- 5 months ago
Get ready to feel every emotion as we spotlight some of the most quietly powerful and achingly beautiful show tunes ever written. From stirring ballads of love and loss to moving reflections on hope, each selection proves that musicals can haunt your heart in the most unforgettable ways. These songs feature stirring performances and melodies that will linger with you long after the final curtain falls. Which one moved you the most?
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00:00But sweet kisses I've got to spare, I'll be there.
00:06Welcome to Ms. Mojo, and today we're counting down our picks for the most quietly powerful and unforgettable show tunes that have stayed with us long after the curtain fell.
00:16Some of these songs include major plot reveals, so this is your spoiler warning.
00:30Number 30, Being Alive, Company. Sondheim is a master of tapping into the deep emotional core that makes his characters feel so real.
00:38Someone to make you come through, who'll always be there, as frightened as you, of being alive.
00:48Take Bobby, who spent a lifetime dodging true love and real connection, because being that open, that vulnerable is terrifying.
00:56But as Being Alive unfolds, that wall starts to crumble.
01:00Somebody need me too much. Somebody know me too well. Somebody pull me up short and put me through hell and give me support.
01:14Bobby admits that as daunting as intimacy is, it's exactly what he, or she, wants.
01:20The melody soars, the grip on your heart tightens, and at its center is something achingly human.
01:26Mark me with praise. Let me be used to bury my days.
01:37Whether you're a hopeless romantic or more like Bobby, the longing to be loved and the fear of letting someone in is universal.
01:44Just try listening to this song without feeling it in your soul.
01:47Be gone.
01:56Number 29. With You, Ghost.
02:05Based on the 1990 movie of the same name, this is the moment where Molly truly shares her grief with the audience,
02:10but of course she's singing to Sam, which makes this all that much more heartbreaking.
02:14The melody starts softly, wrapping audiences in a sadness and disbelief that anyone who's faced loss will recognize.
02:35The music swells gradually, pulling us deeper into Molly's mind, heart, and soul until we feel everything she does.
02:42The lyrics tell her story, but it's the way the performer delivers them, and how the melody grows, that makes her pain hit even harder.
02:59It's tender, it's gut-wrenching, and it stays with you long after the final note fades.
03:04Number 28. Far From the Home I Love, Fiddler on the Roof.
03:20Among many things, Fiddler on the Roof is about a father struggling to reconcile his people's traditions
03:25with the fast-changing modern world his daughters are embracing.
03:28How can I hope to make you understand why I do what I do?
03:38In this song, his second oldest, Hodl, tells him she must leave Anatevka, the only home she's ever known,
03:43to join her exiled fiancé in Siberia.
03:46The song is filled with fear, sadness, and fragile hope as Hodl pours her heart out to her father.
03:51Oh, what a melancholy choice this is, wanting home, wanting him.
04:02It's about so much more than just leaving her village.
04:05It's about stepping into uncertainty and the struggle of letting go of the familiar,
04:08even when it's the right thing to do.
04:10The song ends with them facing a goodbye that could last forever.
04:14Who could imagine I'd be wandering so far from the home I love?
04:24Number 27. Tell Me on a Sunday, Tell Me on a Sunday.
04:28You might not expect Andrew Lloyd Webber and Dawn Black to team up on a one-woman show, but here it is.
04:34Let me down easy, no big song and dance, no long faces, no long looks.
04:45It follows a British woman chasing love and success in the U.S., though, as always, life has other plans.
04:51The performer sings of an imminent breakup, and while it feels inevitable,
04:55she imagines all the little ways her partner might soften the blow.
04:58Find a circus ring with a flying trapeze.
05:06In a world where breakups often feel brutal and dehumanizing,
05:10it's hard not to get swept up in images of nice days at the zoo or the circus.
05:14Each lyric reveals a heavy heart and something piercingly intimate.
05:17She's clinging to the last pieces of something that's slipping away.
05:20Tell me on a Sunday night.
05:28Number 26. For Good. Wicked.
05:31Ah, the song that makes us all want to hug our besties a little tighter.
05:34Now whatever way our stories end,
05:40Oh, you have rewritten my heart by being my friend.
05:48At the end of Act 1, Elphaba and Glinda part ways,
05:51and their subsequent choices push them even further apart.
05:54But with a mob now closing in,
05:56they finally open up about how much they've shaped each other's lives.
