The pain of war cannot exceed the woe of aftermath. Review on Ten Most Haunting Songs

Haunting! The word itself has a beauty that cannot be measured. It lends an air of sweet sadness to anything you prefix it to. Haunting. when attached to a song or a lyric. takes it to another plane. a level beyond the rest.

I'm glad the review category didn't mention a language. Because, a language has no significance in the composition and the overall beauty of a song. Am one of those that listens to anything, no matter what the language. therefore my pick of ten will be culled from all sources.

My definition of haunting is going to be real simple too. if I closed my ears and cut off the world. and I let the song seep into me. and if it pulled hard on that part of my soul. I deemed it haunting. Some of these can bring a tear to the eye too. but then. you never read that last line.

Here are my picks:

The Park(Uriah Heep) - The pioneers of gothic rock, this song, from the album SALISBURY, is unconventional, very dark and bluesy and it's nothing short of BEAUTIFUL. Acoustic guitars and the organ provide the perfect backing for David Byron's soulful singing

So why my heavy heart you say

When tears would stain the sights so gay

My brother's dreams once here did soar

Until he died at the hand of needless war

Aye Dil E Nadaan(Razia Sultan) - From the movie Razia Sultan, composed by the legendary Khayyam and sung by the legend Lata Mangeshkar - this song embodies HAUNTING like none other. I've done a review on the movie a while ago and I'll just move on to the next one.

Silent Night - Why a Christmas carol? Why not! Have heard some of the most beautiful renditions of the song and its definitely deserves the tag - haunting

Theme from Chariots of Fire - Not a single syllable sung but when it comes to soundtracks, to me, this work by Vangelis is beyond incredible.

Bande Mein Tha Dum(Lage Raho Munnabhai) - Ok. I had several songs to pick from. including the Vande Mataram renditions by A.R. Rehman. somehow those two words evoke an emotion inside that's inexplicable. I picked this song purely because when I heard that refrain - Bande Mein Tha Dum. Vande Mataram. it touched that chord inside.

Paint the sky with stars(ENYA) - This used to be the song that I hummed to myself on many a sleepless night. The new age diva is one of the most enigmatic, multi-million selling artist ever. Her beautiful vocals, touching lyrics and the haunting piano and strings make this a song that can take you to another plane. It's hard to pick an Enya song because they all have a magical quality to them. but Paint The Sky With Stars finds its way into my list because its sheer magic.

Night has brought to those who sleep

only dreams they cannot keep

Sri Venkatesa Suprabhatam - Am I getting weirder by the second? No. because I am a South Indian and I have heard this song waft through the air as the minions of this planet acknowledged the rising sun and got themselves ready to face a new day. Having silently heard the sounds from temples, churches, mosques and other religious places, one must say that all religion has its own beauty but the only true religion is the one called - humankind. And music is it's ambassador. M.S. Subbalakshmi I salute you. you gave heart and soul to your craft.

Now We Are Free -(Lisa Gerrard / Hans Zimmer) - A lot of movie soundtracks have a quality that most bands can never emulate because of the elaborate orchestration and the pedigree of the composers and artists. Hans Zimmer's entire Gladiator score is worthy of the word - HAUNTING

Streets of Philadelphia -(Bruce Springsteen) - Maybe its the association with one of the best movies ever made. Maybe its the visual of Tom Hanks lying there dying. But close your eyes and give this song a listen and you tell me.

and now for the final one.

That's the way -(Led Zeppelin) - I cannot have a list without my favourite band in it. And there were quite a few songs to pick but I picked this acoustic song from their third album. Primarily because of the fact that it's got beautiful https://lyrics. And the way it ends.

I'm going to conclude this. it was hard because of the amount of songs that I've heard. it was hard because you always know at the back of your mind that you will miss out on a whole lot of them. but the deed is done and I'll stick to my choices. you can add your picks to this list and enrich it even further.

~finis~