5 Folk Rock Songs For When You're Feeling Lonely

For those who love lyric-driven music, folk rock could be considered an ideal fit for them. There's often plenty of vulnerability baked into the verses, thought-provoking words, and detailed storytelling. Some of the stories involve feelings of aloneness, abandonment, and isolation, so we selected five of the best folk rock songs to play when that feeling of loneliness kicks in.

We singled out these songs because true bravery is shown in the writing since artists seemingly didn't hold back on displaying raw emotion, which is necessary to fully capture and communicate their feelings of seclusion. Of course, there are various types of loneliness, as well as different reasons as to how the feeling began.

With the songs we chose, they all successfully capture some of those differences, while highlighting a specific kind of loneliness. Some of them detail loneliness that's felt when a certain time of year rolls around, another captures the secluded feeling that hits during a certain stage of life, and there's others that speak of feeling lonely after a breakup. That means you can select the perfect song that matches your personal situation. 

The song "Man of Constant Sorrow" has an interesting history to say the least. Besides Bob Dylan's cover, it's also been sung by Peter, Paul and Mary, Judy Collins did a version, and so did The Stanley Brothers. Joan Baez also did one, just to name a few of the artists. The person credited with writing the somber tune is Kentucky folk singer Dick Burnett, publishing it in 1913 under the title "Farewell Song" —but he once admitted that he also might've borrowed it himself.

Dylan covered his version of "Man of Constant Sorrow" in 1962 on his eponymous album, his debut, and the somber lyrics highlight a palpable feeling of unhappiness. Of course, Dylan didn't write the words, but they match what he said many years after the release, as he was once quoted as saying, "Happiness is not on my list of priorities."

As for the the lyrics, they tell the story of a man who seemingly gave up on the idea of love and companionship. "I am a man of constant sorrow / I've seen trouble all my days / I'll say goodbye to Colorado / Where I was born and partly raised," Dylan sings. The song is tailor-made for the person who left home to get away from constant trouble and chose loneliness instead. 

If you pay attention to Christmas carols and Christmas movies, the holidays should only be associated with family, feelings of togetherness, and unbridled cheer. But Joni Mitchell uses the holiday season as the main setting of her 1971 classic "River," where she expresses feelings of loneliness and a desire to escape her surroundings. It's possible that Christmas reminded Joni Mitchell of the tragic childhood she had since she once spent the holidays in a polio ward and told she might never walk again. 

"It's coming on Christmas / They're cutting down trees / They're putting up reindeer / And singing songs of joy and peace / Oh, I wish I had a river I could skate away on," she sings in the famous opening lines. Mitchell was already well-accomplished by the time "River" was released on her beloved "Blue" album, and she was planning her escape from fame based on the second verse. "I'm gonna make a lot of money / Then I'm gonna quit this crazy scene," she promises.

But it wasn't just the hectic life of a music star that seemed to have Mitchell feeling down — in the song, she admitted to being the reason her partner left, telling listeners that she can be selfish and hard to deal with. So, if you're in that same boat around the holiday season and get swept up by feelings of loneliness, you'll need someone else who understands to get through it, and Mitchell is the perfect person with "River." 

When it comes to feelings of isolation, sometimes it's forced on a person after being abandoned, while other times it can be self-imposed, and Simon & Garfunkel sing about the latter kind of loneliness on "I Am a Rock." The lyrics, penned by Simon and released as a solo in 1965 on "The Paul Simon Song Book," tell the story of the singer-songwriter shielding himself from companionship with books and poetry inside his bedroom. Simon & Garfunkel later re-recorded the tune for their "Sounds of Silence" album.

It's evident when listening to the song that Simon has been let down far too many times by those close to him, and he wants to be a rock that never feels pain. Simon talked about the lyrical inspiration with former Tiger Beat editor Ann Moses in 1966, which she republished on her website decades later.

"There was a year in my life when I didn't have any friends," Simon recalled. "Not because there was nobody that wanted to be my friend, but because I was just living within myself, really. I was all alone all the time." Then later in the interview, Simon said that he eventually ended his solitude and sought companionship. So, in the end, "I Am a Rock" is a song that one can play when feelings of seclusion hit hard, whether it's self-imposed or not.

Becoming an older person certainly has its benefits. Wisdom is gained, and usually one gets to slow down after a life of hard work. The downsides include feelings of isolation in many cases, due to children growing up and leaving home, as well as friends not being around like they used to be.

John Prine's 1971 song, "Hello In There," brilliantly captures that older stage of life, and it's an ideal tune for anyone going through the same thing. "Hello In There" can also be helpful to young people, as it could potentially give them a sense of what life might look like in the future.

"We had an apartment in the city / Me and Loretta liked living there / Well, it'd been years since the kids had grown / A life of their own left us alone," sings Prine over an acoustic guitar.

What's interesting, though, is that he was just 22 years old when he wrote the song. "When I was little, old people used to take to me real fast for some reason, and I used to take to them," Prine told the late broadcaster Studs Terkel in 1975. "For a while there I delivered papers in old people's home ... Most of them just seemed like they were waiting around to die." Prine tragically died from COVID-19 related causes at 73 years old, being just one of the famous musicians we lost in 2020.  

If Don McLean gave someone relationship advice, he might tell that person to believe their partner when he or she threatens to leave. The New York native apparently learned that lesson and sings about it in his 1971 song "Empty Chairs," off his "American Pie" album, where he compares his life before and after a breakup. He also specifies that his feelings of loneliness are felt most at night.

"And I wonder if you know / That I never understood / That although you said you'd go until you did / I never thought you would," he sings in the chorus. "Empty Chairs" is the perfect song to play for anyone feeling lonely after being left by a loved one, or it can serve as a warning sign for those who believe their partner's threat to leave is just a bluff.

McLean's writing is also incredibly visual in the song, as it's easy to see the image of his sleepless nights, and the memories he describes of his woman's hair falling over the pillowcase. Of course, the feelings of loneliness related to a breakup are very specific, and McLean paints the picture with perfect colors.