05:59Their voices move between tension and harmony,
06:01sometimes tangled, sometimes soaring,
06:04but always mirroring their complicated feelings.
06:06As the song builds,
06:17their voices come together in one clear, powerful note.
06:20This shift from complex emotion to a single, pure sound
06:23brings their friendship full circle,
06:25making the song's farewell incredibly moving,
06:28and ensuring it will stay with you for good.
06:30Number 25. Gethsemane, I Only Want to Say, Jesus Christ Superstar.
06:54This marks the first time Jesus' faith falters.
06:56Take this cup away from me,
07:02for I don't want to taste its poison.
07:07Not in some cosmic theological way,
07:09but in a way that makes his story relatable to everyone,
07:12no matter their background.
07:13Here's a man who, like all of us,
07:15wrestles with doubt, weakness, and unbearable loneliness.
07:18Would I be more noticed than I ever was before?
07:25Would the things I've said and done matter anymore?
07:30The musical centers on that very human fragility,
07:33inviting us to empathize with him deeply.
07:35It turns a religious tale into a universal story
07:38about a man under crushing pressure,
07:40facing an uncertain future,
07:42and the heavy burden of leadership.
07:43It demands everything from the performer,
07:57both vocally and emotionally.
07:59By the end, Jesus' quiet defeat hangs in the air.
08:03It's haunting, it's chilling, and it's unforgettable.
08:05Number 24.
08:20Not While I'm Around.
08:21Sweeney Todd, the Demon Barber of Fleet Street.
08:24On the surface, this song is a simple,
08:26beautiful ballad of love and protection.
08:28Tobias sings with gentle devotion,
08:30promising to keep Mrs. Lovett safe,
08:32totally unaware she's part of the very danger
08:34from which he wants to protect her.
08:35No one's gonna hurt you,
08:39no one's gonna dare.
08:44Others can desert you,
08:46not to worry, whistle, I'll be there.
08:49Even so, there is such beauty in his wide-eyed innocence.
08:53When Mrs. Lovett joins in,
08:54the tone shifts subtly.
08:56While Tobias may hear warmth and care,
08:58the music whispers something darker
08:59lurking in the shadows.
09:01Nothing's gonna harm you,
09:04not while I'm around.
09:09Nothing's gonna harm you, darling.
09:12The promise of protection,
09:14wrapped in soft, sweet melody,
09:16turns chilling once we realize
09:17Mrs. Lovett's true intentions.
09:19That clash between innocent sound
09:21and twisted truth creates a gripping tension,
09:23making the song both magnetic
09:25and deeply unsettling.
09:27Nothing's gonna harm you,
09:30not while I'm around you.
09:39Number 23.
09:41Memory, Cats.
09:42Grizabella the Glamour Cat
09:43has mostly been on the sidelines,
09:45pushed away by the others,
09:47but in Memory,
09:47she finally steps into the spotlight.
09:49The song starts quietly,
10:01with a slow, soft melody
10:03that reflects her pain and longing.
10:05Then, a younger cat's clear,
10:06higher voice breaks through
10:07with its own verse,
10:09bringing a delicate thread of hope
10:10through the sorrow.
10:11Like a flower,
10:15as the dawn is breaking,
10:18the memory is fading.
10:26However, what sticks with us
10:27is how Grizabella pours everything
10:29she's held inside for so long.
10:31The loss, the regret,
10:32and the desperate need
10:33for a second chance.
10:34It all crashes out
10:35in a powerful crescendo
10:36that grabs your heart.
10:37No wonder the song
10:39has clawed its way
10:39into everyone's soul.
10:41A new day
10:45has begun.
10:59Number 22.
11:01I'd Give My Life For You,
11:02Miss Saigon.
11:03Rooted in Puccini's tragic opera
11:05Madama Butterfly,
11:06Miss Saigon is full of
11:07hauntingly beautiful songs.
11:09But I'd Give My Life For You
11:10stands apart.
11:11You didn't ask me
11:13to be born, you.
11:17Why should you learn
11:19of war or pain?
11:23Kim is so young,
11:24yet already worn down
11:25by hardship,
11:26and her son Tam
11:27is her only light.
11:28She pledges to do
11:29whatever it takes
11:30to give him the life
11:31she never had.
11:32The melody reflects
11:33a mother's love,
11:34deep, strong, tender,
11:36and growing fiercer
11:37by the moment.
