Most achingly-beautiful music


Ultimately, we listen to music to be moved, for example, to be elated, exulted, calmed or pained. Which are the 3 most affecting pieces of music do you find the most affecting?
hungryear

Showing 11 responses by 2channel8

Wow! 17 years and still going. I gotta chime in
*Harry Belafonte - Take My Mother Home, Turn Turn, Scarlet Ribbons,      Danny Boy, Try To Remember
*Linda Ronstadt - Faithless Love, Long Long Time
*Eva Cassidy - Fields of Gold
*Left Banke - Walk Away, Renee (also Vonda Shepard)
*Indigo Girls - Down By The River (live)
*Many - Summertime, I think I lke Big Brother & the Holding Company best;   but Even Perry Como did a really nice version
* Cowboy Junkies - His Song/Her Song
*Concrete Blonde - Joey
* Isis (the old all girl band) - Rubber Boy
* Candy Stanton - He Called Me Baby
* Teresa Brewer - Let Me Go, Lover
* Bonnie Raitt - I Can't Make You Love Me
* Robert Plant & Alison Krauss - Killing The Blues

There are so many great recordings listed here I haven't read them all, so please excuse me if I duplicated any.

Iris Dement is another I hadn't heard of. This thread is costing me too much money. ;^)
Someone earlier had mentioned Alison Krauss' cover of Richard Thompson's Dimming of the Day. I love that version; but I think Bonnie Raitt's version suits me a tad better.
https://secondhandsongs.com/performance/8885/versions
Simon & Garfunkel - Bridge Over Troubled Water
Dusty Springfield-You Don't Have to Say You Love Me

Gotta get me some more Gillian Welch!

Here's another, as cosmic as lyrics come. I saw her do it live when she opened for Neil Young on his Greendale tour. What a show!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CywArYObn2U

Emmylou Harris  - The Pearl
This may not be the best version.
Almost anything by Roberta Flack; but I'll offer "The Impossible Dream" today because her interpretation is so unique. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H24wcLTj0BQ

Lemme know how you feel.
@geoffkait 

I heard her free concert on the mall in 1971 when I was at GWU. Did you ever go to the Red Lion pub? There was also a pizza place we frequented (if you can call anything they served in DC real pizza - I'm from NJ) but I can't recall the name. It began with an N I think. And a great deli down by Watergate.

Also heard Neil Young at a club in Georgetown. Someplace with a horse in it's name. And then there was the all-night bakery, Kumpits, when we got the munchies late at night.
I love the way that Parnas physically interacts with her instrument. At one point she tosses her hair back to increase the intimacy with her neck.