Top 20 Hauntingly Beautiful Songs in Musicals

[@MsMojo]

Which of these numbers gave YOU goosebumps? Let us know below, and check out our video of the Top 10 Hauntingly Beautiful Heartbreak Songs - kzbin.info/www/bejne/jpTLnGCtf6x_aLc

[@shells500tutubo]

How could you have left out, totally, "I Dreamed a Dream" from les Miserable, and especially "For Good" from The Wiz.

[@karenboyd6293]

IMO you did not let us hear enough of the songs. Unless we knew the songs already, we needed much more of the song to get its impact. Your words are not enough to communicate the power of the music.

[@elainearakaki2642]

I agree….I dreamed a dream should have been included!

[@ClassyContralto]

Can’t believe “Somewhere That’s Green” was only an honourable mention! It breaks me every time!

[@laureladams6937]

Bring him home.

[@trinaq]

I always get teary eyed whenever I hear "She Used to Be Mine", and witness Jenna lamenting the loss of her old self, before Earl destroyed her optimistic nature with his abuse.

[@DivaDelgado128]

Same! It's my go to drive and cry song lol

[@cherylmcnutt9905]

Me too.

[@cindybrodie9769]

❤

[@baliyae]

“Bring Him Home” from Les Miserables is definitely a powerful number, on *many* levels.

[@junipermeisje6300]

Personally I like Empty Chairs at Empty Tables more.

[@Wotan-ke5ow]

Then there are I dreamed a dream or On My own. You can basically make a list only based on Les Mis. Part of it is childhood memories but it’s still my favourite

[@TxJanna]

@@junipermeisje6300 for me it depends who is singing it and how much orchestra is behind it....I've never gotten goosebumps from Dreamed A Dream...just heard talented women sing

[@baliyae]

@@junipermeisje6300 That’s another good one!

[@lesleeherschfus707]

I’ve always liked ‘Stars’ Give a good Baritone anyday

[@LaLayla99]

Great list. I would add "What I Did for Love"- A Chorus Line, "If I Can't Love Her"- Beauty and the Beast, "Why God?"- Miss Saigon, "The Old Red Hills of Home"- Parade, among many more...

[@Kristine_202]

Ms. Mojo is anti-Parade. LOL My guess is that it's because there isn't a lot of footage of it. (At least not legal footage.) So if they included it on a list, it would have to be a lot of music only. But they rarely, if ever, mention it and it belongs on a lot of these lists. Although there are a lot of clips of "Old Red Hills of Home," so I don't know the reasoning behind leaving that off. Honestly? I don't think the person who makes these lists has ever seen the show. Almost every song in Parade could be characterized as "hauntingly beautiful."

[@manchestertart5614]

Why God? Sang beautifully by the original Chris,Simon Bowman ❤

[@stulewis6651]

I definitely would have included "What I Did For Love."

[@SConArt87]

“Somewhere” will always be special to me. I sang it at my grandma’s funeral, at her request. It was one of her all time favorites.

[@kjmav10135]

What a touching tribute. It must have been an emotional experience for you to sing in the midst of grief. A true sign of your love for her. ❤️❤️❤️

[@christineketter10]

I agree. I can’t help but cry when I hear this song.

[@aidansheehan7777]

I’ve got a soft spot for “For Good”. The stellar vocals combine with a gorgeous instrumentation and equally strong lyrics. And when Elphaba and Glinda finally begin to sing together, it gives me chills. And the ending is made even sadder when you account that they’ll never see each other again. I legitimately can’t wait to hear Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande’s rendition in the movie!

[@daddio5251]

Good choice. I also am totally chilled whenever I hear "As Long As You're Mine" from the same show: "Kiss me to fiercely, hold me too tight; I need help believing you're with me tonight..." Brilliant!

[@Terahnee]

One of my favourite parts of this song is while Glinda usually sings the higher notes and Elphaba the lower, there's a point in this song where that changes, and I love it.

[@TxJanna]

@@daddio5251 I have this for my boyfriend's ringtone...cause for the moment it is all soo true...just love it.

[@beeonthyme5760]

I said the same thing!!!

[@mmc6808]

Great choice!

[@precious_muse]

I’m amazed “Fiddler on the Roof” didn’t make the list. It’s got plenty of haunting songs, like “The Sabbath Prayer,” “Far From the Home I Love,” and “Sunrise, Sunset.”

[@cmtippens9209]

And don't forget about the closing number, "Anatevka", when they are leaving the only home most of them have known, forced out by the pogroms.

[@lesleeherschfus707]

Far From the Home I Love

[@janw491]

Far from the home i love always brings tears to my eyes. That and on my own from Les Mis.