11:37You will be
11:39who you want to be.
11:42You can choose
11:45whatever heaven grabs.
11:49What makes the song
11:50truly haunting
11:50is the dramatic irony.
11:52The audience knows,
11:53or at least fears,
11:54that Kim will follow
11:55through on her vow.
11:57It's this mix
11:57of pure love
11:58and looming tragedy
11:59that gives the song
12:00its unforgettable,
12:01gut-punching power.
12:02No one can stop
12:04what I must do.
12:08I swear
12:09I'd give my life
12:13for you.
12:18Number 21,
12:20Those You've Known,
12:21Spring Awakening.
12:22In a soundtrack
12:22full of teenage angst,
12:24a few songs stand out
12:25as heartbreakingly beautiful
12:26yet deeply unsettling.
12:28Those You've Known
12:28tops that list.
12:30Those You've Known
12:32and Lost
12:36still walk behind you.
12:39Melchior is haunted
12:40by the spirits
12:41of friends who got caught
12:42between generations
12:43that didn't understand
12:44each other
12:44and paid the ultimate
12:45price for it.
12:46Moritz and Wendla
12:47urge him to keep living
12:48and tell their stories.
12:50The trio's voices
12:50intertwine in delicate
12:52counterpoint,
12:52threading the past
12:53and present
12:54into one stirring moment.
12:55The bittersweet harmonies,
13:07haunting arrangements
13:08and unforgettable vocal
13:10performances combine
13:11to create a number
13:12that leaves us
13:13with chills for days.
13:14Melchior ends alone,
13:15his voice carrying hope
13:17and the promise
13:17to keep their memories alive.
13:19I'm calling
13:21and one day
13:24all will know
13:27and I was like
13:36Michael and I
13:39entered a talent show
13:43down at the Y.
13:45Jonathan Larson's
13:46semi-autobiographical musical
13:48premiered off-Broadway
13:49several years after
13:50his premature death.
13:52He left his mark
13:53with Rent
13:53but Tick, Tick, Boom
13:54is a personal piece
13:55about his attempts
13:56to make a name
13:57for himself
13:57in the art form he loved.
13:59His character
14:00John Solo
14:00near the end of the show
14:01charts his obsession
14:02with trying to get better.
14:04It over and over
14:06and over
14:06till we got it right
14:09Given all he's had
14:12to sacrifice,
14:13he wonders
14:14if he's cut out
14:14for this career after all.
14:16Over and over
14:17till we get it right
14:18he repeats
14:18throughout the song.
14:20Y's repetitive structure
14:21keeps winding up
14:22and writing itself
14:23as it starts
14:24to go off track,
14:25mirroring the composer's
14:26approach to his art,
14:27career,
14:28and ultimately
14:29his life.
14:30I'm gonna spend
14:32my time this way
14:39Number 19.
14:48The Light in the Piazza
14:49The Light in the Piazza
14:50A lot of the classic
15:05musical love songs
15:06are naive and pretty.
15:08The title song
15:09from The Light in the Piazza
15:10is so full of happiness
15:11it feels dangerous
15:12and therein lies its power.
15:15Clara,
15:15the character who sings it,
15:16has fallen in love
15:17with Fabrizio,
15:18a young Italian man,
15:19much to the dismay
15:20of her overprotective mother.
15:22The way she describes
15:23her feelings
15:24sounds like a person
15:25who's sure she's flying
15:26too close to the sun
15:27and doesn't care.
15:28It's rushing up,
15:31it's pouring out,
15:33it's flying through the air.
15:38Composer and lyricist
15:39Adam Gettle's music
15:40is elegant but frantic.
15:42Certain sections
15:43sound like individual
15:44instruments spinning out,
15:45following their own
15:46emotional tangents
15:47before coming back together.
15:49And it's breathtaking.
15:57The Light in the Piazza
16:00Number 18.
16:03Sunday
16:03Sunday in the Park with George
16:05Sunday
16:07by the blue
16:12purple-yellow-red
16:14water
16:15This Sunday musical
16:20is inspired by the life
16:21of Georges Seurat
16:22and the creation
16:23of his painting
16:24A Sunday Afternoon
16:25on the Island
16:25of La Grande Jatte.
16:27Sunday is a song
16:28that first appears
16:29at the end of Act 1
16:30as George brings harmony
16:31to the disparate parts
16:32of his painting.
