A
torch song is a sentimental
love song, typically one in which the singer laments an
unrequited or lost love, either where one party is oblivious to the existence of the other, where one party has moved on, or where a
romantic affair has affected the relationship. The term comes from the saying, "to carry a
torch for someone", or to keep aflame the light of an unrequited love. Tommy Lyman started the use in his praise of
My Melancholy Baby.