The Best Heartbreak Songs of All Time
Classic and Modern Tearjerkers for Breakups and Bereavements
Dec 1, 2008
Almost everybody has his own heartbreak song, one that has helped him heal – in recovering from a broken heart or getting over the pain of a lost loved one. From childhood sweetheart to "the one", it doesn’t matter how many years have passed under the bridge; songs are timeless when it comes to tugging at the heart strings and bringing back bitter-sweet memories.
The 20 Best Heartbreak Songs
Rock’s Backpages, a music blog which bills itself as "the ultimate library of rock music writing," has released its 20 most heartbreaking songs of all time. The list, from the November 20, 2008 blog "Cry Me a River: The Best 20 Break up Songs of All Time," includes age-old 1960s classics like The Everly Brothers' So Sad (To Watch Good Love Go Bad) [Warner Brothers 1960], Roy Orbison's It’s Over [Monument 1964], Smokey Robinson and The Miracles' Tracks of My Tears [Motown 1965] and The Righteous Brothers' You’ve Lost that Loving Feeling [Phillies 1964].
Recent Top 20 Heartbreakers
Not all the songs featured in the list are classics. More modern tearjerkers featured by Rock’s Backpages include:
Bonnie Raitt – I Can’t Make You Love Me [Capitol 1991]
A smoky ballad that was also covered by George Michael, which tells of a one-sided love affair and resignation towards a lover who now no longer loves their partner. This song is a powerful healer as it is honest in its acceptance that both lovers needs to move on.
Sinead O’Connor – Nothing Compares 2 U [Chrysalis 1990]
The account of a bruised woman in love, desperately missing her ex-partner. She counts the hours and days since the break up of her relationship. Originally written by Prince.
Abba – Knowing Me, Knowing You [Epic 1977]
A sob-along song which recounts the misery and finality of a failed relationship/marriage and the emptiness of a house, where love and laughter once lived. Although this song is not featured in the 2008 stage adaptation of Universal Pictures Abba musical, Mamma Mia, (featuring Meryl Streep), the movie may lead to a revival in the songs popularity, due to everything Abba being hip once more!
Alternative Tearjerkers
Since the release of the list, bloggers have been adding their comments and creating song tips. A few sobworthy suggestions from a seemingly endless supply of tearjerkers are:
Eric Clapton – Tears in Heaven [from the movie Rush, 1991]
An all time weepy, written by Clapton to mourn the tragic loss of his 4-year old child Conor. The underlying message is that of a possible reunion in heaven. Tears in Heaven obviously struck a cord, as it won 3 Grammy Awards in 1993 for Song of the Year, Performance of the Year and Male Pop Vocal Performance. He later wrote another on a family theme in 1998, entitled My Father’s Eyes, which was inspired by the fact that Clapton never met his father.
Terry Jacks – Seasons in the Sun [1974]
An English cover version of a French original. This song is a goodbye from a dying protagonist to his parents and wife and became a one-hit-wonder for Jacks, reaching No. 1 in the American charts in 1974. Seasons in the Sun was also covered by the popular boy band Westlife in 1999.
Toni Braxton – How Could an Angel Break My Heart [from Unbreak My Heart 1996]
This sad ballad is a story of a jilted lover and the pain of coping with the fact that her ex-lover is now in a loving relationship with someone else.
Aztec Camera – How Men Are [from Love, 1988]
A little known Scottish band but a song with powerful lyrics.The song laments “Why does it take the tears of a woman to know how men are?” It recounts how cruel love can be and that understanding the true cost of love is a lesson to be learned.
The Beautiful South – Don’t Marry Her, Have Me [from Blue is the Color, 1996]
The 1996 lyrics of this song were cleaned up for radio release. Don't Marry Her is for anyone who has been caught in a love triangle. The jilted woman is trying to paint a black picture of impending marriage (and domesticity) to a love rival.
Michael Bolton – How Am I Supposed to Live Without You [from Soul Provider, 1989]
Co-written by Michael Bolton, this song was originally recorded by Laura Branigan. The ultimate sob-along song for anyone who has felt unrequited love, the lyrics tell of a man who is heartbroken at the news that the love of his life is moving on, and how he has now to come to terms with his future without her. It topped the American Billboard 100 charts in 1990.
Bolton also sang a song for those experiencing the highs and lows of a long distance love affair, entitled Missing You Now [from Time Love and Tenderness, 1991].
Songs to Help Mend A Broken Heart
Whatever the song, whether it's a weepy allowing you to wallow in the sadness of the moment, or one that inspires strength to move on, powerful lyrics help us to mend a broken heart.
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