16:34The ringing
16:34of the ensemble's voices
16:35sounds like waves
16:36of endless music
16:37and it's a gorgeous piece
16:39that takes us
16:39into intermission
16:40feeling moved.
16:47The reprise for its part
17:02comes at the very end
17:03of the show
17:04and is just as hauntingly
17:05beautiful,
17:06sending audiences back
17:07into the real world
17:08in inspiring fashion.
17:10Both versions of the song
17:11speak to the power of art
17:12and are sure to echo
17:14for many generations
17:15to appreciate.
17:16White
17:17a blank page
17:19or
17:20canvas
17:22is
17:23favorite
17:25so many
17:27possibilities.
17:31It may not be
17:50Hamilton,
17:51but this often
17:51overlooked musical
17:52about the
17:53Second Continental Congress
17:54features some haunting
17:56and foreboding moments.
17:57Throughout the show,
17:58an army courier
17:59briefly appears
18:00to bring updates
18:01from the battlefield.
18:02In the second act,
18:03he describes
18:04how his two best friends
18:05died on the same day
18:06at Lexington.
18:07Mama Look Sharp
18:08is his one
18:09and only number.
18:10I'll close
18:11your eyes,
18:14my Billy.
18:16Them eyes
18:18that cannot see.
18:22The lyrics describe
18:23a young soldier
18:23calling out for his mother
18:25as he lays dying
18:26in the grass.
18:27We've spent lots
18:27of the musical
18:28listening to the congressman
18:29battle and complain
18:30about the heat
18:31in Philadelphia,
18:32but it's the first time
18:33the reality of the war
18:34comes crashing in on us.
18:35Hey,
18:37hey,
18:39oh mama,
18:44look sharp.
18:46There is a train
18:57It leaves the station
19:00at a quarter
19:00after five
19:02Reviving the old-fashioned
19:03big band sound
19:04of the 1940s,
19:06this post-World War II musical
19:07finds a band
19:08made up of veterans
19:09trying to make it big.
19:11The band leader
19:11and pianist
19:12Donnie Nowitzki
19:13enters them
19:14into a national competition.
19:15However,
19:16once they win
19:17the state competition,
19:18they realize
19:19they'll have to pay
19:19their way
19:20to the national finals.
19:22I think
19:31that we are
19:33entitled
19:34to travel
19:35first class.
19:36Short on cash,
19:37Donnie tries
19:38to unite his bandmates
19:39through right this way.
19:41The song's optimism
19:42and brass and drums
19:43are nothing short
19:44of powerful.
19:45He's not a man
19:46who feels entitled
19:47to anything,
19:48but he knows
19:48they deserve to be
19:49recognized for their talent,
19:51if not everything
19:52they gave up.
19:53Right.
19:53His.
19:54It's not the only
20:08breathtaking number either,
20:10as we later feel
20:10the soldiers' repressed
20:11pain left over
20:12from the war.
20:13Welcome home,
20:15my boy.
20:17Welcome home,
20:19my son.
20:21Welcome home,
20:22my husband.
20:25Welcome home,
20:26my love.
20:28Number 15.
20:30Bring Him Home,
20:31Les Miserables.
20:32God on high.
20:39Given the title,
20:40it's not surprising
20:41how many characters
20:42in this epic musical
20:43are suffering.
20:44Its most famous
20:45and spine-tingling songs
20:46deal with lost hopes,
20:48unrequited love,
20:49survivor's guilt,
20:50and revolution.
20:51When the beating
20:53of your heart
20:54tickles the beating
20:55of the trumps,
20:57there is a life
20:58about to suffer
20:59tomorrow,
21:00comes.
21:02Bring Him Home
21:03is like a prayer
21:04in musical form.
21:05Bring Him Home,
21:10bring Him Home.
21:14Self-sacrificing Jean Valjean
21:16has camped out
21:17with a group
21:17of young revolutionaries
21:18to protect Marius.
21:19the man his adoptive
21:21daughter loves.
21:22As night falls
21:23and their chances
21:23of survival dim,
21:25Valjean asks
21:25a higher power
21:26to protect Marius.
21:28If I die,
21:34let me die,
21:41let him live.
21:44It's religious overtones
21:48and allusions
21:48to home
21:49make it a number
21:50that has implications
21:51that stretch far
21:52beyond the musical's plot.
