55 Best Country Songs About Death

If there’s any genre that can sound so sad, it’s country music. With their clever metaphors and melodies rooted in folk songs, these singers have been telling the stories of real and imaginary tragedies for decades. Whenever you need a good cry, country music is there for you.

We’ve compiled 55 country songs about death. These come from classic country to recent top hits, so whatever your need, you’ll be able to find something here.   

1. The Dance – Garth Brooks

Garth Brooks - The Dance (Lyrics)

No matter who’s singing it, Garth Brooks’s song is one of the best country songs about loss. The message illustrates the bittersweetness of love and shows that it’s always worth it to love someone—even if you’re going to lose them.

Next: The most popular and best country songs of all time

2. He Stopped Loving Her Today – George Jones 

He Stopped Loving Her Today

This is one of the last songs George Jones ever performed. The lyrics tell the story of a man who loved a woman through all the troubles they faced. Fans of the song love the twist in the title and how it is an instant tear-jerker.

Next: The most impactful songs about death of all time

3. If I Die Young – The Band Perry

The Band Perry - If I Die Young (Official Music Video)

With its sweet melody paired with its somber lyrics, this tune is unforgettable. It tells the story of a person who dies before her time and shines down on her mother as a rainbow.

Next: Ultimate list of “daughter songs”

4. Die a Happy Man – Thomas Rhett

Thomas Rhett - Die A Happy Man

This song is more rhetorical when it comes to death. It is a happy love song about how a man has found the perfect person for him. With her by his side, he knows he will die happy no matter what happens from here on out in his life.

Next: The best funeral songs for a father

5. Go Rest on That Mountain – Vince Gill  

Vince Gill - Go Rest High On That Mountain (Official Music Video)

Vince Gill wrote this song about a friend he lost to alcoholism. However, for a long time, he felt the song was unfinished. Eventually, he added a final verse to finish the work and performed it for fans. He says audiences “come unglued” when they hear it.

Next: Top songs about the death of a friend and losing them

6. If Heaven Wasn’t So Far Away – Justin Moore

Justin Moore - If Heaven Wasn't So Far Away

This classic modern country hit gets to the heart of what everyone feels after a loss. The lyrics talk about wishing he could take his kids for a visit to meet their grandparents in Heaven.

Next: Ultimate list of country funeral songs

7. Whiskey Lullaby – Brad Paisley Featuring Alison Krauss

Brad Paisley - Whiskey Lullaby (Full Version - Official Video) ft. Alison Krauss

This is a painful but beautiful song about two people who drank themselves to death. It’s a morbid topic, but the lyrics and melody recorded by Brad Paisley and Alison Krauss create what many have called the saddest song ever.

8. She Thinks His Name Was John – Reba McEntire 

Reba McEntire - She Thinks His Name Was John (Official Music Video)

Reba McEntire took on a difficult topic with this one. In “She Thinks His Name Was John,” a woman was dying from a sexually transmitted infection, likely HIV. The song paints a lovely picture of a kind person who made one mistake that cost her her life.

9. There You’ll Be – Faith Hill

There You'll Be (2007 Remaster)

This song from the movie Pearl Harbor is about the power of love to continue even beyond death. Country music often invokes the image of meeting again in Heaven, and Faith Hill’s voice helps fans believe in it.

10. 25 Minutes to Go – Johnny Cash 

Johnny Cash - 25 Minutes to Go (Official Audio)

The “Man in Black” counts down to the pardon he’s desperate for in this Shel Silverstein hit. This is the song of a convicted man who has less than half an hour to live. In every verse, the singer is another minute closer to the gallows.

11. Boulder to Birmingham – Emmylou Harris

Boulder to Birmingham

Emmylou Harris wrote this as a sort of tribute to her touring partner who had passed away. Now, it’s one of her most famous songs because of the mournful message that so many fans can also relate to.

12. You Should Be Here – Cole Swindell

Cole Swindell - You Should Be Here (Official Music Video)

Cole Swindell wrote this about his father, who had passed away. The lyrics express sadness that his dad can’t be there to celebrate his success. He imagines what his father would be doing and how much he would enjoy the good times.

13. Long Black Veil – Lefty Frizzell

This folk song has been covered by many famous artists. It uses the unique perspective of a person who has already died. He talks about the guilt and secrets that have been left behind.

14. The Christmas Shoes – NewSong

NewSong - The Christmas Shoes

This song often comes on the radio at Christmastime, but it’s maybe too sad for the holiday season. In the lyrics, a boy shops for new shoes for his mother to give her as a Christmas gift… because she’s going to meet Jesus tonight.

15. See You Again – Carrie Underwood

Carrie Underwood - See You Again

Originally intended for the film The Chronicles of Narnia: The Voyage of the Dawn Treader, this song actually came out on Carrie Underwood’s own album instead. It’s a message to anyone who is experiencing loss that they will be reunited one day.

16. Sweet Old World – Lucinda Williams

Lucinda Williams wrote this song to commemorate her friend who passed away. This is a song filled with edgy pain that too many people understand.

