By "curiously touching", I mean that they touch and affect you deeply, but for reasons unclear to you.
For me, it'd have to be "If I Were a Bell". So unbelievably touching but I don't know why. I've never seen the show and have no idea in what context this song is sung. For all I know, the entire thing could be played for laughs or something.
1) Your Daddy's Son (Ragtime) 2) Nobody Needs To Know (The Last 5 Years) 3) Bring Him Home (Les Miserables) 4) Flying Home (Songs For A New World) 5) I'll Cover You, Reprise (Rent)
There are many, but I'll mention two for the present:
"Our Children" from Ragtime, and, of more recent vintage, "The I Love You Song" from Spelling Bee, particularly at the end when Olive redefines "chimerical."
When I first saw Ragtime, New Music actually made me cry. I finally decided it was a combination of the song, lighting, actors, and orchestra that affected me so much. Everything just seemed incredibly right. Wonderful moment.
Goodbye Until Tomorrow from The Last 5 Years. I don't know why, but for the first few times I listened to the recording I cried at that song, and I NEVER cry at things like that.
There are a few that touch me, too, out of context. I guess a partial list would be: "Wishing You Were Somehow Here Again"(POTP)"To Each His Dulcinea"(Man of La Mancha),"If I Could Share My Life With You" (Pippin); "Day By Day"(Godspell). All have a place in my heart.
"And the postman sighed as he scratched his head, you really rather thought she ought to be dead..."
I wish I could go back to college...although funny, is so sweet and makes me miss college. I sent copies of it to my nonbroadway college friends and they all said the same thing- "That is so us..."
"We Do Not Belong Together" from SITPWG. The first time I watched the DVD, I nearly found myself in tears. Bernadette has a way of doing that to me. I teared up when I watched her sing "Not a Day Goes By" on the Sondheim Celebration at Carnegie Hall DVD. The woman, despite her lack of classical vocal expertise, really knows how to wrench your heart out with a piece of music.
I totally cried the first time I saw Wicked during "For Good." I was really surprised about that!
"... Still a little bit of your taste in my mouth.
Still a little bit of you laced with my doubt. Still a little hard to say what's going on..." Damien Rice
Awww....thanks, Andrew. My new job is slowly sucking small bits of my soul and taking away much of my internet time. Hope you're doing great!
Sorry for the tangent.
To get back on topic, another strangely moving song for me was "Human Heart" from Once on this Island. Makes me cry for some reason!
"... Still a little bit of your taste in my mouth.
Still a little bit of you laced with my doubt. Still a little hard to say what's going on..." Damien Rice
A lot of SITPWG hits home, as it does to every artist, I'm sure, especially "Move On." I also found myself tearing up at a recent production of ACL during "At the Ballet," and I'm decidedly not a dancer, nor did my parents ever take me to anything cultural when I was a child :)
ETA: "Colored Lights" from The Rink. Geez... "and with other people's music ringing in my ears, I couldn't sing, well anything..." That's just amazing writing.
Updated On: 7/4/05 at 10:23 PM
"Sunday" from Sunday in the Park With George, and the "Tonight" quartet from West Side Story are currently the ones that get me, for unknown reasons. I have a long list of songs that get me, but I know the reasons for those...
Eh, some are probably more obvious than others, but still don't think everyone would cry/be really touched for them.
You'll Never Walk Alone-Carousel Actions Speak Louder than Words-Tick Tick Boom(Birthday music always gets me) Sunrise, Sunset-Fiddler Finale-the Secret Garden Down once more/track this murderer-Phantom movie soundtrack...everything from earned a mother's fear and loathing through the end of the whole song
"If there was a Mount Rushmore for Broadway scores, "West Side Story" would be front and center. It snaps, it crackles it pops! It surges with a roar, its energy and sheer life undiminished by the years" - NYPost reviewer Elisabeth Vincentelli