21:54Number 14,
21:55Lead Us Out of the Night,
21:57Come From Away.
21:58They haven't seen
21:59any of it yet.
22:00Lead us out
22:01of the darkness.
22:02We were all staring
22:03at those images
22:04and we just stand helpless
22:06watching them.
22:07Lead us somewhere
22:08to safety.
22:10The population
22:10of Gander, Newfoundland
22:12is suddenly doubled
22:12when 38 airplanes
22:14are forced to land there
22:15when the American airspace
22:16is suddenly closed
22:17without explanation.
22:19Chaos ensues
22:20until everyone learns
22:21of the 9-11 attacks.
22:22This brief
22:23but heartbreaking song
22:24captures the moment
22:25the American passengers
22:26catch up
22:27with the rest of the world.
22:28Charles Burlingham
22:29was the captain
22:30of Flight 77
22:31that crashed
22:31into the Pentagon.
22:33I just saw him
22:34at a pub in London.
22:36Throughout,
22:37they can only watch
22:38while they worry
22:38for their loved ones
22:39and pray for the missing,
22:41the dead,
22:41and the grieving.
22:42Oh, that's the ground
22:43that I may never see.
22:47So much to be consoled
22:49as to console.
22:52What the musical does
22:53so well
22:53is capture the confusion
22:54of that time,
22:55which can be forgotten
22:57some two decades on
22:58now that the details
22:59have become known.
23:01Lead us out
23:02of the night.
23:09We watch those images
23:11for hours?
23:12Number 13.
23:13Joanna.
23:14Sweeney Todd,
23:15the demon barber
23:16of Fleet Street.
23:17Joanna,
23:20I'll steal you.
23:25Anthony is a sailor
23:26who, despite having
23:28seen the world,
23:28feels most at home
23:30in London.
23:31When he sees Joanna,
23:32the lovely ward
23:33of the sadistic Judge Turpin,
23:35he decides he loves her.
23:36Seeing her as something
23:37of a caged bird,
23:39he vows to steal her away.
23:40Do they think
23:41that walls can hide you?
23:44Even now I'm at your window.
23:49I am in the dark
23:51beside you.
23:54His promises
23:55that he'll always be beside her,
23:57in the dark,
23:58buried in her hair,
23:59do give stalker vibes
24:00if you look at it
24:01through that lens.
24:02Very sweetly
24:03in your yellow hair.
24:08But even assuming
24:09the purest intentions,
24:11Joanna is the judge's prisoner,
24:13and Anthony's love song
24:14for her
24:14is also a promise
24:16of rescue.
24:16Joanna.
24:20Joanna.
24:22Goodbye, Joanna.
24:25You're gone,
24:27and yet you're mine.
24:28Number 12.
24:30No one is alone,
24:31Into the Woods.
24:32Mother cannot guide you.
24:37Now you're on your own.
24:40As the characters
24:41near the end of their journey,
24:43the baker and Cinderella
24:44comfort their young companions,
24:46and reckon with what they've learned
24:47about loss,
24:48consequences,
24:49and forgiveness.
24:50It's a sweet song
24:51for a hard truth.
24:52Mother isn't here now.
24:55Wrong things,
24:56right things.
24:57Who knows what she'd say?
24:59Who can say what's true?
25:01Nothing's quite so clear now.
25:03Do things,
25:04fight things.
25:05They sing about remaining good
25:06in spite of the world,
25:08even as they struggle
25:09to make sense
25:09of their own sadness.
25:11There's almost a sense
25:12they're making the words up
25:13as they go along,
25:14chasing the truth
25:15as it comes to them.
25:16Just remember,
25:19someone is on your side,
25:25someone else is not.
25:27Weaving in motifs
25:28from other melodies
25:29in the show,
25:30this climactic song
25:31is the culmination
25:32of the musical's lessons.
25:33It is a fairy tale,
25:35after all.
25:35They are not alone.
25:39No one is alone.
25:43Number 11.
25:45She Used to Be Mine,
25:46Waitress.
25:47Jenna is a waitress
25:59at a small diner
26:00whose love of pie-making
26:01is all she has
26:02to keep her going.
26:04When she becomes pregnant
26:05with her abusive husband's baby,
26:07she saves up enough money
26:08to leave him,
26:09only for him to steal it
26:10and leave her with nothing.
