Sad Songs Say So Much

I mostly like upbeat music, but as the old saying goes, everyone needs a good cry now and again. And for those tortured souls and/or gluttons for punishment who get off on actively seeking out sonic heartbreak, here's my list of my Top 5 favorite tear-jerker songs. Whether you find them on iTunes or at your local CD store, they're worth a listen ... but don't forget to have a box of tissues handy.

#5 -- "Grounded" by Stir -- There are plenty of reasons to go pick up the album "Holy Dogs" by alt-rock group Stir, but this is the biggest one: a heartbreaking lament of a boy who's been grounded. Even if you haven't been a teenager for decades, or even if you've never been grounded yourself, you'll still feel a tug at the heartstrings when you hear this one, thanks in part to Andrew Schmidt's aching vocal.

#4 -- "Bubblewrap" by McFly -- Anyone who doubts McFly as a band to be reckoned with in the coming years needs to listen to this song (from their third album "Motion In The Ocean"), not to mention most of their second album "Wonderland". A tender piano melody starts out the song and soon builds to a mostly subdued full-band number, but Tom Fletcher's and Danny Jones' stirring vocals are what will put tears in your eyes.

#3 -- "Patience" by Take That -- This is a love song, but for me it unexpectedly took on a second, and deeper, meaning. A couple days after the Virginia Tech tragedy (which hit me with an emotional impact I never saw coming), Take That's "Beautiful World" album was playing on my iPod. When the chorus of this song came around, I heard the lyrics in a context I hadn't thought about until that moment ... and I nearly cried right there on a public sidewalk.

#2 -- "Where The Lost Ones Go" by Espen Lind and Sissel -- Being a big Espen Lind fan, I was highly anticipating his second album, "This Is Pop Music". Never having been a particular fan of male/female duets (but not necessarily having any aversion to them either), I didn't suspect that this gorgeous breakup song would sneak up on my heart the way it did ... until its soaring chorus gave me a case of goosebumps that comes back every time I hear it.

#1 -- "Break Your Heart" by Barenaked Ladies -- From the moment I heard this song, I knew it was going to be one of my favorites ... and I was right. And I'm not alone: while it was never a single and thus never a charting hit, it's a cult favorite of theirs at concerts. If you haven't heard this song (from their 1996 album "Born On a Pirate Ship"), you must. But be prepared: you'll get a serious lump in your throat during the bridge, which Steven Page delivers with as much heartbreak as a human voice can convey.