Wedding Music: How hard can it be to choose a song for your first dance?

Wedding Music: How hard can it be to choose a song for your first dance?

There was a time when couples had 'their song' and the decision of which track to use for the first dance at a wedding was a simple one. However, in the new millennium, this choice is not as easy as you might think for some couples. Whether this is due to a glut in good quality modern love songs and ballads is debatable, but with the growing popularity of hip hop, dance and house music, the likelihood of the newly-weds favourite song being at the right tempo and having appropriate lyrics, becomes more remote.

A quick search of U-tube will show you that this doesn't pose a problem for everybody, with plenty of comedy clips of elaborate 'first dances' to tracks like 'I Like Big Butts and I Cannot Lie'. However, such a theatrical approach is not to everyone's taste and a return to the more traditional ballads of the twentieth century are still very common. Indeed, out of the top ten songs rated by users of occasionsongs.com, a website specialising in wedding song suggestions, only one was written within the last ten years.

It may seem obvious, but having selected a track, a quick check of the lyrics and some research into the premiss of the song is well worth doing. For example, at first listen, Lou Reeds 'Perfect Day' might be regarded as particularly suitable, with a great tune, tempo and seemingly appropriate lyrics. However, if you dig a little deeper, you will find that many people suggest that this song was written about Lou Reeds heroine addiction. Even if it wasn't, the final line “you're going to reap just what you sow” isn't exactly the most romantic line ever.

Another classic song to be regularly misinterpreted is 'Every Breath You Take' by the Police. A quick google search will show you that this song is widely regarded as being about Stings break-up with his first wife - hardly a fitting sentiment for the first dance of a newly wed couple.

So how do you navigate your way through the pitfalls of choosing a song for the 'first dance' at your wedding, if you don't already have a suitable favourite? Well, if you can't face reading through the sleeve notes of your record collection, you can try some of the many internet sites offering suitable suggestions, which can provide popular lists and song lyrics, as well as useful additional information about each song, allowing you to assess how appropriate it really is. If all else fails, you could just play safe and plump for an instrumental track instead (occasionsongs.com recommend Santana's Samba Pa Ti).