Choosing music for a funeral is a heavy job, so here is a starting point. This list holds the quiet farewells, the celebration-of-life anthems, and the songs that give a room permission to cry. Every one has carried a lot of people through a hard day.
Updated 2026
Tears in Heaven by Eric Clapton 1992
Clapton's letter to the son he lost, gentle enough to break you.
Wind Beneath My Wings by Bette Midler 1988
The thank-you to the quiet person who held everything up.
My Way by Frank Sinatra 1969
A whole life reviewed with no regrets, which is why it closes so many services.
See You Again by Wiz Khalifa ft. Charlie Puth 2015
A goodbye written for a lost friend that a whole generation now shares.
Time to Say Goodbye by Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman 1996
Two voices lifting a farewell into something enormous.
Somewhere Over the Rainbow by Israel Kamakawiwoole 1993
A ukulele and a soft voice make the hardest day feel a little lighter.
Angels by Robbie Williams 1997
A stadium hymn about being watched over, sung at countless goodbyes.
Supermarket Flowers by Ed Sheeran 2017
Sheeran clears his grandmother's room and turns the small details into a eulogy.
Bridge Over Troubled Water by Simon and Garfunkel 1970
A promise to carry someone through the worst of it.
You'll Never Walk Alone by Gerry and the Pacemakers 1963
Walk on through the storm, with the whole room singing behind you.
Hallelujah by Jeff Buckley 1994
Buckley's version turns an old song into a trembling, holy goodbye.
Fire and Rain by James Taylor 1970
Taylor writes through loss with nothing but a guitar and plain honesty.