18. Streets of Philadelphia, by Bruce Springsteen, from Philadelphia (1993)
Quite easily the saddest and most haunting song on the list so far, Springsteen’s Streets of Philadelphia was extremely fitting for Philadelphia, a film about AIDS sufferers. Perfectly capturing the pain, loss, and loneliness of AIDS sufferers, Springsteen’s song lacks the typical upbeat feel of the average movie song, but packs an emotional punch like few others.
Stats: Number 2 in the UK, number 4 in Australia, and number 9 in the US; Academy Award win; Golden Globe win; Grammy win.
Penalty Points: It’s not exactly going to leave you bouncing around with a smile on your face.
Bonus Points: Possibly the first commercially successful song to talk so candidly about what was a particularly frightening issue at the time. Props.
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