Article from  : Sam Kelton and Frances Stewart (2008)
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Queen, Led Zeppelin and AC/DC now popular funeral songs - Departed music fans are leaving friends with smiles on their faces as traditional songs make way for more offbeat farewells at modern funerals.
Queen's The Show Must Go On, Led Zeppelin's Stairway to Heaven and AC/DC's Highway to Hell top the list of South Australia's most unusual funeral songs, released by Centennial Park, the state's largest provider of cemetery, crematorium and memorial services.
The organisation also released a list of the most played funeral songs, which included classic ballads, including My Way by Frank Sinatra, Andrea Bocelli and Sarah Brightman's Time to Say Goodbye and Louis Armstrong's What a Wonderful World. |
There has been a trend in recent years towards such unusual songs as Ding Dong the Witch is Dead from the Wizard of Oz, Queen's Another One Bites the Dust and Willie Nelson's Hit the Road Jack.
Centennial Park chief executive officer Bryan Elliot said the choice of funeral song could provide an opportunity for families to express the individuality of their loved one and personalise the service.
"Music played during a funeral service helps to set the mood, whether it's emotive, humorous or bittersweet," Mr Elliot said. "Some of the more unusual songs we hear actually work very well within the service, because they represent the person's character."
Recent have found this list to be the most requested songs:-
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A Touch of Paradise
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John Farnham
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Abide With Me
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Various
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Affirmation
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Savage Garden
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Albatross
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Fleetwood Mac
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Always Look on the Bright Side of Life
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Monty Python
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All Things Must Pass
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Paul McCarthy (Concert for George)
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Amazing Grace
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Elvis (Various Artists)
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Amigos Para Sempre (Friends for Life)
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Sara Brightman, Placido Domingo
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Angel
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Sarah McLachlan
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Angels
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Robbie Williams
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Beautiful In My Eyes
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Joshua Kadison
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Because You Loved Me
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Celine Dion
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Bridge Over Troubled Waters
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Simon & Garfunkel
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Candle in the Wind
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Elton John
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Con Te Partiro (Time to Say Goodbye)
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Andre Boccelli, Sara Brightman
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Eagles Wings
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Various
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Every Breath You Take
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The Police
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Everything I Do, I Do It For You;
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Bryan Adams
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Fly
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Celine Dion
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Four Seasons
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Vivaldi
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Galway Bay
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Various
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Goodbye my Lover
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James Blunt
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Goodbye My Friend
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Linda Ronstadt
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Gone to Soon
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Babyface
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Have I Told You Lately That I Love You
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Rod Stewart
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Here Comes the Sun
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Joe Brown (Beatles)
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Hero
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Maria Carey
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I Hope You Dance
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Leann Womack
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I Knew I Loved You
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Savage Garden
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I Need You to Turn To
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Elton John
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I Will Always Love You
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Whitney Houston
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I Will Remember You
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Amy Grant
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I’ll be Missing You
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Puff Daddy
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I’ll See You in My Dreams
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Joe Brown
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If Tomorrow Never Comes
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Ronan Keating
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Imagine
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John Lennon
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In the Arms of the Angels
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Sarah Mclaughlin
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Lara’s Theme (Dr Zhivago)
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Richard Clayderman
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Looking Forward, Looking Back
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Slim Dusty
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Maori Farewell
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Bing Crosby
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Memories
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Elvis
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Memories (The Way We Were)
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Barbara Streisand
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Morning Has Broken
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Cat Stevens
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Mull of Kyntyre (Bagpipes)
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Pipe and Brass Music
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Music form the Album Songbird
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Eva Cassidy
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My Heart Will Go On
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Celine Dion
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My Way
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Frank Sinatra
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Nocturne No 2 in E flat
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Chopin
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One Sweet Day
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Mariah Carey and Boys II Men
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Pachebell - The Canon
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Chopin
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Pie Jesu
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Myles Kingston and Sarah Brightman
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Sailing
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Rod Stewart
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Stairway to Heaven
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Led Zeppelin
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Simply The Best
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Tina Turner
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Somewhere Over the Rainbow
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Cliff Richard
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Songbird
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Eva Cassidy
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Song of Joy
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Julio Iglesias
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Tears In Heaven
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Eric Clapton
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The Carnival is Over
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The Seekers
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The Prayer
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Anthony Callea
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The Rose
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Bette Midler
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The Time of my Life
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Bill Medley and Jennifer Warnes
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There You’ll Be
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Faith Hill
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This Is The Moment (Jekyll and Hyde)
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Anthony Warlow
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Try to Remember
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Perry Como Various Artist
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True Blue
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John Williamson
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Unforgettable
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Natalie Cole
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Unchained Melody
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The Righteous Brothers
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Verdi’s Requiem
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Sara Brightman, Placido Domingo
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Wasn’t it Good
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Tina Arena
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What A Wonderful World
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Tony Bennett and KD Lang
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When You Say Nothing at All
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Ronan Keating
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When You Tell Me That You Love Me
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Julio Iglesias, Dolly Parton
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Wind Beneath My Wings
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Bette Midler or Colleen Hewitt
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With Or Without You
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U2
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You Are So Beautiful
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Joe Cocker
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You Raise Me Up
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Russell Watson
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You'll Never Walk Alone
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Gerry & the Pacemakers
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You’re Still the One
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Shania Twain
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Your Song
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Elton John
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