26:11She is messy,
26:13but she's kind.
26:17She is lonely
26:19most of the time.
26:23The song that composer-lyricist
26:25Sara Bareilles wrote
26:26for the moment
26:27is a powerhouse ballad
26:28that suits the character
26:29so perfectly.
26:30She mourns the person
26:31she used to be,
26:33imperfect as she was,
26:34and indirectly vows
26:35to become that person again.
26:37She used to be mine.
26:41As hopeful as the story
26:48turns out to be,
26:49the song is such a journey
26:50it's hard to not feel
26:51emotionally spent
26:52by the end of it.
26:53She is gone,
26:56but she used to be mine.
27:01There's nothing quite like
27:20reflecting on an ex.
27:22Sung by Desiree,
27:23Send in the Clowns
27:24takes place during Act 2,
27:26when she reflects
27:27back on an affair
27:28she had with Frederick.
27:29Send in the clowns
27:33Just when I stopped
27:36opening doors
27:39Despite the fact
27:40that Frederick
27:41was deeply in love
27:42with her,
27:43Desiree rejected him,
27:44and she now realizes
27:45that she loves him,
27:47but this time around,
27:49he rejects her.
27:50The clowns Desiree refers to
27:52who are not actual clowns,
27:53but fools like herself.
27:55My fault I fear
27:58I thought that you'd want
28:03what I want
28:04Sorry, my dear
28:08The song itself
28:09is written in a complex meter,
28:12which is one of the reasons
28:13it's so haunting.
28:14It sounds like a waltz.
28:16Desiree is also furious.
28:19She can't outwardly express
28:20her anger,
28:21so she does what characters
28:22do in any musical.
28:24She sings about it.
28:25There ought to be clowns.
28:30Well, maybe next year.
28:41Number 9.
28:42Telephone Wire, Fun Home.
28:45Telephone Wire,
28:47run and run.
28:49Telephone Wire,
28:51sun down on the creek.
28:54Based on Alison Bechtel's
28:55graphic novel, Fun Home,
28:57this musical centers around
28:58Bechtel's own coming out story
29:00and the complicated relationship
29:02she shared with her own
29:03closeted father, Bruce.
29:04At the light, at the light,
29:05at the light,
29:06at the light,
29:07doesn't matter what you say,
29:10just make the fear
29:11in his eyes go away.
29:13Sung towards the end
29:14of the musical,
29:15this is the last conversation
29:17Alison has with her dad.
29:18She desperately tries to connect
29:20with her father
29:21while also revealing
29:22who she truly is.
29:24Lots of boys messed around,
29:26you know,
29:27for them,
29:28it was a game they outgrew.
29:32But I always knew.
29:34Dad, me too,
29:35since like five,
29:36I guess.
29:37The song's heartache lies
29:38in her father's denial
29:39and how they never actually
29:41made a connection with each other.
29:43The song is even more heartbreaking
29:45considering the ending
29:46of the musical,
29:47where it's hinted
29:48that Bruce takes his own life.
29:52Telephone wire.
29:57That was our last night.
30:02Time heals everything.
30:10Mac and Mabel.
30:11Time heals everything.
30:17Tuesday, Thursday.
30:22Only a true stormy partnership
30:24could serve as the inspiration
30:25for this haunting melody.
30:27It really seems to haunt people
30:28and I really understand it.
30:30It's from a score
30:31by Jerry Herman
30:33called Mac and Mabel.
30:38Time heals everything
30:39is part of the musical
30:40Mac and Mabel,
30:42which centers around
30:43silent movie director
30:44Mac Sennett,
30:45who transforms Mabel,
30:46a local waitress,
30:47into a star.
30:49Mabel develops feelings for Mac,
30:50but sadly,
30:51Mac puts his work
30:53before romance.
30:54I'll forget you
30:57by next year,
31:00some year,
31:03though it's hell
31:06that I'm going through.
31:10Time heals everything
31:11is Mabel's sorrow
31:12over how Mac treated her,
31:14but also her way of saying,
31:16I'll get over him.
31:17When it comes to heartbreak,
31:19we're often told
31:20to give it time,
31:21and that's exactly
31:22what Mabel is telling herself.
31:23The song is particularly haunting
31:25when you think about
31:26what ultimately happens
31:27to the character.
