Top 10 Best Nightwish Songs

The Top Ten
1 Ghost Love Score

This is not only my favorite Nightwish song, but my favorite song from any band. It's an absolute masterpiece of music. It encompasses so many moods during its hefty running time, through its changes of pace and inclusion of diverse instruments. I feel this song is almost too beautiful, to the point that sometimes it makes me sad to think that one day when life vanishes from this planet, there will be no one left to enjoy this auditory perfection. And it deserves to exist forever. To me, it doesn't even feel like something that was written by mankind. It feels like it was a gift from another world, and it takes me there every time I hear it.

2 The Poet and the Pendulum

Possibly one of the best and most distinguished metal songs ears have ever witnessed, this song brought symphonic music and pump-up metal to their very limits.

The song kicks off as a perfect symphonic metal song with perfect music, vocals, and lyrics. Then it slows down to a very sad and heart-touching musical, before the tempo rises. We encounter two minutes of extreme metal impact and one of the best riffs of all time. Finally, the song ends with a relaxing symphony accompanied by some magical singing from Anette.

This song is unbelievable, incomparable, and unstoppable, and one of the best songs the world has ever known!

3 Nemo

This is one of the few songs that I just cannot skip if it pops up on my Pandora or anywhere else. As soon as I hear those first notes on the piano, I'm hooked, and the powerful music and beautiful vocals keep me interested through the whole song. It is a truly wonderful piece of music.

Nemo encompasses all the different aspects that Nightwish does so well. It brings together heavy metal and melodic vocals and a beautiful background symphony to create a scene and presence not heard in any of their other songs. My favorite song by them by far!

4 Amaranth

What I love about this song is the misheard lyrics.

"Carrots that wander, never fade in rain and you're hard, and Jesus bought my sorrow

Carrots that wander hiding M&Ms in a lamb," and I couldn't understand the next part.

This is like a gift from God. Anette's voice is angelic. Better than Ghost Love Score. The melody is catchy, and the song is both beautiful and catchy. Also, the video is a work of art.

The melody will get stuck in your head for a long time. The lyrics and the video are so beautiful. A true masterpiece of music.

5 Wishmaster

Are you kidding me? You people really want to put the best gothic metal song at 12? Wishmaster is their best song, amazing job from the female singer.

Must be higher than this. Everything's just so good. One of the best songs from Nightwish. I love this song so much.

This has to be one of the best metal songs ever written. It is unbelievably amazing and should be #1.

6 Storytime

There's something wonderful about Storytime. It perfectly captures the feeling of being a kindergartner - no worries, no self-consciousness, just out to see how much fun you can have - and yet, it's got a mysterious, mystical theme. As if, for a second, magic is real.

The lyric "a soaring kite against the blue, blue sky" really catches me every time. The repetition of the word "blue" combined with the pitch just feels so wonderfully... childish? And then it captures you again with those mystical, meaningless words of the next line: "Every chimney, every moonlight sight."

This song is truly legendary.

7 Wish I Had an Angel

This song is such a masterpiece! I was taken with it from the moment I first heard it years ago. It's a shame, really, that it had to be featured in Alone in the Dark, such a letdown of a movie. This song stands on its own quite well, and is my personal favorite of Nightwish's pieces.

There is nothing better than turning the volume up and listening to 'Wish I Had an Angel'. I love the chorus. Marco's voice is amazing! This one makes me scream, jump, and sing along. A masterpiece, indeed.

It's sad the movie it's featured in sucks. An awesome song can't lift the standard of a crappy game-turn-movie from Uwe Boll, no matter what.

8 The Pharaoh Sails to Orion

Different, heavy, and majestic. It's sad that not even one song made it to the top ten from the stunning album Oceanborn because it was pure gold and a symbol of Nightwish's musical style. This includes Stargazers, Sleeping Sun, or Passion and the Opera. Come on, at least one song from Nightwish's best album must make it to the top ten!

By the way, I am kind of annoyed that eight of the songs in the top ten are from Once or DPP. I mean, seriously, Nightwish has six more albums and many, many more top ten worthy songs. So, recognize them too, people!

9 The Greatest Show On Earth

Amazing. The piano, the orchestra, the heavy metal parts, the lyrics... I really don't know which part is best. I was certainly blown away when I heard Bach's minuet played around the middle of the song!

This song is magical. A masterpiece. "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" is their best album to date, as all the songs have a symphonic element. But "The Greatest Show On Earth" is something else, comprised of a full orchestra. It's a thing of beauty that causes the hairs on our skin to rise and our hearts to beat in bliss. "The Greatest Show On Earth" is the best song ever, trumping music made by Beethoven and Mozart, to Frank Sinatra and Hank Williams, to the Beatles and Pink Floyd.

10 Planet Hell

Awesome song, this and Ghost Love Score are the songs that sum up Nightwish entirely. This for the general awesomeness of them as a modern rock band, while Ghost Love Score represents their imagination, symphonic mastery, and frankly, their timelessness.

The melody and the vocals are incredible. When you listen to the verses, you understand why this is one of their best songs.

Everything about this song is fantastic. From the dramatic choirs to Marco's powerful voice. Absolutely perfect.

The Contenders
11 Bye Bye Beautiful

The first time I watched this video, I didn't notice the women had changed into men. That said, this song is fantastic. Marco's growls complement Anette's vocals perfectly. A masterpiece.

I love this one. I love Marco's angry voice! This one rocks! It reminds me of Wish I Had an Angel. I don't know why.

Such an epic song! It will blow your mind! Find it, listen to it, and love it!

12 Master Passion Greed

Probably one of Nightwish's heaviest songs.

