Explore 29 funeral songs tagged as "folk". Each song has been carefully curated to help you create a meaningful memorial service.
by Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan's folk-rock meditation on death's approach, with simple repetitive lyrics about laying down arms and badges.
Why it's meaningful: The tired resignation in the lyrics honors those ready to rest after life's battles, finding peace at heaven's door.
Best moment: For honoring lives of struggle or those ready to lay down burdens.
by James Taylor
James Taylor's deeply personal song about loss and depression, with fingerpicked guitar and vulnerable vocals.
Why it's meaningful: Written about the death of a friend, this song captures the specific shock and ongoing pain of unexpected loss.
Best moment: Powerful for sudden losses or honoring those who struggled with mental health.
by Fleetwood Mac
Stevie Nicks' reflective ballad about change, aging, and life's passage, with fingerpicked guitar and vulnerable vocals.
Why it's meaningful: The honest confrontation with time's passage and life's changes resonates deeply at funerals, honoring life's journey.
Best moment: Powerful for honoring women's lives, especially mothers or sisters.
by The Carter Family
Classic American folk hymn about family reunion in heaven, with the Carter Family's harmony vocals.
Why it's meaningful: The promise of reuniting in an unbroken circle offers hope that families separated by death will be together again.
Best moment: Perfect for family patriarchs/matriarchs or emphasizing heavenly reunion.
by Traditional Spiritual
African-American spiritual about Elijah's ascent into heaven, with chariot imagery representing the soul's journey home.
Why it's meaningful: The gentle melody and hopeful lyrics offer comfort in believing angels carry souls to their heavenly home.
Best moment: Perfect for Christian funerals or honoring African-American spiritual heritage.
by Carole King
Carole King's classic about enduring friendship and being there for each other through all seasons.
Why it's meaningful: Celebrates the constancy of friendship and support, perfect for honoring sisters or friends who were always there.
Best moment: Beautiful for sisters, best friends, or lifelong friendships.
by The Beatles
Paul McCartney's delicate acoustic guitar piece about a blackbird learning to fly, symbolizing freedom and emergence.
Why it's meaningful: The message of breaking free and learning to fly resonates for honoring women or anyone who found their wings.
Best moment: Beautiful for sisters or daughters, celebrating freedom and strength.
by Traditional Irish Folk
Traditional Scottish and Irish farewell song, often sung at the end of gatherings as a final toast.
Why it's meaningful: The tradition of raising a final glass to the departed creates a communal ritual of remembrance and farewell.
Best moment: Perfect for Irish/Scottish funerals or as a closing song for gatherings.
by Traditional Folk
Traditional folk blues about a life gone wrong in New Orleans, with haunting minor-key melody.
Why it's meaningful: For lives marked by struggle, addiction, or poor choices, this song acknowledges hardship without judgment.
Best moment: Honest choice for complicated lives or those who struggled with demons.
by Traditional Spiritual
Appalachian spiritual about a traveler going over Jordan to the promised land, with stark beauty.
Why it's meaningful: The image of being a stranger just passing through this world offers comfort that we're all heading home.
Best moment: Beautiful for spiritual services honoring Appalachian or American folk traditions.
by Traditional Folk
Traditional Appalachian folk song about a life of hardship and wandering, with high lonesome sound.
Why it's meaningful: Honors lives marked by struggle and sorrow, acknowledging that some people faced constant hardship.
Best moment: Honest choice for difficult lives or honoring Appalachian heritage.
by Traditional Scottish
Traditional Scottish folk ballad with haunting melody about love, longing, and the passage of time, often performed a cappella or with minimal accompaniment.
Why it's meaningful: The sparse arrangement and ancient melody create timeless beauty, honoring the depth of love that endures beyond death.
Best moment: Quiet reflection moments or honoring Scottish heritage.
by Traditional English Folk
Medieval English folk ballad with haunting melody, popularized by Simon & Garfunkel, about impossible tasks and lost love.
Why it's meaningful: The ancient, timeless quality connects grief to generations of human loss, while the impossible tasks mirror the impossibility of accepting death.
Best moment: For those who loved folk music or medieval/Renaissance culture.
by Ralph Stanley
Appalachian spiritual with Ralph Stanley's a cappella mountain vocals, directly addressing Death itself.
Why it's meaningful: The stark confrontation with Death acknowledges its power while expressing the human desire to resist.