31:28She deals with
31:29substance use disorder,
31:30and by the time Mac tries
31:31to make it up to her,
31:32she's passed away.
31:33Time heals everything
31:37but loving you.
31:53Number 7.
31:55Somewhere.
31:56West Side Story.
31:57With lyrics by the late,
32:13great Stephen Sondheim,
32:15West Side Story
32:15can be thought of
32:16as a modern retelling
32:17of the tragedy
32:18Romeo and Juliet,
32:20except that this version
32:21involves street gangs
32:22in New York City.
32:23We'll find a new way
32:26of living.
32:28We'll find a way
32:30of forgiving.
32:34Somewhere.
32:37Somewhere appears
32:38during different points
32:39of the musical,
32:40most notably
32:41when Maria sings
32:42the first few lines
32:43of the song
32:43after her true love
32:45Tony is shot.
32:46Hold my hand
32:48and I'll take you there
32:51somehow,
32:54someday,
32:57someday.
32:58The melody actually borrows
33:00from Beethoven's
33:01Emperor Piano Concerto
33:02and Tchaikovsky's
33:03Swan Lake,
33:04which is why
33:05it's so haunting.
33:07Tony and Maria's longing
33:09to one day be together,
33:11somehow, someday, somewhere,
33:13is sure to make you cry,
33:14especially since their dream
33:16never does come true.
33:18Some way.
33:27Number 6.
33:28Till We Reach That Day.
33:30Ragtime.
33:31No!
33:31No!
33:42No!
33:42No!
33:42No!
33:43No!
33:43No!
33:46Ragtime,
33:47which has still not been
33:48turned into a movie musical
33:50and needs to be,
33:51follows a series of characters
33:53as they navigate life
33:54at the turn of the 20th century
33:56in New York.
33:57Where a man can live
34:01Sung at the end of Act 1, Till We Reach That Day takes place at the funeral of Sarah,
34:12a young black woman who is beaten to death by the Secret Service.
34:15Her friends and family gather to mourn their sweet Sarah, as well as express their anger
34:20at a system where black lives do not matter.
34:31The powerful lyrics are still disturbingly relevant today and serve as a reminder that
34:41black lives do indeed matter.
34:44Till We Reach That Day
35:02Number 5. Losing My Mind – Follies
35:05The sun comes up, I think about you.
35:12The coffee cup, I think about you.
35:18Imagine being so obsessed with your ex-lover that you slowly lose your mind over them.
35:23That's the focus of the song Losing My Mind from the musical Follies, which focuses on
35:27the reunion of performers known as the Weissman's Follies.
35:31Sometimes I stand in the middle of the floor, not going left, not going right.
35:43Back in the day, Sally was in love with Ben, but he ended their relationship to marry her friend Phyllis.
35:50Sally married Buddy, but remained in love with Ben, even though he doesn't love her, at least not in the same way.
35:57Does no one know? It's like I'm losing my mind.
36:06Dressed as a torch singer, Sally sings Losing My Mind about her longing and the fantasy world she has entered where Ben loves her.
36:14The song's power lies in Sally's obsession and her wondering whether or not Ben ever did actually love her.
36:21Or am I losing my mind?
36:41Number 4. I'll Cover You Reprise, Rent.
36:45Live in my house.
36:49I'll be your shelter.
36:53Based on the opera La Boheme, but set amongst the AIDS crisis in New York during the late 80s and early 90s, Rent has a soaring and inspirational first act that quickly dissolves into tragedy in the second.
37:06But sweet kisses I've got to spare.
37:10I will be there and I, I will cover you.
37:20Tom Collins, a local gay professor, falls in love with the vivacious Angel.
37:24The pair's relationship was one of the most heartwarming stories in the musical, and their upbeat duet, I'll Cover You, is an expression of their pure love.
37:33Sadly, their relationship becomes heartbreaking when Angel dies of AIDS.
37:38I know worn out and tired.
37:41Without now my sweet teaser.
37:44Your heart has expired.
37:48Collins reprises I'll Cover You as he remembers the love he and Angel shared.
37:52The slowed down version is a reflection of how one person can truly make our lives magical.
37:58I will cover you whole.
38:07Number 3.
38:08It's Quiet Uptown.
38:10Hamilton.
38:12There are moments that the words don't reach.
38:15Even before Hamilton, Lin-Manuel Miranda was emotionally destroying us within the heights.