13 While Your Lips are Still Red

I actually started to cry when I first heard this song. It's absolutely the most beautiful piece of music I have ever heard. I love this song, and I think Marco's voice is amazing. You can listen to this song a hundred times and you still don't get fed up with it. I can't even describe how much this particular song means to me. It's sweet, touching, and kind of sad. Beautiful. Masterpiece. I love this one. I really do.

This should have been at the top. Amazing lyrics, amazing music. It's on my list of favorite songs that I can listen to innumerable times.

14 Passion and the Opera

You people can keep your Wish I Had An Angels and your Ghost Love Scores to yourselves. This is the best Nightwish song. For one thing, it's an actual metal song with a real riff behind it, not just symphonic bull with Emppu strumming (as opposed to riffing) mindlessly while waiting for a paycheck.

Quite possibly the greatest song ever written. Epic, perfect guitar riffs and pitch-perfect lyrics.

One of the best songs I've ever heard, great riffs and orchestral vocals.
This song should be in the top 5 for sure!

15 Ever Dream

I am dying inside that this isn't even in the top ten. The lyrics are beautiful, Tarja is beautiful, and the instrumental is amazing. The most amazing Nightwish song ever, in my opinion.

Even if beautiful and one of my favorites, it's clearly not the best of their songs, but I'll vote for it anyway, it deserves a higher spot.

I just saw the name and started to cry. This is the song every human should hear. It is a human right to listen to the wonders of music. Tarja, you are an angel!

16 Phantom of the Opera

This was a really epic cover of the classic Phantom of the Opera theme. Like all of Nightwish's songs, it has a heavy feel to it but still has the beautiful opera/symphonic element. This song should be in the top 10 if you ask me.

Really? 17? Come on! This may not be the best track, but I strongly believe that this song should be in the top ten! By the way, I love all Nightwish's songs. I listen to them every day...

This song gave me goosebumps. It's so strong yet emotional. One of the best songs performed by Nightwish. This song should be in the top 10.

17 Last Ride of the Day

Last Ride of the Day has such a dark and gothic melody. The vocals are fabulous. Listening to the music, I feel giddy with all the eerie sensations. The metaphorical lyrics are really something. I could ponder their meaning for hours at a time! This song is an epic piece of music.

"It's hard to light a candle, easy to curse the dark instead." My favorite lyrics.

One of their best. The lyrics complete the melody with their great meaning.

18 The Islander

Every time I hear this song, I promise myself it's going to be a good day. Even if it's not truly what I hoped for the future, I need to hold on to what I know. This song gives me so much love and life. In fact, it is what rooted me to the ground when my brother sexually abused me. I just wanted to die, but this song made me feel warm and golden. This song means life and death to me. I had been so upset over my brother, and I just wanted to die. This song is truly beautiful.

The much more grounded songwriting, along with Marco's vocals, make this a unique and special song in the band's vast discography, and it is undoubtedly my favorite.

19 Over the Hills and Far Away

This song was originally done by Gary Moore. His version is okay, but Nightwish definitely does it better. The vocals are better, and the instruments are better. An epic song!

Absolutely the greatest Nightwish song of all times. Sung with feeling, passion, and power! Absolutely love it!

The best song of Nightwish and in the whole world! That melody is the best I have ever heard!

20 Bless the Child

I am new to Nightwish and the genre, but this song is brilliant. It's the first song of theirs I heard, but it led me to greater wonders. I have always been a rock fan, but this is something I've never heard before. Awesome...

Awesome song by Nightwish. Tarja's vocals are simply mesmerizing. An Elvish band they are. Really a song recorded in Heaven.

How can it be that this song is at such a low position? I am going to say just this: When I die, I want to be buried with this song playing!

21 The Kinslayer

The first Nightwish song I ever heard, the one that got me into a band I would follow for 20 years. Fond memories.

Such a fast-driving song, almost Iron Maiden-sounding with the riff. Catchy, powerful, the best Nightwish song.

This gets the adrenaline pumping: fast, powerful, perfect. Amazing drums and riffs. By far my favorite.

22 Song of Myself

This song is just too good for words. The heavy intro and powerful melody, which leads into the outro at 76, then a bunch of people telling their stories one by one, are amazing.

"Ever seen the lord smile? All the care for the world made beautiful a sad man? Why do we still carry a device of torture around our necks? Oh, how rotten your pre-apocalypse is All you bible-black fools living over nightmare ground. I see all those empty cradles and wonder If man will never change."

That's just gold right there.

Song of Myself is one of the best ever, especially the 6-minute poem. Poet and the Pendulum is still one of the best, along with Beauty of the Beast and Ghost Love Score, but this one is a masterpiece.

23 Stargazers

An absolute hurricane of a song, beautiful and electrifying, also one of their hardest to play and sing. An epitome of old Nightwish for me.

I am very offended to see that this, my favorite song from my favorite album by my favorite band, did not make it to the top ten.

24 Dark Chest of Wonders

I started to love Nightwish when I heard this song. To me, this is the best Nightwish song beside Bye Bye Beautiful, Amaranth, and Nemo. My friend also loves Nightwish and made it her favorite band after hearing this song.

Poet and the Pendulum and Ghost Love Score are the two best Nightwish songs, but this has to be next. I cannot believe that Wish I Had an Angel is ranked higher than this.

I think this song is greatly underestimated. I used to sing it on the way to university for quite a while. Nemo was a lot on air, but this one is so much better.

25 Sahara

One of their most underrated songs. It's uplifting, with changes in the melody that reverberate in your body.

The first Nightwish song I ever heard. It got me into Nightwish, so I love it.

Love the atmosphere of this track, and Olzon's performance here is top-tier.

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