Best moment: Haunting choice for traditional Appalachian funerals or stark honesty about death.
by The Stanley Brothers
The Stanley Brothers' bluegrass version with high harmonies and driving banjo, about life's hardships.
Why it's meaningful: The bluegrass energy transforms sorrow into resilience, honoring those who kept moving despite pain.
Best moment: For honoring resilient souls who faced sorrow with Appalachian strength.
by Blind Lemon Jefferson
Traditional blues spiritual about death and proper burial, with stark acoustic guitar and Jefferson's distinctive vocals.
Why it's meaningful: One of the earliest recorded blues songs about death, honoring the importance of remembering and tending to the deceased.
Best moment: Graveside services or honoring traditional blues heritage.
by Traditional Shaker Hymn
Old Shaker melody about finding joy in simplicity and being in the right place at the right time.
Why it's meaningful: The gentle message that there's a place and time for everything offers comfort that death comes when it's meant to.
Best moment: For those who lived simply or valued spiritual authenticity.
by Traditional American Folk
Traditional American folk song about the Shenandoah River, often sung as a farewell song with longing melody.
Why it's meaningful: The flowing melody evokes journeys and farewells, making it perfect for honoring those who loved nature or American heritage.
Best moment: Reflection moments or honoring connection to American land and rivers.
by Traditional Irish Folk
Traditional Irish love song with tender melody about enduring love and the pain of separation.
Why it's meaningful: The simple beauty of this Irish folk song honors deep romantic love while acknowledging the heartbreak of parting.
Best moment: Beautiful for spouses or honoring Irish heritage with romantic themes.
by Lead Belly
Traditional American folk blues about death and mystery, with haunting vocals and stark guitar accompaniment.
Why it's meaningful: The eerie atmosphere and themes of death in the cold pines create a gothic Americana perfect for traditional funerals.
Best moment: Atmospheric choice for honoring American roots music or mysterious lives.
by Bill Monroe
Bluegrass blues waltz about saying goodbye under the blue moon, with Monroe's high lonesome vocals.
Why it's meaningful: The high, lonesome sound of bluegrass captures the ache of mountain farewell songs and rural American grief.
Best moment: Perfect for honoring Appalachian heritage or country music lovers.
by The Carter Family
Classic American folk song by the Carter Family about love, loss, and faded flowers, with gentle autoharp.
Why it's meaningful: The flower metaphor for fleeting beauty and love honors women's lives and the passage of time.
Best moment: Traditional choice for honoring women who loved American folk or country music.
by Traditional American Folk
American cowboy ballad about a dying cowboy giving final instructions, with mournful western melody.
Why it's meaningful: The cowboy's calm acceptance of death and simple burial requests honor western stoicism and frontier values.
Best moment: Perfect for honoring western heritage or those who lived by cowboy values.
by Traditional Appalachian
Appalachian love song with minor key and haunting melody, about deep romantic longing.
Why it's meaningful: The dark beauty of mountain love songs honors profound, earthly romantic connection.
Best moment: Beautiful for honoring deep romantic love with folk sensibility.
by Traditional Appalachian
Appalachian folk song about longing for a loved one in Shady Grove, with modal melody.
Why it's meaningful: The grove represents a peaceful meeting place, offering hope of reunion in a shady, restful place.
Best moment: Peaceful for honoring Appalachian heritage or those who loved nature.
by Traditional Appalachian
Appalachian love ballad about impossible love and longing, with achingly beautiful melody.
Why it's meaningful: The bittersweet acceptance that love cannot be honors relationships that faced insurmountable obstacles.
Best moment: For honoring impossible loves or Appalachian musical heritage.
by Traditional Folk
Ancient Scottish-English ballad about love and death, with haunting melody passed down through centuries.
Why it's meaningful: One of the oldest folk songs about death and regret, connecting modern grief to centuries of human mourning.
Best moment: For honoring folk traditions or connecting to ancient mourning rituals.
by Traditional Folk
Traditional Appalachian ballad about forbidden love and class differences, with mournful melody.
Why it's meaningful: Honors love that faced obstacles and the pain of relationships that couldn't be.
Best moment: For complicated love stories or honoring folk heritage.
by Traditional Folk
Ancient murder ballad about jealousy between sisters, with dark storytelling tradition.
Why it's meaningful: While dark, it honors the ancient tradition of folk ballads that don't shy from difficult truths.
Best moment: For folk music lovers who appreciated the darker ballad tradition.