It was taken less than three months ago on a golf course in Florida. He had not long learned he didn't have long left but he made it clear that what was left had to be as action-packed and memorable as possible.
The thing about knowing you're going is, if you're brave enough, you can plan how your send-off will turn out. We followed his instructions to the letter, including delivering eulogies that asked everyone not to be sad but to remember the happiness he brought to all of us. If anyone ever doubted that was what he wanted at his funeral, they surely couldn't have argued when the final song of the service was played at the time we filed out of the crematorium:-
mp3 : Kool & The Gang - Celebration
Having now experienced it, I can now recommend that you tell a loved one the song you want folk to remember you by. And make sure it is one that will bring a smile to everyone's face. And make sure it's not too an obscure number - you really do need everyone to be part of it.
I'd like to think I would get away with 'This Charming Man'.........
10 comments:
thinking about Doing the unstuck...
Carter USM - The Final Comedown
I've looted and I've begged
On the tubes of the Bec and Broadway
I've been run over by cars
And to prove it her's the scars
On my wrists
I've been cut
I've been stitched
I've been buggered, bewitched and abandoned
But nothing in Heaven or Earth
Prepared me for this
The Final Comedown
It's a victory worth sharing
We should celebrate I think
With the bloodiest of Marys
But I'm too fucked to drink
I was at a funeral a few years back and as we were leaving the church it was The New Radicals "You Get What You Give" that was playing and it was a celebration of a life and did make everyone smile and remember him as he would have wanted us to. Of course we were all extremely saddened that R. was no longer with us but we walked out that church to a tune that meant a lot to him and summed him up to a tee which is what he would have wanted.
lovely to have you back my friend having lost both parents recently within months of one another i feel i am a bit of an expert on this one
best thing i heard said you can grieve they have gone or you can celebrate that they were here i know where i am so when it comes to my time it will be loud it will be joyous at this time it is martin solveig hello(probably change next week) i know that it will not carry much kudos around these columns but wtf it works for me
son of the rock
Welcome back JC. Great photo of your pal.
I too have a revolving list of funeral songs - the lastest addition is the Willie Nelson version of Don't Get Around Much Anymore...
Basil
At the cremation last year of my sister's fiance, two memorable songs were played. First, when the coffin disappeared behind the curtain on its way to the fiery furnace, they played Madness' "It Must Be Love". And as the mourners filed out of the chapel, the song was Monty Python's "Always Look On The Bright Side Of Life". Great stuff.
JC,
Alisaon has always said she wants...
Ding-dong the witch is dead -from the Wizard of Oz !!!!
John Greer
JC,
Alison has always said she wants...
Ding-dong the witch is dead -from the Wizard of Oz !!!!
John Greer
Hmmm ... I know what I'd want, I think, but they won't fucking care anyway: a funeral in the village just HAS to be a serious thing ... therefore you'll NEVER get to hear anything else than Haendel's 'Largo' or something along those lines: it is simply IMPOSSIBLE to imagine The Clash thundering out of the speakers whilst the coffin leaves the church. Mind you, those peasants here don't even know who The Clash were anyway ... for them Deep Purple still are godlike creatures!
'Straight To Hell' would be a good choice though, I would think.
'Bring Me Sunshine' by Morecambe & Wise.
Continued big hugs to you JC x
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