Tonight I'm Gonna Cry Playlist: Songs That Make Me Cry

What is it about some songs that make us bawl like a baby?

• Is it regret? (Cats in the Cradle, Wasted Time, The Living Years, Yesterday)  
• Death? (Amazing Grace, Tears in Heaven)  
• Doomed Love? (Somewhere) 
• Lost Love? (Against the Odds, Weekends in New England) 
• Lost youth? (It Was a Very Good Year, 100 Years, I Loved These Days) 
• The glory/horror of war? (Brothers in Arms, Some Gave All, Goodnight Saigon, Taps) 
• Patriotism? (The Battle Hymn of the Republic, America) 
• Songs that fill you with hope that, no matter how bad things get, there's something better Over the Rainbow? (What a Wonderful World, Imagine, Rainbow Connection). 
• Sometimes, the words don't even matter - all it takes is a heart-breaking chord change or crescendo to tear at our hearts, like Samuel Barber's haunting Adajio for Strings or Jeff Buckley's wrenching versoin of Hallelujah.  

Then again, does it matter? The point is that whenever I feel the need for a good, purging cry, these songs are guaranteed to deliver the tears.

1. 100 Years, Five for Fighting
2. Adagio for Strings, Samuel Barber
3. Afterglow, Genesis
4. Against All Odds, Phil Collins
5. All By Myself, Eric Carmen
6. All I Ask of You, Phantom of the Opera
7. Allegretto, Symphony No. 7, Beethoven
8. Amazing Grace, any version
9. America, Ray Charles
10. American Pie, Don McLean
11. Angel, Sarah McLachlan
12. Are You Lonesome Tonight, Elvis Presley
13. At 17, Carly Simon
14. Ave Maria, any version
15. Auld Lang Syne, any version
16. Battle Hymn of the Republic, any version
17. Big John, Tennessee Ernie Ford
18. Bird on the Wire, Leonard Cohen
19. Blue in Green, Miles Davis
20. Both Sides Now, Joni Mitchell
21. The Boxer, Simon and Garfunkle
22. Brandy, Looking Glass
23. Bridge Over Troubled Water, Simon & Garfunkel
24. Bring Him Home, from Les Miserables
25. Brothers in Arms, Dire Straits
26. Candle in the Wind, Elton John
27. Canon in D, Pacelbel
28. Cat's in the Cradle, Harry Chapin
29. Crazy Love, Van Morrison
30. Crying, Roy Orbison
31. The Crying Game, Boy George
32. The Dance, Garth Brooks
33. Dang Me, Roger Miller
34. Danny Boy, any version
35. Dante's Prayer, Loreena McKennitt
36. Days, Elvis Costello
37. The Death of Falstaff, from Henry V
38. Desperado, Eagles
39. Don't Cry for Me Argentina, from Evita
40. Don't Take the Girl, Tim McGraw
41. Dream, Bob Dylan
42. Dust in the Wind, Kansas
43. Eleanor Rigby, Beatles
44. Empty Chairs and Empty Tables, from Les Miserables
45. Empty Garden, Elton John
46. Evergreen, Barbra Streisand
47. Everybody Hurts, REM
48. Fanfare for the Common Man, Aaron Copeland
49. Fields of Gold, Eva Cassidy
50. Fire and Rain, James Taylor
51. The First Time Ever I Saw Your Face, Roberta Flack
52. Fix You, Cold Play
53. Forget Her, Jeff Buckley
54. The Gambler, Kenny Rogers
55. Georgia on my Mind, Ray Charles
56. The Ghost of Tom Joad, Bruce Springsteen
57. Good Riddance, Green Day
58. Goodnight Saigon, Billy Joel
59. Greatest Love of All, Whitney Houston
60. Growin' Up, Bruce Springsteen
61. Hallelujah, Jeff Buckley (or Pentatonix)
62. Hello, Adele
63. Hurt, Johnny Cash
64. Hushabye Mountain, from Chitty Chitty Bang Bang
65. I Can't Make You Love Me, Bonnie Raitt
66. I Don't Want to Miss a Thing, Aerosmith
67. I Grieve, Peter Gabriel
68. I Have Nothing, Whitney Houston
69. I Dreamed a Dream, from Les Miserables
70. I Was a Fool to Let You Go, Barry Manilow
71. I Won't Let Go, Rascal Flatts
72. If, Bread
73. If I Die Young, The Band Perry
74. If You're Reading This, Tim McGraw
75. I'll Stand By You, Glee
76. I'm A Fool To Want You, Carly Simon
77. I'm Moving On, Rascal Flatts
78. Imagine, John LennonIn Your Eyes, Peter Gabriel
79. The Impossible Dream, Man of LaMancha
80. In a New York Minute, Don Henley
81. In a Sentimental Mood, Duke Ellington
82. In the Ghetto, Elvis Presley
83. In the Wee Small Hours, Carly Simon
84. Iris, Goo Goo Dolls
