Over the course of the last couple of years I’ve been pulling together music from my collection to create a “Requiem for a Gay Man.” I’m not really sure why I started this project, I think I was getting nostalgic and sentimental about some of the folks I’ve known and lost over the years. Knowing I myself didn’t want to have a “traditional christian” style funeral – esp. since I’m an atheist and about as non-traditional as you can get when it comes to religious stuff, I wanted something uniquely “me” for my final good-bye. (not that I’m anywhere near death or anything, but hey – you never know your allotment, so I figured better safe than sorry and getting stuck with some weird, cultish funeral…)

Anyways, I ended up with three CD’s worth of music – a bit long for a requiem, lol. But it goes together quite nicely, if I do say so myself. Part I focuses primarily on “gay life” and “coming out.” Part II focuses on friends, family, and lovers. Part III is the actual “funeral dirge” with a solemn, reflective sentiment. Each “movement” begins with an interlude by Enya.  In case you’re interested, here’s the full program (maybe someday it’ll be made into an amazing Broadway Musical, LOL):

[Edit: added links to YouTube versions of the songs, some performed by amateurs, some the original videos, others just slide shows,  No Link = I couldn’t find it – also being YouTube, many times music vids get axed, so sometimes you’ll get dead links – bummer]

Part I: Life

1. Enya – Miss Claire Remembers
2. Queen – Bohemian Rhapsody (the commensurate “coming out” song)
3. The Who – Behind Blue Eyes
4. Ozzy – Crazy Train
5. Rod Stewart – The Killing of Georgie (I & II)
6. Rush – Nobody’s Hero
7. Yaz – Anyone
8. Billy Squire – Nobody Knows
9. Camouflage – A Picture of Life
10. Madonna – Live to Tell
11. U2 – New Year’s Day
12. Queen – Break Free
13. The Fixx – Outside
14. Peter Gabriel/Kate Bush – Don’t Give Up
15. Yaz – Nobody’s Diary
16. Melissa Etheridge – Silent Legacy

Part II: Love

1. Enya – Oriel Window
2. Madonna/Evita – Another Suitcase
3. Kate Bush – Moments of Pleasure
4. Enya – I Want Tomorrow
5. Yaz – And On
6. Jimmy Sommerville – For A Friend
7. Elton John – Daniel
8. Queen – Best Friend
9. Pink Floyd – Wish You Were Here
10. Cheryl Crow – Safe And Sound
11. U2 – One
12. Tatu – 30 Minutes (Russian Version)

Part III: Requiem

1. Enya – Lothlorien
2. Yaz – In My Room
3. Madonna/Evita – Lament
4. Seal – Prayer for the Dying
5. Eurythmics – Peace
6. REM – You Are The Everything
7. Rush – Afterimage
8. Queensryche – Silent Lucidity
9. Melissa Etheridge – Talking to my Angel
10. Yaz – Softly Over
11. Queen – Who Wants to Live Forever/The Show Must Go On
12. Enya – Cursum Perficio
13. Styx – Castle Walls (pall bearer’s march)
14. Jarre – Last Rendez-Vous (at the cemetery)
15. VnV Nation – As It Fades (at cemetery)

What prompted me to write about this was because I went to a “memorial” performance last night for an awesome local comedic “drag performer,” who died a couple weeks ago from cancer.  And one of the performers had selected Lament from Evita, so that kind of caught me off-guard, but it also validated my reasons for including it in my own requiem.  Good-bye Geneva, and thanks for the laughs.