The Best of the Worst...
There are a lot of funny and absurd moments that can naturally occur over the course of your wedding day. From wayward ring-bearers to lengthy and impromptu speeches from Uncle Ralph, you will be sure to have a cornucopia of ridiculous stories to look back on and laugh at as you and your spouse remember you special day. While these moments can be something to treasure, one of the more significant parts of your wedding that you may want to make sure goes smoothly will be your first dance together as a newly married couple. It will be a reflection of your love together, so choosing the right song (or NOT choosing the wrong song) is vital. Here are some of the best of the worst awkward songs to not play at your wedding.
"I Will Always Love You" - Whitney Houston
News flash, y'all... this song is about a break-up! Do you really want to be dancing with your new spouse while Whitney sings about "bittersweet memories... that is all I'm taking with me"? I didn't think so. If you absolutely must be serenaded by Ms. Houston during your dance together, aim for something a little more appropriate like her ballad, "My Love is Your Love".
"Every Breath You Take" - The Police
Everybody loves Sting. I mean, the man has talent, style, and he knows about chakras and stuff like that. You know who REALLY loves Sting, though? The possessive and controlling lover that this song is about. Seriously, even Sting himself said this in an interview regarding the song:
"I woke up in the middle of the night with that line in my head, sat down at the piano and had written it in half an hour. The tune itself is generic, an aggregate of hundreds of others, but the words are interesting. It sounds like a comforting love song. I didn't realize at the time how sinister it is. I think I was thinking of Big Brother, surveillance and control."
"My Heart Will Go On" – Celine Dion
Whether this song is actually about a dead lover is up for debate. One thing is for sure, though. While you and the love of your life are swaying together on the dance floor, the rest of your guests will be wondering why Rose didn't just move over and let Jack float away to sweet salvation with her. Honestly Rose, everyone knows there was enough room on that door.
"How Do I Live?" - Leann Rimes
Love and devotion are beautiful things. Codependence... not so much. In this nineties classic, Leann sings such mega-scary lyrics as "How do I get through one night without you?", "How do I breathe without you?", and "Without you, there would be no sun in my sky".
... Just no.
Yep - that's also a real lyric from the song... Yikes.
"Wicked Game" - Chris Isaak
The chorus of this song is often misheard as "Oh I want to fall in love with you". If that was the case, it might make a perfectly appropriate song to compliment one's nuptials. Unfortunately, the real lyric is "No, I don't want to fall in love (this girl is only gonna break your heart)". If you dig into the lyrics of this song, you'll see that is less about love and more about fear.
“Stay With Me” - Sam Smith
We mentioned this one in our recent video, 5 Things to Remember When Choosing Your First Dance Song. I'll be the first to admit that I love some Sam Smith, but this song - beautiful as it might be - is in fact about a one-night-stand, heartache, and a heck of a lot of loneliness. This is probably not your idea of what a lifelong romance looks like, so best to stay away from this one on your big day.
***Bonus: Awkward Father - Daughter Dance***
"Brown Eyed Girl" - Van Morrison
Believe it or not, we have actually had requests to play this song for the Father-Daughter dance. If you were just going by the title, I can absolutely see how this might be a sweet song to dedicate to your little girl. Unfortunately, things will probably take a turn for the awkward once Van Morrison starts singing about "Making love in the green grass behind the stadium". You'll be much better off going with a classic Father-daughter standby like "My Girl".
Great - Now I know what NOT to do...
Now that you know of some songs to avoid for your wedding day, you're probably wondering, "What songs SHOULD I request from my band or DJ?" A great place to start is our list of favorite wedding reception dance songs as a Spotify playlist. Armed with these standards and the tips we talked about in our recent first dance video and blog, you'll be sure to have an unbeatable lineup of songs to play that keep your guests dancing and enjoying themselves all night long.