85. It Was Very Good Year, Frank Sinatra
86. It's Not Easy Being Green, Ray Charles
87. It's Too Late, Carole King
88. I've Loved These Days, Billy Joel
89. Keep Holding On, Avril Lavigne
90. Landslide, Fleetwood Mac
91. Last Goodbye, Jeff Buckley
92. The Last Song, Elton John
93. The Leader of the Band, Dan Fogleberg
94. Let Her Go, Passenger
95. Let It Be, Beatles
96. Lilac Wine, Jeff Buckley
97. The Living Years, Mike and the Mechanics
98. The Long and Winding Road, Beatles
99. A Long December, Counting Crows
100. Lover, You Should Have Come Over, Jeff Buckley
101. The Luckiest, Ben Folds
102. Mad World, Michael Andrews
103. Make You Feel My Love, Adele
104. Memories, Barbra Streisand
105. A Million Fireflies, Midway State
106. Moon River, Louis Armstrong
107. Mother's Pride, George Michael
108. More than Words, Extreme
109. Mr. Bojangles, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band
110. Music of the Night, from Phantom of the Opera
111. My Eyes Adored You, Frankie Valli
112. My Funny Valentine, Sarah Vaughn
113. My Immortal, Evanescence
114. My Way, Frank Sinatra
115. Nessun Dorma, Turnadot
116. Nightswimming, REM
117. On My Own, from Les Miserables
118. One Day More, from Les Miserables
119. One Hand/One Heart, from West Side Story
120. One Moment in Time, Whitney Houston
121. Operator, Jim Croce
122. Philadelphia, Bruce Springstein
123. Promentary, from Last of the Mohicans
124. Proud to be An American, Lee Greenwood
125. Puff the Magic Dragon, Peter, Paul and Mary
126. Rainbow Connection, Kermit the Frog
127. Rainy Days and Mondays, The Carpenters
128. Redemption Song, Joe Strummer and Johnny Cash
129. Romeo & Juliet, Dire Straits
130. Say Something, Great Big World & Christina Aguilera
131. Seasons in the Sun, Terry Jacks
132. See You Again, Charlie Puth w/Wiz Khalifa
133. Send in the Clowns, Judy Collins
134. Set Fire to the Rain, Adele
135. Smoke Gets in Your Eyes, Nat King Cole
136. Solsbury Hill, Peter Gabriel
137. Some Gave All, Billy Ray Cyrus
138. Someone Like You, Adele
139. Someone You Loved, Lewis Capaldi
140. Sometimes When We Touch, Dan Hill
141. Somewhere (A Place for Us), from West Side Story
142. Somewhere Out There, Linda Rondstadt
143. Somewhere Over the Rainbow, Israel Kamakawiwo'ole
144. Sorry Seems to be the Hardest Word, Elton John
145. Sound of Silence, Simon & Garfunkle (or Pentatonix)
146. Stand By Me, BB King
147. Stardust, Glen Miller
148. Strange Fruit, Billie Holliday
149. Streets of Philadelphia, Bruce Springsteen
150. Summertime, Louis Armstrong
151. Sunrise/Sunset, from Fiddler on the Roof
152. Superman, Five for Fighting
153. Taps, any version
154. Tears in Heaven, Eric Clapton
155. There's a Place For Us, from West Side Story
156. These Three Words, Stevie Wonder
157. This Woman's Work, Maxwell (or Kate Bush)
158. Time After Time, Cyndi Lauper
159. Time in a Bottle, Jim Croce
160. Time to Say Goodbye, Sarah Brightman and Andrea Bocelli
161. Times of Your Life, Paul Anka
162. To Sir With Love, Lulu
163. Tonight I'm Gonna Cry, Keith Urban
164. True Colors, Cindi Lauper
165. Unchained Melody, Righteous Brothers
166. You Were Always on My Mind, Willie Nelson
167. Walking in Memphis, Marc Cohn
168. Wasted Time, Eagles
169. Weekends in New England, Barry Manilow
170. Weight of Lies, Avett Brothers
171. We're Just Friends, Wilco
172. What a Wonderful World, Louis Armstrong
173. What I Did For Love, Barbra Streisand
174. When I See You Again, Wiz Khalifa
175. When I Was Your Man, Bruno Mars
176. When Somebody Loved Me, Sara McLachlan
177. When the Party's Over, Billie Eilish
178. Who Wants to Live Forever, Queen
179. Wildfire, Michael Martin
180. The Wind, Cat Stevens
181. Wishing You Were Here, Chicago
182. Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald, Gorden Lightfoot
183. Yesterday, Beatles
184. You Are So Beautiful, Joe Crocker
185. You Don't Know Me, Ray Charles
186. You Raise Me Up, Josh Groban