[@hansbmd20]

I agree wholeheartedly. I was just thinking that "Sunrise, Sunset" should be here.

[@carldom1264]

Agreed. All of the music in Fiddler is haunting

[@feitocomfruta]

The context of “Why” in Tick Tick Boom makes it even more devastating. His best friend Michael just revealed to him that he was diagnosed with HIV, which in the early 90s was still seen as a death sentence. This is Jonathan singing about needing to do right by himself and his dreams, but also to the friends and family that matter most to him. It’s even sadder because in the end, Jonathan died before seeing how that dedication to his art and his family ultimately brought the world to its feet.

[@sailormoonsault]

Oliver’s “Who Will Buy?” and the reprise is so gorgeous in both melody and meaning.

[@htarceno]

true, but "Where is Love" is a close second

[@mairedaly4926]

Oliver is one of the best ever but other than Le Mis & Andrew Lloyd webber's musicals, they're very American'centric

[@3zy165]

The Music of the Night is one of those songs that, no matter how many times I hear it, always leaves me breathless. It’s such a beautiful, haunting and enchanting song. The way Ramin and Michael Crawford sings it especially always gives me goosebumps

[@AshlieJermaine]

I love almost all of the songs from Phantom!!!

[@HamnimationStudios]

YES. It’s one of the best songs ever composed for Broadway!

[@manchestertart5614]

@@HamnimationStudiosBroadway??? It was first performed in London.

[@HamnimationStudios]

@@manchestertart5614 Oops, you’re right!😅 I meant musical theater in general. Thanks for the correction!

[@markdaly1648]

All I ask of you is the best song in the entire musical and its reprise at the end of the show

[@jvanleishout]

The heart wrenching longing of "Being Alive" at the end of Sondheim's "Company" fills the stage with the unendurable pain of loneliness.

[@janetd4862]

The expression “hauntingly beautiful” automatically brings to mind “Empty Chairs and Empty Tables”, though so many songs from that musical fit the bill.

[@kjmav10135]

So glad you included “Come from Away” Lead us out of the darkness. That whole musical is a spine-tingling tribute to the best in us during a time when human depravity was taking over the airwaves.

[@TheInkdN3rd]

I remember being a background singer in our school's production of Carousel & EVERY time we sang You'll Never Walk Alone I got choked up. Then when our dance teacher was diagnosed with cancer I sang it to her. Ugh! Such a powerful song!

[@cmtippens9209]

For many years, over the Labor Day weekend, the comedian/actor Jerry Lewis used to host a charity telethon for Muscular Dystrophy. At the end of each telethon, he would sing "You'll Never Walk Alone" which is especially poignant when you realize that MD is a disease that causes progressive muscle weakness and most end up in wheelchairs.

[@ellynmacgregor8210]

Another song from *Carousel* that chokes me up is "If I Loved You." It's especially poignant if you've seen that musical before, and find out that **SPOILER ALERT** even though Julie and Billy love each other, they can never find lasting happiness together...at least in this life. I'm choking up just typing these words.

[@stulewis6651]

The reprise of the song is even more powerful than the song's first appearance. When Billy interjects "I loved you. Know that I loved you," and Julie joins her voice to the chorus,, the effect is powerful. Also, when the song is sung correctly (as it was in the example on this posting), the melody descends when Nettie sings the finial line but ascends when Julie sings it at the end. This makes it even more powerful.

[@cwreads]

The Les Mis one yhat gets me everytime is Empty Chairs

[@joanstolzar7802]

“How Could I Ever Know” from “The Secret Garden” and “Back to Before” from “Ragtime” are two of the most beautiful songs, and were sung by the incomparable Rebecca Luker and Marin Mazzie. Both women sadly left us way too soon.

[@maidachan2989]

“How Could I Ever Know” sung by Rebecca Luker always gives me chill. Definitely deserves to be on this list.

[@somethinunameit637]

I find "children will listen" more haunting than "you are not alone" in into the woods

[@barabi51]

So do I!

[@maryfeagley7547]

I agree. The first time I heard this song live it really choked me up. I was going through a really tough time with my teen daughter

[@carldom1264]

Watch what you say, children might listen.....yes, this is the one I was thinking of too

[@ellend9426]

Absolutely!

[@glratt]

If you can get past the creepy circumstance, "Nothin's Gonna Harm You" from Sweeney Todd is an exquisite lullaby.

[@paulasuniverse5029]

💯

[@vjhreeves]

Yes! My daughter played Toby this year in her high school production and I loved hearing her rehearse that song at home for weeks.

[@KarinShah]

Yes!

[@KarinShah]

I would add, When I grow up from Matilda

[@glratt]

@@KarinShah Absolutely! Not the least of which reason, my twin sons sang two of the leading bits in their senior year.

