I'm not sure if making this list would be an honor or not, but Dolly Parton's song I Will Always Love You recently made the list of the top 20 pop songs requested at English funerals.
The Co-operative FuneralCare of England compiled the list based on requests made at 30,000 services over a 12-month period in 2012.
Their report states: Figures show that pop music has replaced traditional hymns at two-thirds of British funerals. In 2005, hymns accounted for 41 per cent of funeral music requests, but in the past 12 months the figure has fallen to 30 per cent.
I haven't been able to find a similar list for the U.S., but it's probably very similar. Well, OK, that Monty Python song is probably an English thing, but the rest of the songs seem pretty likely to be on a U.S. list also.
On a side note, considering this is a list of "pop" songs, the I Will Always Love You version people are requesting may very well be Whitney Houston's version, but since Dolly wrote and also performed the song, I'll stick with it being a Dolly song on the list.
The Top 20 pop songs requested at funerals in 2012 are:
1. Frank Sinatra – ‘My Way’
2. Sarah Brightman/Andrea Bocelli – ‘Time To Say Goodbye’
3. Bette Midler – ‘Wind Beneath My Wings’
4. Eva Cassidy – ‘Over The Rainbow’
5. Robbie Williams – ‘Angels’
6. Westlife – ‘You Raise Me Up’
7. Gerry & The Pacemakers – ‘You’ll Never Walk Alone’
8. Vera Lynn – ‘We’ll Meet Again’
9. Celine Dion – ‘My Heart Will Go On’
10. Nat King Cole – ‘Unforgettable’
11. Tina Turner – ‘The Best’
12. Whitney Houston/Dolly Parton – ‘I Will Always Love You’
13. Monty Python – ‘Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life’
14. Luther Vandross – ‘Dance With My Father’
15. Louis Armstrong – ‘Wonderful World’
16. Daniel O’Donnell – ‘Danny Boy’
17. Eva Cassidy – ‘Fields Of Gold’
18. Righteous Brothers (and various) – ‘Unchained Melody’
19. Westlife – ‘Flying Without Wings’
20. Eva Cassidy – ‘Songbird’
My husband says he wants AC/DC's Highway to Hell played at his funeral just to freak everyone out. I've always wanted Norman Greenbaum's Spirit In The Sky to be played. What song(s) would you want played?
[Confessions of a Funeral Director]
On a side note, have you ever watched this kid sing I Will Always Love You? It's amazing!!!
