We hope you’ll find meaning in this playlist of influential, meaningful, funny, poignant songs about humans and other species. We’re also building a playlist of songs relevant to animals and grief; visit our project, Green Pet-Burial Society.

A Place in the Choir – Vocals by Tommy Makem and Liam Clancy. Music and lyrics by Bill Staines. 1979.

Ancient Husky Melody – Vocals, music and lyrics by The Kiffness and Haiku the Husky. ~2021. (Dogs) [The Kiffness, a.k.a. David Scott, composes songs inspired by the sounds of dogs and cats, all of which are sympathetic works of art.]

Ben – Vocals by Michael Jackson (14 years old). Music and lyrics by Walter Scharf and Don Black. 1972. (Rats)

Blackbird – Vocals, music and lyrics by Paul McCartney, although credited to Lennon–McCartney, Beatles, on the album The Beatles [a.k.a. The White Album]. 1968. [The song features the song of an actual blackbird, with a lyric sharing the sense of liberation. McCartney said that the song was about the oppression of black folk in the U.S., and ‘blackbird’ refers to black women.] (Blackbirds/Humans)

Bless the Beasts and Children – Music by Barry De Vorzon and Perry Botkin, Jr. Lyric by De Vorzon. Performed by the Carpenters, on their album, A Song for You (1972). Originally composed for the film of the same name, directed by Stanley Kramer. The song was reimagined by Kramer’s daughter, Kat Kramer, to include Sondheim’s Not While I’m Around. She is accompanied by a choir and performers from Le Petit Cirque, the animal-free children’s circus. (Bison/Humans)

Dogs Are The Best People – Vocals, music and lyrics by The Fauves. 1996. [While ostensibly about dogs, the song asks why humans can’t be more like our canine companions. Review.] (Dogs/Humans)

The Hunters – Vocals, music and lyrics by Allison Russel. 2021. (Wolves)

I Lost My Dog – Vocals by Anne Murray. Music and lyrics by Al Gambino, on Murray’s album of previously unreleased songs, Here You Are. 2025. (Dogs)

I Love My Dog – Vocals, music and lyrics by Cat Stevens (Yusuf) on the album Matthew & Son). 1967. (Dogs)

I Want A Dog – Vocals, music and lyrics by Rivers Cuomo, on Weezer’s album, SZNZ: Winter. 2002. (Dogs)

Memory – Vocals by Barbra Streisand. Music by Andrew Lloyd Webber, with lyrics by Trevor Nunn based on poems by T. S. Eliot. For the Broadway musical, Cats. 1981. (Cats)

Mina – Music by Sir Edward Elgar, published by Keith Prowse. 1933. Performed by Northern Sinfonia of England, conducted by Richard Hickox. [The music is accompanied by video of Elgar’s private films of himself with his beloved dogs. Mina was the name of his cairn terrier, one of the dogs who brought much joy into his life after the passing of his wife in 1920.] (Dogs)

Old Dog Tray – Music and lyric by Stephen Collins Foster, published by Firth, Pond & Co. 1853. Performed by Nelson Eddy with video of art depicting close relationships with dogs. [Also, here’s a clip from the 1952 film, I Dream of Jeanie, with Bill Shirley portraying Stephen Foster, and duetting with a very adorable dog.] (Dogs)

Promenade (a.k.a. Walking the dog) – Music by George Gershwin, for the film, Shall We Dance. 1937. Performed by the Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra & Leonard Slatkin on the album, Gershwin: All the Works for Piano & Orchestra. (Dogs)

Ride Me Back Home – Vocals by Willie Nelson. Music and lyrics by Lucinda Hinton, Joe Manual, Debby Throckmorton, Sonny Throckmorton. 2019. (Horses)

Serenade To A Poodle – Vocals, music and lyrics by Slim Gaillard. Slim Gaillard And His Trio. 1949. (Dogs)

Something Blue – Vocals, music and lyrics by Neil Diamond. 2014. [Possibly from a dog’s perspective, as suggested by the official video] (Dogs)

Sometimes I’m Alone – Vocals, music and lyrics by The Kiffness and Lonely Cat (George Rufus). 2023. (cats) [The Kiffness, a.k.a. David Scott, composes songs inspired by the sounds of dogs and cats, all of which are sympathetic works of art.]

They’re Coming to Take Me Away, Ha-Haaa! – Vocals, music and lyrics by Napoleon XIV (Jerry Samuels), 1966. Wise Brothers Music. (Dogs) [This was a massive hit in the US, Canada, and UK. The lyrics tell of a man who went ‘out of my mind’ and would subsequently be institutionalized after his dog ran away.]

Véritables Préludes Flasques (Pour un chien) – Music by Erik Satie, 1912. The three preludes are: Sévère réprimande (Severe Reprimand), Seul à la maison (Home Alone), and On joue (We Play). Published by E. Demets. (Dogs)

updated September 5, 2025