[@dianadurr-ramsey567]

Several years ago our local repertory theater preformed 1776; the young man who played the courier and sang Mama Look Sharp, not only did he have a beautiful voice, his mom was in the cast. She was off stage listening and in tears.

[@lillykennedy2135]

Last year I was in a production for Into the Woods. Whenever they sang No One Is Alone, I got goosebumps every single time.

[@kapipte]

For me it's especially when Phillipa Soo sings it. I don't know what it is but Phillipa just strikes heart strings that tears me apart.

[@Survivor2002]

"Johanna" is definitely one good choice from SWEENEY TODD, but for my money, the absolute peak of haunting songs is "Not While I'm Around," when Toby lets Mrs. Lovett know his suspicions about Sweeney, unaware that Nellie is actually in on the gruesome enterprise.

[@vjhreeves]

Agree! My daughter played Toby a few months ago and I loved hearing her rehearse that song.

[@kimtaylor3515]

YES!!! I knew Music Of The Night would be number one. It is so hypnotizing. Wish Memory from CATS would have been on the list. At least it got an honorable mention. That is my favorite musical.

[@MsJubjubbird]

Colm singing Bring Him Home always gets me every time- well done for staying away from the lacklustre movie version. Stars and Some Enchanted Evening should be on here too, especially the Philip Quast versions. Also Preludium from The Sound of Music- regardless of one's religious beliefs, it is beautiful music. I just wished they'd hired a better singer than Gerard for Phantom.

[@sarahvenable4710]

Those Who've Known from Spring Awakening is definitely a tearjerker and sends chills up many spines.

[@heatherduncan5101]

What about "I Dreamed A Dream" from Les Miserables? That song will unapologetically rip your heart out.

[@MsJubjubbird]

I think Susan ruined that song for a lot of people. It's been heard to death.

[@Terahnee]

@@MsJubjubbird This is the issue with a lot of these for me. There are many many on this list that I agree are amazing, I've just heard them 1000 times so they've lost some of their magic for me.

[@ladyv5655]

The one that makes me cry is "A Little Fall of Rain".

[@MichaelYoder1961]

Such a great collection, had me in tears a few times. I'd add Make Our Garden Grow from Candide - the building of the voices through the song realizing they were all looking for the wrong things in life and then the choral solo, breathtaking.

[@chuckster0015]

Two of my favorites…”Gethsemane” and “Tell Me On a Sunday”

[@OregonRailfan83]

Stephen Sondheim wrote seven of the lyrics and composed the music for six. Leonard Bernstein wrote the music for "West Side Story." Sondheim was an amazingly talented, friendly human being.

[@cka2nd]

Bravo for including Mama, Look Sharp! Incredible song, and a beautiful performance by Stephen Nathan in the movie, who originated the role of Jesus in Godspell. I might include Molasses to Rum from 1776, as well.

[@JGLevy-wg8mn]

By My Side from Godspell makes me cry every time. Haunting, beautiful, meaningful.

[@aadamtx]

I had that one on my list of songs Mojo missed. I'm old enough to have seen the original production of Godspell in Chicago in the early 1970s!

[@PBLE20]

MICHAEL CRAWFORD’S “Music of the Night” is UNBEATABLE. The music and lyrics of Andrew Lloyd - Webber’s love - starved, pathetic creature are so moving and that last note sustained forever by Michael is breathtaking!!!❤😢😊

[@BlazeDupree1525]

All of Phantom of the Opera could honestly make this list but for me my top song from the show is wishing you were here.

[@EchidnaEsq]

I can't believe that not one song from "Next to Normal" didn't even make an honorable mention. I bawl my eyes out multiple times throughout that masterpiece.

[@AugustaWind11]

I came down here to say the same thing!!!

[@katemitchetti8484]

@@AugustaWind11Dans song “I’ve been” about how he’s stood by her through all her mental illness and how he’s really just all alone in his hope??? Heartbreaking!!!

[@loubug9309]

I love how you mentioned Lilly’s Eyes from Secret Garden. It’s so underrated but a beautiful song in an amazing musical, however, I’d argue that “I Heard Someone Crying” is even more haunting, but beautiful nonetheless.

[@Terahnee]

Oof. Yes. I played this soundtrack on repeat when it came out. I'm still waiting for a movie adaptation, but only if Mandy Patinkin will consent to be in it.

[@maidachan2989]

I would second “I Heard Someone Crying” and add “How Could I Ever Know” by Rebecca Luker on the OBC recording of Secret Garden. She sounds haunting and angelic at the same time. So sad that she is gone. 😢

[@KwantumKitty]

@@maidachan2989 I couldn't remember how many times I'd played The Secret Garden's OBC album (CD). Becca was an incredibly kind person and super nice to her fans. I saw her live in The Sound of Music on Broadway. Wish I'd seen more of her performances in person.

