:23 AM

"Koppången" by Per Erik Moraeus/Py Bäckman, look for Sissel Kyrkjebö's version on Youtube

Dark Eyed Molly (Archie Fisher/Stan Rogers)

The Loch Tay Boat Song

Jane's Whistle (Anne Dodson)

Dark Old Waters (Gordon Bok)

The tune most often mentioned throughout this thread is "Ashokan Farewell". I agree, it's a gem. So is the "Eriskay Love Lilt" (Bheir Me O).

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST,Tom Mycock
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 10:43 AM

Springhill Mine Disaster
Spring of '65
Boys of Bedlam

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 11:22 AM

Chopin's etude Op. 10, 3

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Thompson
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 12:38 PM

Liam Ó Raghallaigh
Cailín Deas Crúite na mBó
Samhradh, Samhradh

(to start with)

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: David Carter (UK)
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 02:08 PM

Farewell to Fiunary. My wife is learning an arrangement by Stephen Wood at present, superb tune and certainly deserves to be described as "haunting".

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Elmore
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 03:04 PM

Dawn on the Moscow River by Mussorgsky.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: robomatic
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 03:12 PM

Give a listen to Randy Newman's "Dixie Flyer". It has a haunting melodic line between verses. Was used for years on the Cartalk program (United States, National Public Radio) by the Magliozzi Brothers. Heard it and was hypnotized by it long before I traced it down.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST
Date: 10 Feb 17 - 08:46 PM

Try listening to Reynardine or Lucy Wan by Martin Carthy & David Swarbrick. Very haunting and beautiful in a melodramatic way.

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: gillymor
Date: 11 Feb 17 - 06:16 AM

Tjonneblomen

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: gillymor
Date: 11 Feb 17 - 06:29 AM

Stella Splendens

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Tattie Bogle
Date: 11 Feb 17 - 08:16 PM

Currently leaving out those from "classical music" (in its broadest sense, and of which there are many) my list would include:
Several by Ivan Drever: Leaving Stoer, The Rose of St Magnus, El Caballo Blanco.
A bigger several by Phil Cunningham: Sarah's Song, The Pearl, Bright Star in Cepheus, The Gentle Light that Wakens Me, Loch Katrine's Lady and Irish Beauty.
Some of Shetlander's Tom Anderson's: Da Slockit Light, Shingly Beach.
Scott Skinner's: Hector the Hero, The Music o' Spey
and I could go on......into my Irish favourites!

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: The Og
Date: 01 Oct 24 - 10:18 AM

Ebb Tide...

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Oct 24 - 10:28 AM

Asma Asmaton - Maria Farandouri

Subject: RE: Most haunting melodies?
From: Dave the Gnome
Date: 01 Oct 24 - 10:52 AM

Funnily enough I did not notice that this thread had popped up until I just posted about Casey's Last Ride on Kris Kistofferson's obit thread.

I nominate that as one of the most haunting songs I know!