Death is a common subject in rock music. From selling your soul to the devil to substance abuse, or the twisted allure of hell, rockers are always living just a little too hard and fast. So much so, that the Reaper is looming around every corner. Because they stare danger right in the face, rockers aren’t ones to shy away from the subject. Find five of the best rock songs about death, below.
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1. “Dancing With Mr. D” (The Rolling Stones)
One of these days, he’s gonna set you free, Mick Jagger sings in “Dancing With Mr. D.” The Mr. D in question is, of course, death. According to Jagger death equals freedom. He gets dangerously close to that precipice before pulling back. Lord, keep your hand off me, he sings in the chorus.
2. “Into The Mystic” (Van Morrison)
“Into the Mystic” sees Van Morrison at peace with death. While many of us avoid thinking of death at all costs, Morrison stares it right in the face and walks away with a positive connotation. He couples it with swelling strings and lulling instrumentation.
3. “Fade to Black” (Metallica)
Death is a familiar subject in Metallica’s discography. One of the best in that vein is “Fade to Black.” Deathly loss, this can’t be real / I cannot stand this hell I feel / Emptiness is filling me / To the point of agony, James Hetfield sings with fervor.
4. “The Show Must Go On” (Queen)
Few frontmen have lived truer to the adage “The show must go on” more so than Freddie Mercury. Despite his health failure from AIDS, Mercury boasts powerhouse vocals in this track about continuing in the face of his fatal diagnosis. It’s one of the few rousing and celebratory songs about death.
5. “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” (Blue Oyster Cult)
Blue Oyster Cult’s frontman, Buck Dharma, wrote “(Don’t Fear) The Reaper” about the futility of fearing death. Seasons don’t fear the reaper / Nor do the wind, the sun or the rain / We can be like they are, he sings. Though death can be a daunting idea, Dharma suggests we live life without looking over our shoulders for a hood and a scythe.
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