[@countryrose93]

The way I burst into tears when I heard the opening notes to “It’s Quiet Uptown”. I hadn’t heard or thought about it in a while and although I should have been prepared, I was not 😭

[@hannahmoran3660]

Finally, justice for "Come From Away"!!! I've been lucky enough to see a TON of musicals and plays, on Broadway and off- "Come From Away" remains one of the greatest shows I have ever seen. I would have added "Prayer" and "Something's Missing" as honorable mentions for this list- both beautiful and haunting when you remember how raw the pain from that time was.

[@kjmav10135]

I am totally with you on Come From Away. An AMAZING show. Left me laughing, crying, and breathless.

[@andersonfamily]

Come From Away is so underrated... If you haven't seen it on Apple TV its emotionally heart wrenching...

[@TxJanna]

It just takes more effort to watch something that still has strong memories for.

[@stulewis6651]

I saw the show twice. I cried both times during the prayer scene.

[@vjhreeves]

I will never forget the first time I heard Music of the Night. Michael Crawford was making a guest appearance on the Jerry Lewis Telethon. The tv was on as I came into the room and he had just started to sing. I was instantly captivated and immediately sat down in awe at what I was hearing. His rendition gave me chills and will always be the best to me.

[@Beethovenfan12]

Weirdly enough, that was the first time I had heard Music of the Night, too! It was truly unforgettable.

[@Survivor2002]

Another one that I was shocked about is "Gethsemane" from JCS. It's the emotional high point for both the actor playing Jesus and the audience...any staging of the musical stands or falls based on how well it's performed. And speaking of haunting, more's the pity that you couldn't include "Old Souls" from PHANTOM OF THE PARADISE, since it hasn't been adapted for the stage...yet. As a song about lovers whose bond transcends time and even death, it's one of the most underrated tunes ever written.

[@slywlf]

Old Souls is especially touching when you know that Paul Williams actually wrote it for/about his own parents!

[@jacklow9611]

There seem to be several emotional high points in JCS, such as, "I Don't Know How to Love Him" and "Could We Start Again, Please?"

[@shmeshica_c]

“Gethsemane” just knocks me over every time.

[@AAD2698]

Oh thank you for Momma, Oh momma. this was the song that they did from 1776 for the Tonys that year. I was in college and, in all honesty small town, backwater raised, this was my first time to even be aware of Broadway! THAT song has lead me on to a love of musicals to this day!! THANK YOU

[@1957DLT]

Alfie Boe opens his mouth and angels fly out. I will always get goosebumps from his version of Bring Him Home.

[@Mickeysings]

Tell Me on Sunday from Song and Dance… “…take to a park, that’s covered in trees, tell me on a Sunday, please.” 😢 always makes me sad to even think of.

[@professoraviva4628]

Yeah, but then a bit of a clunker: "take me to a zoo that's got chimpanzees. Tell me on a Sunday, please." This always ruins the song for me. Lol.

[@kathyt8374]

I’m sorry you didn’t include Being Alive from Company or For Good from Wicked. Happy to see so many other Sondheim songs on the list. May this genius Rest In Peace! He is a legend!

[@Benjiesbeenbetter.]

Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again always makes my mother cry. After 73 years, she still misses her father as much as thevday he died.

[@scottibrown3274]

I saw 1776 a couple of months ago and as soon as the courrier finished “Mama Look Sharp”, you could have heard a pin drop before everyone erupted into applause. Side note: this production of 1776 was performed by an all female cast and it was a lot of fun!

[@mikesnyder1788]

Totally agree!!! Mama look sharp completely caught me off guard and WOW what a song!

[@lisanadile4688]

I think having a mother sing that song about looking for her son would be heartbreaking.

[@carldom1264]

This is my ultimate muscle. I bet it was fun having Ben Franklin played by a female. Oh John, that was a new one

[@scottibrown3274]

@@carldom1264 the woman who portrayed Ben Franklin played Corrina ‘Mama Smash’ Williams on Friday Night Lights, Liz Mikel is her name and she was an excellent Ben Franklin!

[@mikesnyder1788]

@@carldom1264 I would have loved to see this production and how great that a female played such an interesting and challenging role. Here in Akron, Ohio, we witnessed an immensely talented female actor turn in an astonishingly good (okay, great) performance of Hamlet a few years back.

[@HaleyRadiant]

I’d also love to shoutout “Stay I Pray You” from Anastasia! W/ a show w/ already so many hauntingly beautiful songs, this one really takes it to a whole other level! I truly wish I saw a live performance of that song! 🥹🥺🙏🎶

[@TonyA552]

A nice list but I would have found room for "Try to Remember" from "The Fantastiks" near the top. Glad you included "Somewhere That's Green", even if it was a runner up. "Suddenly Seymour" is another fave tune of mine from "Little Shop of Horrors".