17. I Called Mama – Tim McGraw

Tim McGraw - I Called Mama (Official Music Video)

Released just before Mother’s Day, this song focuses on the importance of calling people to appreciate their presence in your life before it’s too late. The singer realizes he needs to get in touch with his mother when his close friend gets heartbreaking news about his own parents.

Next: The best songs about aging and getting older

18. Sissy’s Song – Alan Jackson

Alan Jackson - Sissy's Song (Official Music Video)

Alan Jackson’s family housekeeper died in a tragic accident, and he wanted to remember her through this song. The lyrics express all the grief and misery that come when a person is taken away much too soon.

Next: Ultimate list of the best country singers in history

19. Over You – Miranda Lambert

Miranda Lambert - Over You

When Miranda Lambert’s husband at the time—Blake Shelton—lost his brother to a car accident, they wrote this song together to process the sadness and anger they felt. Shelton eventually asked Lambert to record the song on her own because it was too painful for him to sing.

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20. One More Day – Diamond Rio

Diamond Rio - One More Day (Official HD Video)

This is one that any mourner can understand. It illustrates exactly what we all wish for: “One More Day” with you. This is the perfect country song for sitting back and letting the tears flow when you really miss someone.

21. Walking Her Home – Mark Schultz

Mark Schultz’s song tells the story of a young man who fell in love with his future wife. Her father told him to stay by her side and walk her home at night. Many years later, in the nursing home, that young man is now old and is still walking his wife home to her room at night.

22. Why – Rascal Flatts

Rascal Flatts - Why (Official Music Video)

Trigger warning: Self-harm. This is a difficult one to listen to for some fans. The title “Why” expresses what so many people left behind wonder when their loved ones have left them on purpose.

23. Drink a Beer – Luke Bryan

Luke Bryan - Drink A Beer (Live Performance Video)

Luke Bryan lost both his brother and his sister, and he recorded this song to express his loneliness in grief. Many fans have told him they are able to relate to the feelings he describes.

24. Roses for Mama – C.W. McCall

This song may have been the inspiration for “The Christmas Shoes,” because it uses a similar tear-jerking twist. A boy is trying to get flowers for his mother, and when the singer follows him, we learn that the boy is taking the bouquet to her grave.

25. I Can Only Imagine – MercyMe

MercyMe - I Can Only Imagine (The Movie Session - Official Music Video)

Bart Millard, singer and songwriter for MercyMe, drew inspiration from his troubled history with his own father to write this song. He and his father eventually grew to love one another before his father passed away.

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26. When I Get Where I’m Going – Brad Paisley Featuring Dolly Parton

Brad Paisley - When I Get Where I'm Going (Official Video) ft. Dolly Parton

This song became popular both for its lovely melody and its powerful video, where people hold up pictures of loved ones who have passed away. The pictures are sometimes recognizable celebrities and other times average people, but the message is the same. All of them are missed.

Next: Greatest duets from the country genre ever recorded

27. Go On Without Me – Brett Eldredge

Brett Eldredge - "Go On Without Me" [Official Audio]

This song is from the perspective of a person who has passed on. It encourages mourners to learn to live with happiness again even though they are feeling sad.

28. I Drive Your Truck – Lee Brice

Lee Brice - I Drive Your Truck (Official Music Video)

Lee Brice sings this song about a man whose son lost his life fighting overseas. The man missed his son and wanted to feel closer to him, so he started to drive his truck around. He leaves things in the truck, like change and leftover bottles of Gatorade.

Next: The best songs about sons ever recorded

29. If I Don’t Make It Back – Tracy Lawrence 

If I Don't Make It Back

For soldiers who worry about not coming home to their friends and families, this song is likely to be a good fit. The lyrics describe a young man telling his friends to enjoy their lives and remember him if he doesn’t come home safely.

30. When a Hero Falls – Stephen Cochran 

Country music fans often connect with songs about military service, and this is another one about heroes who can’t come home.

Next: The best songs about war (and/or anti-war songs)

31. I’m No Stranger to the Rain – Keith Whitley

Keith Whitley - I'm No Stranger to the Rain (Official Video)

Keith Whitley’s final album contained this song about the many things a person experiences in life that can cause sorrow. Later, Vince Gill wrote a song about his own sorrow after Whitley’s death.

32. I Can’t Write That – Jeff Bates

I Can't Write That

This 2005 song describes how impossible it can sometimes be even for a writer to capture the pain of loss. He says he can’t write about “the day she went away” because then he’d have to relive the sadness.

33. If Something Should Happen – Darryl Worley

If Something Should Happen

Many people know the fear of having to leave loved ones behind. This song deals with the feelings a father has when he considers that he might not get to live long enough to raise his family the way he always wanted to.

34. Three Wooden Crosses – Randy Travis  

Three Wooden Crosses

In the world of storytelling songs, this is one of the saddest. It tells of a tragic accident that changed lives forever. The title refers to the crosses that mark the place on the highway where it happened.

35. Holes in the Floor of Heaven – Steve Wariner

Holes In The Floor Of Heaven

According to this song, there are “Holes In The Floor Of Heaven. This is where the tears of passed loved ones fall through.

