James Blunt ballad voted most popular at funerals
Last Updated: Monday, October 2, 2006 | 3:18 PM ET
CBC Arts
British singer James Blunt has topped yet another musical chart, with his song Goodbye My Lover voted the most requested tune at funerals and memorial services in the U.K.
The piano ballad is another slow track off his bestselling 2005 album Back to Bedlam, which also spawned the ubiquitous love song You're Beautiful.
Blunt's song was closely followed by pop singer Robbie Williams's song Angels, according to a survey released Monday by the Bereavement Register, a group that works to remove the names of the deceased from direct mailing databases.
The group said that 51 per cent of people have considered a specific song to be played at their funeral. Also, 79 per cent have discussed the choice of song with family or friends.
The poll surveyed 5,000 people and, rather than unearthing a slate of dirges or elegies, turned up a list of mostly contemporary picks.
"The top 20 really shows how far we have come in terms of saying goodbye," said group founder Mark Roy, according to Reuters.
"Everyone has a favourite song that means something very special to them, often connected to a particular time and place. When the song is played, this can be a very emotive reminder of that person," he said in a statement.
The top 10 most requested songs were:
- Goodbye My Lover, James Blunt.
- Angels, Robbie Williams
- I've Had the Time of My Life, Jennifer Warnes and Bill Medley
- Wind Beneath My Wings, Bette Midler
- Pie Jesu, Requiem
- Candle in the Wind, Elton John
- With or Without You, U2
- Tears from Heaven, Eric Clapton
- Every Breath You Take, The Police
- Unchained Melody, Righteous Brothers
Frequently covered favourites, including the traditional song Danny Boy and Bob Dylan's Knocking on Heaven's Door, were among the top 20.
Other somewhat surprising entries on the list included the rollicking rock track I'll Sleep When I am Dead by Bon Jovi and Fame (I Want to Live Forever), the Oscar-winning theme to the 1980 movie and subsequent TV series Fame.