[@2CalaLilly]

You have some nice and a few genuinely great selections in this list, but I suggest you go back farther in musical theater history than you did for this video. Ol' Man River from Show Boat is one of the greatest and bravest songs ever written for the stage. Written in 1926, it gave voice to victims of slavery in the US. It was introduced on Broadway in 1927 by a great, but now forgotten African American baritone, Jules Bledsoe, and sung in the 1936 movie version by Paul Robeson. And Summertime from Porgy and Bess is an incredibly beautiful, haunting aria from George Gershwin's all African American opera. It was written in 1935.

[@ellynmacgregor8210]

Amen. I can (sort of) understand why they left the unbelievably beautiful "Summertime"--only because PORGY AND BESS is technically an opera (which automatically excludes the opera's heartrending, spine-tingling aria sung by the bereaved Serena, "My Man's Gone Now"), but "Ol' Man River" is not just hauntingly beautiful: it is the centerpiece of a play that completely changed the whole concept of the American musical. Both "Ol' Man River" and SHOW BOAT were revolutionary.

[@cheekmo3026]

The better choice for Sunday in the Park with George would be “We Do Not Belong Together”/“Move On” . The better choice for Into the Woods would be “Stay with Me.” (Goosebump central!) But I’m glad to see Sondheim so well represented on this list. Hauntingly beautiful is what he did best.

[@lolobee36977]

Lilys Eyes!!! The Secret Garden! I never hear anyone talk about it. It's such a beautiful musical. One of my absolute favorites! Yay! Glad it made it in the honors 🎉😊

[@Samklein]

While this list is folly since there are so many songs from musical that fall under this category I will add "Far From the Home I Love" from "Fiddler on a Roof". In this song a daughter, knowing she will never see them again, sings of leaving her home, her family, her life to meet her love in a faraway place. Try listening to Julia Migenes-Johnson on the original cast album and not mist up.

[@danitanselle2037]

#17 Momma look Sharp from 1776. That musical has to be my favorite movie, and that song is just so haunting.

[@maureendeming]

1776 is so underrated. I love seeing part of it get it's due.

[@laurellane1721]

One of my very favorite musicals and I watch the movie every 4th of July.

[@maureendeming]

@@laurellane1721 me too!!!!

[@carlbaldasso]

I've always loved Jerry Herman's IF HE WALKED INTO MY LIFE from MAME, so memorably sung by Angela Lansbury. Heartbreaking (as was Herman's TIME HEALS EVERYTHING).

[@saraeastman40]

Amazing list! I would add “Flesh Failures/ Let the Sunshine In” from “Hair” and “Easy to Be Hard”, as well

[@scinamyn]

While I agree with PotO, where's Dreamgirls' "And I am telling you I'm not going"? Jennifer Holliday at her finest! 💯

[@ILJ68]

I would have used Not While I’m Around over Johanna for Sweeney Todd. Toby sees through Todd, and is unrequited in his love for Mrs Lovett. I get goosebumps thinking about it

[@vjhreeves]

Agree! MUCH better choice

[@sherihoffman47]

I'd add 'Anatevka' from Fiddler on the Roof - haunting and achingly sad as the entire village is forced to leave their poor but beloved home. Gets me every time.

[@dabear2438]

My favorite is "Bring Him Home"... I cry every time. But I can't forget the premise of "Come from Away". As long as I have breath and memory, I won't forget what Gander, Newfoundland did for us in 2001. Those people were stars among the clouds that day, and even though I don't know any of them, I love them all. ♥️

[@PrinceTrexus]

I love that u included clips from the newly released "Sweeney Todd" revival album starring Josh Groban

[@Kristine_202]

Happy to hear Josh, too bad Jordan Fisher is on there. I'm sorry, but I'm not a fan of Jordan Fisher and I think he was miscast in that role. I saw the show and he was really disappointing. I was happy to hear that he was leaving. I plan on going back next month for my birthday specifically to see the new Anthony.

[@paulwagner688]

I've played in the pit for Light in the Piazza. I couldn't stop bawling even as I was playing.

[@gailroberts4201]

If I loved You - Carousel. -Yours, Yours, Yours - love song between Abaigail & John Adams - 1776.

[@kaidanerwin3446]

This had to have been an exceedingly difficult and worrisome list to compile, knowing that many worthy songs would not be included and knowing that commentary on sites of all kinds like this that give space to commentary tends to draw a fairly sizable amount of critical opinions from folks, for whatever reason. So I both applaud and feel for MsMojo as the creator. I have no criticism - and, I do have one song I'd like to put out there as possibly a candidate for a further compilation - and that is "Make Our Garden Grow" which gives me such goosebumps, causes a lump in my throat and much, much more every single time I hear it.

