The UK’s leading funeral provider, Co-op Funeralcare, has today released its 2019 Funeral Music Chart. The hot list, which first launched in 2002, sees Frank Sinatra’s ‘My Way’ top of the funeral pops, followed by Andrea Bocelli and Eva Cassidy.
Based on data and insights from Co-op’s funeral directors, who conduct up to 100,000 funerals every year, the latest top 10 reveals the non-movers, risers and new entries of 2019.¹
The full 2019 Funeral Music Chart:
|
No |
Song name |
Artist |
Movement since 2016 chart |
|
1 |
My Way |
Frank Sinatra |
Non-mover |
|
2 |
Time To Say Goodbye |
Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman |
Non-mover |
|
3 |
Over The Rainbow |
Eva Cassidy |
Non-mover |
|
4 |
Wind Beneath My Wings |
Bette Midler |
Non-mover |
|
5 |
Angels |
Robbie Williams |
Re-entry |
|
6 |
Supermarket Flowers |
Ed Sheeran |
New entry |
|
7 |
Unforgettable |
Nat King Cole |
Up 3 places |
|
8 |
You Raise Me Up |
Westlife |
New entry |
|
9 |
We’ll Meet Again |
Vera Lynn |
Down 3 places |
|
10 |
Always Look on the Bright Side of Life |
Eric Idle – from Monty Python’s ‘Life of Brian’ |
Down 2 places |
Revealing a shift in music at final farewells, for the first time ever, no traditional hymns have made the cut. ‘The Lord is my Shepherd’ and ‘Abide with me’, previously strong contenders in the funeral chart have been pushed out as Westlife and Ed Sheeran make their debuts.
New requests identified by Co-op’s funeral directors include George Ezra, Wiz Khalifa, Freya Ridings and Stormzy, perhaps tracks to look out for in future funeral charts.
Furthermore, research from the Co-op reveals a trend in more people keeping music in the family, as a third (32%) of people say they would consider asking a relative to do the honour of performing.²
Research also shows a shift in more people sharing their swansongs. A quarter (24%) of UK adults say they have already told loved ones which songs they want playing at their funeral, compared to just a fifth (19%) in 2016³.
When it comes to music genres, pop proves to be the most popular with a quarter (25%) of UK adults revealing they would want such music at their funeral. A further fifth (19%) would opt for rock, whilst a fifth (20%) would choose classical for their final farewell.