38:21But Hamilton mixed numerous musical genres to create a spectacular retelling of one of America's founding fathers.
38:42Amidst the rap battles is one song that provides a straightforward reflection on mourning through more simple instrumentation.
38:48It's Quiet Uptown.
38:51You see him in the street, walking by himself, talking to himself, how pity.
38:58You would like it uptown, it's quiet uptown.
39:02Sung towards the end of the musical, It's Quiet Uptown focuses on the unimaginable, a parent's grief over their child's death.
39:10Alexander Hamilton, who at this point in the musical has done his wife dirty on numerous occasions, begs for forgiveness as the two try to grapple with their grief.
39:20She takes his hand.
39:25It's Quiet Uptown.
39:29Forgiveness.
39:31Although Eliza faces more grief in her life, she doesn't let it get the best of her as she details her accomplishments in Who Lives, Who Dies, Who Tells Your Story.
39:40Oh.
39:41Can I show you what I'm proudest of?
39:47You are finished.
39:50I established the first private orphanage in New York City.
39:55However, It's Quiet Uptown's power lies in its simplicity.
39:59Most of the numbers in Hamilton rely on wordplay, rhymes and double meanings.
40:04But this is a straightforward reflection on mourning.
40:07They are going to be unnatural.
40:18Number 2.
40:19You'll Never Walk Alone.
40:21Carousel.
40:22When you walk through a storm, hold your head up high, and don't be afraid of the dark.
40:40The second musical from Great's Rogers and Hammerstein, Carousel isn't exactly one of their more cheerful outings.
40:47Sung towards the end of the musical, You'll Never Walk Alone is sung by Nettie to her cousin Julie, whose love Billie has just died in her arms.
40:56Walk on through the wind, walk on through the rain, though your dreams be tossed and glued.
41:12The song serves as the second act's emotional peak, and its themes center around hope and resilience.
41:18Over the years, numerous covers of You'll Never Walk Alone have emerged, and it's become the anthem for medical heroes during COVID.
41:25You'll Never Walk Alone.
41:33Theatrical performances of the number often use more simple musical arrangements, which allow the inspirational lyrics to shine through.
41:41Before we unveil our top pick, here are a few honorable mentions.
42:09Tell Me It's Not True, Blood Brothers, a beautifully resonant exploration of loss and grief.
42:14Say I only dreamed it, a morning that comes soon.
42:25Somewhere That's Green, Little Shop of Horrors, a gentle melody about dreaming of greener pastures that pulls at the heart strings.
42:32I Don't Know How to Love Him, Jesus Christ Superstar, a raw portrayal of vulnerable, unrequited love and the inner turmoil it stirs up.
42:47Should I bring him down, should I scream and shout, should I speak of love, let my feelings out.
43:00Something Wonderful, The King and I, a powerfully moving composition on loving someone for their flaws and profound goodness.
43:07All At Once He'll Do Something Wonderful
43:17The Flesh Failures, Let The Sunshine In, Hair, a stirring number for anyone who dreams of the dawning of the Age of Aquarius.
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43:49Number 1. The Music of the Night, The Phantom of the Opera
43:55Night time sharpens, heightens each sensation.
44:05You can all pretty much agree that the plot of The Phantom of the Opera,
44:08in which a mysterious masked musician who lurks in the bowels of the Paris Opera House,
44:13and is obsessed with the beautiful soprano Christine, is just a little creepy.
44:18And listen to the music of the night.
44:26There are multiple hauntingly beautiful songs throughout this musical,
44:30including the painful lament Christine sings to her father in Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again.
44:35Wishing you were somehow here again.
44:42Wishing you were somehow near.
44:48But the music of the night is definitely the most haunting.
44:52The Phantom seduces Christine with this song, while also revealing his more sinister intentions.
44:57Let your soul take you where you long to burn.
45:13The song itself usually begins slowly, backed by only a few instruments,
45:18before the rest of the orchestra joins in, ending on an unbelievable crescendo.
45:23Nooooooo
45:30Nooooooo
45:35Nooooooo
45:37Nooooooo
45:40Nooooooo
45:41Nooooooo
45:44Nooooooo
45:46Nooooooo
45:48Which song holds you as tightly as The Phantom holds Christine?
45:51Tell us in the comments.
45:53Let your dream begin, let your darker side give in, to the power of the music that I write.
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