[@rutha1464]

Wow. Bravo! What a wondrous sampling of my life of being a theater queen. Thank you. The song that gave me goosebumps was the only one I never saw, She used to be mine from Waitress. What a golden opportunity I missed because I misinterpreted the title, thinking it was probably a silly play.

[@persiphonehellecat]

I expected Don't Cry for Me Argentina in there somewhere. Also Some Enchanted Evening from South Pacific and I am Not My Father's Son from Kinky Boots. And for me, I think Being Alive would be #1 - especially from the Neil Patrick Harris concert version. And who could forget Brian Stokes Mitchell's version of Impossible Dream on the Tony's? This list needed to be divided into past 15 years or so and older. Too many choices

[@tmf866]

I think they wanted songs that were beautiful but not really happy - so I didn't expect Some Enchanted Evening, because although it's a very beautiful song, it's a man professing his love for someone, there's nothing unhappy about it. (Although when I was watching the recent revival at Lincoln Center, I had a friend with me I had just fallen in love with, in a manner very similar to what Emil is talking about, and knew he likely wouldn't be able to be with me, so I was crying desperately through the whole song. But I think I was the only one who was.) And I think Raul Esparza sang the definitive Being Alive. I had the privilege of seeing Brian Stokes Mitchell sing Impossible Dream live on Broadway. I knew nothing about the show other than that it was famous, and I had a friend I wanted to take to a show that night. By the end of that song, if you had told me BSM was 50 feet tall and filled the entire stage, I would have believed you. And he was notably better in person than on the Tonys - I think he was restraining himself so he would have less of a chance of screwing up on TV. I really wish I had video of what he did live.

[@persiphonehellecat]

Then you kind of got the point of Some Enchanted Evening, but not quite. It is supposed to be foreshadowing. Never let her go. And yet he does - not knowing if he will be back. It is a very bittersweet moment. Also he is thinking - will Nellie stay? Keep in mind the underlying theme of prejudice, too. He has two half native children. Can he convince a woman from Kansas to stay and raise them? No, you weren't the only one who cries through that song. It is wonderful to recall the performances we actually saw on Broadway - for me, it was seeing Richard Burton do Camelot at Lincoln Center and being at the final performance of Pearl Bailey in Hello Dolly. She called the cast back onto the stage - kicked off her shoes (she was famous for having bad feed) and sang with a pianist only for over an hour. Raul Julia - certainly great - but there was something about the tenderness and vulnerability of Neil Patrick Harris that just tore my heart open. I also saw Dean Jones in the original and his was wonderful, too. Sadly I didn't see Brian Stokes Mitchell in La Mancha, but I saw the original Richard Kiley - and Suzyn Waldman of Yankee radio fame. And later on I saw John Raitt do it - and took a master class with him afterwards. That is my favorite musical ever. @@tmf866

[@cmpabst9501]

“We Do Not Belong Together” from Sunday in the Park, and “Still Hurting” from The Last 5 Years get me EVERY time.

[@jacklow9611]

I always thought that "Something Wonderful", from "The King and I", when Lady Thiang sings to Anna about how she feels about the king, even though he has many wives and concubines, and often seems cruel and uncaring (and often quite ignorant about many things). It always touches something inside me whenever I listen to it.

[@samuelcollantes1175]

"When words fail" From Shrek the musical is the most beautiful song i've ever heard in a Broadway production (too Bad it wasn't on this top) happy sunday morning Ms Mojo, take care and God bless you, greetings from Colombia to you as well.

[@cair124]

I can't believe you left out "For Good" from Wicked!

[@michaelthrasher1521]

You forget some other musical like Fiddler on the Roof song: Far From the Home I Love Show Boat song: Ol Man River Oliver songs: Where is Love & As Long as He Needs Me Hello Dolly song: It Only Takes A Moment The Woman in White song: Laura The Sound of Music songs: Edelweiss & Something Good

[@ciaranmyers792]

I saw A Little Night Music at the Stratford Festival in 2016 and I'll never forget how you could hear a pin drop in a 1000 seat theatre after Send in The Clowns. The whole audience was floating in stillness.

[@tracyroweauthor]

Till We Reach that Day NEVER fails to make me cry. When Coalhouse screams NOOOOOOOO and Tateh says "What is wrong with this country?" is just so heartbreaking. I did this show (techie) and I sobbed every single performance when the cast sang this song. And R.I.P. Marin Maisie Pity the Child -- Chess Being Alive -- Company A Boy Like That -- West Side Story On My Own -- Les Miserables Once Upon a Dream -- Jekyl & Hyde The Movie in My Mind -- Miss Saigon Honestly, there are just so many....