Next: Songs about heaven (the best ever recorded)

36. The Funeral – Hank Williams

Hank Williams performs a poem that meant a lot to him in this now dated “song.” Many of the lyrics of this poem now use terms that aren’t acceptable by today’s standards. It tells the story of a Southern white man who passes by a funeral for a young black boy. The poem was first published in 1886.

37. I’m Not Gonna Miss You – Glen Campbell

I'm Not Gonna Miss You

This is the last song recorded by Glen Campbell. He wrote it in response to his own Alzheimer’s diagnosis. He was reportedly tired of being asked how he felt about his own condition, and he wanted to express his complicated feelings in song.

38. Love, Me – Collin Raye

This is an incredibly popular song that has been played everywhere from top hit radio channels to funeral services. It’s about the lasting power of love, even through hardships and death.

39. Chiseled in Stone – Vern Gosdin

Vern Gosdin - Chiseled In Stone

This song won the Country Music Association’s Song of the Year Award in 1989. In the lyrics, a man tells the singer to appreciate having someone to go home to.  

40. How Can I Help You Say Goodbye – Patty Loveless

How Can I Help You Say Goodbye - Patty Loveless - (Official Lyric Video)

Patty Loveless sings this heart-wrenching song about helping parents age and pass along. She contemplates the difficulty of giving comfort to her parents when they gave her comfort throughout her whole life.

41. Who You’d Be Today – Kenny Chesney

Kenny Chesney - Who You'd Be Today (Official Video)

This memorable song reaches out to everyone who has lost someone too early. The lyrics imagine what someone who died young would be like years later.

42. Travelin’ Soldier – The Chicks

The Chicks - Travelin' Soldier (Official Video)

In this narrative song, we follow the story of a young soldier who meets a young waitress. They strike up a friendship and exchange letters when he goes away to Vietnam. When she receives news that he has been killed in action, her heart is broken.

43. When I’m Gone – Joey + Rory

Joey+Rory - When I'm Gone

In mournful tones, this ballad talks the listener through what life will be like after she is gone. Time will move on, but the song recognizes that fear and sadness will be hard to face.

44. Thank-You – Johnny Reid

If you’re looking for sad but uplifting songs for a funeral, this might be a good choice. It expresses thanks for all the best moments in life.

Next: Great choices for celebration of life songs

45. Five More Minutes – Scotty McCreery

Scotty McCreery - Five More Minutes (Official Video)

Many songs about grief review life from childhood on, and this is a good example. It starts with the “Five More Minutes” that all kids want when they have to come in from playing. It ends with a much more meaningful five minutes.

46. I’m Already There – Lonestar

Lonestar - I'm Already There (Message From Home)

This song was released before September 11, 2001, but it came out close to the attacks and became associated with it. Many people think of it when they are missing someone.

Next: The top songs about 9/11 ever recorded

47. He Didn’t Have to Be – Brad Paisley

Brad Paisley - He Didn't Have To Be (Official Video)

In this song, Brad Paisley honors a stepfather who he thought never had to raise him. This man entered their lives and took on a single mother out of love. He recognizes how important this man was to his own development.

48. Butterfly Kisses – Bob Carlisle

Bob Carlisle - Butterfly Kisses

“Butterfly Kisses” expresses the joy a man feels at having a daughter who loves him. He realizes that one day he’ll have to let her go when she gets married, and even when he ages and passes away. But he knows he did something right in life because she gives him butterfly kisses.

49. Believe – Brooks & Dunn

Brooks & Dunn - Believe (Official Video)

In this acoustic song, an old man reflects on the people he’s lost throughout his life. The singer wonders how a man can handle such pain. Later, the old man dies, and the singer reflects on this loss.

50. Live Like You Were Dying – Tim McGraw

Tim McGraw - Live Like You Were Dying (Official Music Video)

Tim McGraw’s life-affirming, happy song about dying is the kind of positivity many people need at the worst moments in their lives.

51. I Wish Grandpas Never Died – Riley Green

Riley Green, 'I Wish Grandpas Never Died' - Live

The title says it all for this one. Riley Green describes what his fans have all been wishing for their own loved ones.

52. Cryin’ For Me – Toby Keith

Toby Keith - Cryin' For Me (Wayman's Song) ft. Arthur Thompson, Marcus Miller, Dave Koz

Here’s another popular choice for funerals. Fans say this song has helped them through their grief because it describes what people feel when they’re processing a loss. It says we don’t cry because we feel sorry for the person who died. We cry for ourselves.

53. Don’t Blink – Kenny Chesney

Kenny Chesney - Don't Blink (Official Video)

This song reminds us all that life is unpredictable, and time moves in ways we never expect. In the lyrics, a man tells the singer not to blink because “…a hundred years, Goes faster than you think.”

54. If I Could Only Bring You Back – Joe Diffie

If I Could Only Bring You Back

Anyone who has gone through a death knows this feeling. Joe Diffie looks around at all he has in his life, but he realizes that there’s one thing he wants that he can’t have. He wants to bring his loved one back.

55. If I Had Only Known – Reba McEntire

If I Had Only Known

Reba McEntire famously sang this as a tribute to band members who died in a plane crash. Her beautiful voice is impossible to hear without feeling the emotion of the lyrics.

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