Music for your First Dance

When planning our wedding, one of the aspects I enjoyed most was selecting a song for our first dance. My husband and I love to have a few glasses of wine and search for songs on iTunes, (Warning: imbibing whilst searching for music may result in inadvertent Will Smith downloads) so for us choosing music was great fun.

However, I know for some brides this can be a difficult task. Many couples may already have a "song", but you need to ask yourself the following questions:

1. Is it appropriate? If your song includes lyrics about having intercourse, I would say to move on and find something else. Immediately.

2. How long or short is the song? Do a test and dance to the song at home. If it's over in 30 seconds, or if after 4 minutes you're still dancing, keep looking.

3. Does the DJ have the song? This may sound stupid, but I actually ran into this at my own wedding. Because I was planning from Arizona for a wedding in Michigan, I did not have the chance to meet many of my vendors until the actual wedding day. I filled out the DJ's questionnaire and promptly returned it to him, assuming that all was well and my selections were available. Wrong. My DJ phoned the night of our rehearsal dinner to say that he didn't have the song for our first dance, and we'd either have to select something else or bring him a disc. I realize now that my choice in DJ was probably not the best, but it's worth mentioning so you don't run into the same thing at the last minute.

If you're still stumped, a sure fire way to find a great song is to look to The Standards. Standards, or music from the Great American Songbook, include music written between the 1920's and '60's and is most often associated with Jazz, Broadway and Hollywood musicals. If you go to Amazon and search for "standards", you'll find a slew of options. You can also search for the songwriters themselves, including Irving Berlin, George and Ira Gershwin, Jerome Kern, Cole Porter and Rodgers and Hart to name a few. You'll likely recognize the songs instantly. I'm listing some of my personal favorites here:

Songs for Swingin' Lovers! $13.99 right here.

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Rodgers & Hart Songbook, Vol. 2, $14.98 right here.

The Original Great American Songbook, $13.98 right  here.

So grab your favorite adult beverage and enjoy! But please avoid any selections from "Big Willie Style". I assume that goes without saying, but you just never know.