[@crysania]

Music of the Night gets me every time! I'm surprised Empty Chairs at Empty Tables didn't make the list. Just a devastating song.

[@Terahnee]

From this video I discovered two new favorite musicals. This week I watched "tick tick... Boom" and "Come From Away" for the first time. Both have now been added to my playlists.

[@roxiejacobsen2060]

"Not while I'm Around" from Sweeney Todd. "Momma Look Sharp" has always been an underappreciated heart-wrencher. Thanks for noticing.

[@KZ1211-t2q]

I've always considered You'll Never Walk Alone to be the most beautiful song from a musical. I think Lily's Eyes deserved much more than an Honorable Mention. It's Quiet Uptown makes me cry every time. I think you should have included Something Wonderful from The King and I. All in all, I agree with a lot of your picks.

[@lynn69jackson]

You'll never walk alone makes the hairs on the back of my neck stand up.

[@ladymary22]

Sorry Ms Mojo your honorable mentions were better than Telephone Wire.

[@vjhreeves]

You overlooked the meaning of the phrase "send in the clowns." Back in the days of circuses, clowns were sent in to distract the audience when there was an accident in the ring. The spotlight would focus on the clowns and their antics while the tragedy was dealt with and taken away in the dark.

[@johnbeasley4211]

One was excited in finding out that Dame Judi Densch sang Send In the Clowns. The immensity of her talent continually to delight and amaze. That face, those eyes. On the other hand, the must beautiful ballad in Sweeny Todd is the much less hackneyed and far more moving offering, Nothing Can Harm You. There is no real knowledge in this video IMHO, but nevertheless a helpful review of some but not all notable musicals over the past several decades.

[@hoffmanxcollins]

Yes i agree "Not While Im Around" is such a beautiful song ❤

[@kknox5795]

I enjoyed this. Would have liked to seen Gethsemane (Jesus Christ Superstar), With You (Ghost the Musical), Lament (Evita), As If We Never Said Goodbye (Sunset Boulevard), Anything But Lonely (Aspects of Love), and Last Night of the World (Miss Saigon) make the list. Just my two cents.

[@Whisper_292]

Great list, but I would have liked to see "I Don't Know How to Love Him" or "Could We Start Again Please" from Jesus Christ Superstar.

[@BurrShotHam711Jenna]

It's Quiet Uptown from Hamilton and Alabanza from In The Heights

[@MikeMacYT]

Glad “It’s Quiet Uptown” made the list. I’d add “Nothing” from A Chorus Line.

[@SharonCurrant]

Blood Brothers. Saw a phenomenal production in Eastbourne, England this summer. Still haunts me.

[@Cinnabuntastic]

Seriously, no Shadowlands at ALL? Shadowlands is a beautiful, haunting song about being forced to leave your home to seek help, knowing you may never see it again. And the call and response in English and Swahili is just so moving.

[@heathercampbell6059]

I'm so happy you put Mamma Look Sharp in this. 1776 has some amazing musical songs.

[@emilyglass6625]

I was deeply preoccupied by unrequited love as a young person, so the first songs I thought of in connection with this topic were the title song from "Funny Girl" and also the fairly simple "Love Look Away" from Flower Drum Song, which are, like, basically burned into my personality, haha. (The latter is hardly a hinge on which the story turns; at least in the version of the musical I saw growing up, the poor woman who sings it is literally as forgotten by the story itself as she is by the man she wishes loved her back!) I would also describe "The Sweetest Sounds" from Cinderella as quite haunting. It's optimistic, but so *fragile,* and the music tinkles and drifts like it's coming from a secret music box. In more recent music I've encountered for the first time, tiny Alisha Weir singing "Quiet" in Netflix's Matilda haunts me in nearly the literal sense. I hear it, and it *follows* me for days. I was so taken by this song that I looked up other recordings, and the film version is actually the only one I've found that has this shattering emotional impact for me. I think it's a combination of the specific actress's remarkable talent and the film medium setting her free from the need to belt to a full auditorium. (In some ways, "Still Holding My Hand," the new finale song written for the film version of Matilda is also haunting to me, despite it's being a basically happy and triumphant pop song, because the dream it expresses is so utterly simple and sincere: just someone who will still be there with you, right beside you, holding onto your hand). Completely agree about "Quiet Up Town." I haven't seen Hamilton that many times in any form, but that song took me to an emotional place I wasn't anticipating and didn't easily come back from. Also, should we be considering "Old Man River"? Like "You'll Never Walk Alone," it can be so familiar that it gets taken for granted, but when you've been away and come back to it after a while, the ache and the weariness and the dark sense of inevitability in that song go SO deep. It gets ahold of you and it won't let you go.

[@katies24]

Mine would absolutely have to be so big so small from Dear Evan Hansen, it’s just amazing!!

[@rykopy]

Welcome Home from Bandstand had me SOBBING when I saw it on Broadway. the emotion became stronger when realizing its melody is TAPS, usually played for military funerals.

[@KuroDokueki]

Finally, justice for Bandstand, and justice for Right This Way. That song sends shivers up and down my spine every time I listen to it. It's absolutely heart-wrenching, the emotion that goes into that song. I forget who. But someone, some reviewer, said it's quite possibly the strongest act one finale since Defying Gravity. And it's impossible to disagree for me. ...What do you MEAN The "I Love You" Song from 25th Annual Putnam County Spelling Bee isn't here? Even named? It's a girl, reflecting on her family, through the lens of the word 'chimerical'. Unrealistic, wildly fanciful dreaming. And it's her own unrealistic and fanciful dreams, of her parents apologizing for the trauma she's been through, and telling her they love her. That all she wants is to hear those words, knowing she never has, and never will. It's probably one of the most emotional songs in musical theater history, when the meaning and the performance and the three-part harmony all blends together.

[@TardisGirl9]

THANK YOU. I was lucky enough to catch the pro shot when it was released in theaters without knowing any of the songs, and when “Right this Way” ended Act One, my friend and I just sat there STUNNED. It was such an incredible experience (as was the rest of the show).

[@KuroDokueki]

It really is. The show as a whole just hits so well. I'm so glad the proshot is out there. It's one of my favorite things to go back and watch when I need a distraction. That, Spongebob, Come From Away, Newsies, or Six.@@TardisGirl9

[@ladymary22]

Sondheim songs need a list of its own

[@daddio5251]

I'm so glad to see Ragtime being honored thus. I judge a song's haunting emotionality by when I can't get through a song without choking. "'Til We Reach That Day" is one of the best. I'm glad I'm not in the cast! They could also included "Make Them Hear You" from the same show. Absolutely emotionally charged! Another song that belongs on this list is "The Hardest Part Of Love" from Children Of Eden. I could never sing that on stage, as I could never get through it without tears.

[@stulewis6651]

"Children of Eden" is one of my all-time favorite shows. I've seen the show several times.

[@daddio5251]

@@stulewis6651 where did you see it? It never made it onto Broadway.

[@stulewis6651]

Our local Jewish Community Center (Kansas City area) produced it a few times. I also saw it performed at a local church and at a Theater in the Park production. The show was first performed at the Papermill Playhouse in New Jersey. He was told that it might be possible to produce the show on Broadway if he reduced the cast somewhat, but he said he did not want to give the audience a lesser show on Broadway than they could see by crossing the river to see in in NJ.

[@lynnettebird1600]

I think there needs to be an honorable mention for "In His Eyes" and/or "Someone Like You" from Jekyll and Hyde 😊

[@baobaodraws6207]

What about anything from Ride The Cyclone? The Ballad of Jane Doe literally gives me shivers up and down my spine.

[@sabrinahaslam5074]

Where is "I dreamed a dream" ???? Its an amazing track, how was it left out?

[@davidbickerstaff6862]

The one that always gets me is "Some Things are Meant To Be" from Little Women. So, beautiful even though its a song about finally letting go of a beloved one and dealing with the idea that they won't be around much longer.

[@samd4500]

It's Hard to Speak my Heart from Parade is one of the most beautiful and haunting songs I know. The desperate show of innocence falling on deaf ears. I cry every time

[@BillieClose]

Send in the Clowns (A Little Night Music) & Memories (Cats) are equally heartrending to me. Also, the hauntingly touching Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again from Phantom of the Opera.

[@ellynmacgregor8210]

You may need to check the script of *Carousel* . While "You'll Never Walk Alone" is reprised at the end of the musical, it is first sung earlier in the show. *Carousel* does not end with Billy's death, but with his somewhat botched attempt at redemption, many years *after* his death. However, I'm glad to see that you placed it so high on the list (although, being a huge fan of Rodgers and Hammerstein, I would naturally have preferred to see it take the #1 spot). 😉

[@aurelia2132]

Putting _Music of the Night_ at #1 feels like popularity bias. I don't know too many people who could listen to Ragtime and honestly say that _Music of the Night_ holds a candle next to _Back to Before_ , _Sarah Brown Eyes_ , _Your Daddy's Son_ , or _Till We Reach That Day_ .

[@existenceispointless3445]

Most of the Caberet soundtrack is very eerily beautiful and will always be my favorite musical soundtrack