Wedding Party Songs | The Last Dance
If you’re a music fan (which you must surely be because who doesn’t like music!?) you’ll be giving this a lot of thought leading up to your wedding. What bangers can you drop that will keep the dancefloor heaving all night. The reality is, most songs won’t please all the people all the time so don’t sweat it. For this blog we’re going to focus on ONE song that has to at least try to, the last one.
Waaaaaaaaah, the last song of the night. It doesn’t bear thinking about does it!? It means it’s all over - well, perhaps not ENTIRELY over, you’ve got another 2.5 mins to look forward to later in the bridal suite….am I right ladies?! The last song of the night really MUST try to bring the warring factions of the dance floor together. You’ve got the young, the old, the lubricated, the sober, the tired, the buzzing and everything in between. This song needs to walk the treacherous tightrope of being the emotional crescendo of the day, but with a finality that avoids walking your guests towards an aural cliff edge when the venue whack on the flood lights at midnight (on the dot) and attempt to kick you all out.
Here are 10 of the best that pretty much guarantee a sweaty, boozy, teary singalong.
#1 – The Beatles ‘Hey Jude’
Everyone knows the words to this one but it’s just been proved, by NASA, that it is a physical impossibility to get the verses in the correct order, unless you’re Macca – and I’m convinced even he changes them each night. But that matters not, it ends with a big rousing ‘NAA NA NA NANANANAAAAA’ and who can get THAT wrong?! It’s big, emotional and gives a natural fade out to the night thus avoiding the cliff edge.
#2 – Sinatra – ‘New York, New York’
Bleurgh, it sends shivers down your spine doesn’t it. Flashbacks to when you were a kid at a wedding, watching all the weird smelling adults acting strangely, singing along to it. Flashbacks to when you WERE one of those weird smelling adults at a wedding, singing along to it. You know why those memories are so vivid? It’s because it’s written into law that THIS SONG MUST APPEAR AT LEAST ONCE OTHERWISE THE WEDDING ISN’T OFFICIAL. It’s perfect for this slot, the tempo, the swing, the familiarity….and by this point everyone will be weird smelling enough not to notice how strangely they’re acting.
#3 – Kenny Rogers & Dolly Parton - Islands in the Stream
Ahhh Kenny & Dolly, the purest of the pure right? Perhaps not the case. Allegedly Dolly is COVERED in tattoos which is why you never see her in a short sleeve top so as to protect her squeaky clean all American image. Kennys’ beard is allegedly the fur of 15 endangered Amazonian squirrels he harvests on his annual trip to the tropics. This tune will get the oldies swaying in tandem and the kids proclaiming, “hang on, it this a Mya & Ol’ Dirty Bastard” cover?!? Ha, kids…
#4 - David Bowie – Heros
Why do you think this song gets wheeled out as the montage music for every Olympics, Comic Relief, Children in need, world cup etc since the beginning of time? It’s because it sounded nostalgic even before it was released. It’s strutting, emotional, positive and will help levitate you and your guests emotions so you’re walking out of the wedding like kings & queens….all be it strange smelling kings & queens.
#5 – Bill Medley, Jennifer Warnes – (I’ve had) The Time of my life.
I mean this one speaks for itself surely? But one word of warning for the sake of you and your guests’ health. In the cold, sober light of day, you and your partner may very well be able to do ‘that lift’ from the end of Dirty Dancing. However now is not the time to prove it. The dance floor is likely to be slippery and strewn with discarded bacon rolls and by now your hurty shoes are a thing of memories and you’ve slipped into the comfortable flats the sober you remembered to shove into your hand bag. DON’T DO IT!
#6 – Louis Armstrong – We have all the time in the world
The eagle eyed amongst you may have spotted the irony in the title. You haven’t, you’ve got about 4 mins left but that’s more than enough to get this one in. An ode to a life filled with the things that really matter - friends, family & love. Bloody hell Louis, I’m blubbing like a baby now.
#7 – Lou Reed – Perfect Day
Please play the original version rather than the one the BBC did in the late 90s for Children in Need. I’m all up for charity but there isn’t a better way to ruin a perfect day than having the ubiquitous Bono and that lady with the mouth from M People turn up and warble over a perfectly good tune.
#8 – God only knows – The Beach Boys
Some fun facts about Brian Wilson for you. He is almost totally deaf in his right ear. He is afraid of water and has NEVER been surfing. He didn’t even like going to the beach but thought that having his toes in sand would help him compose better, so he turned his music room into a giant sandpit…the wheels came off this idea when the cat started using it as a litter tray. However, none of that is important. This is a beautiful song and would end your party wonderfully.
#9 – Bill Withers – Lean on me
How do you make a duck sing soul music? Put him in the desert until his Bill Withers.
What do you get when a duck bends over? A buttquack.
At what time does a duck wake up? At the quack of dawn.
This is a tune, you know it, your friends now it. JUST PUT IT ON.
#10 – The Monkees – Daydream Believer
Davy Jones sings lead on this one and it was their last number one hit in the US. Fun fact for you - David Bowies’ real name is David Jones. He called his son Zowie Bowie (drugs are bad kids), who went on to change HIS name to Duncan Jones, we can’t think why..
So there you go. Whichever song you go for to end your party we hope you have an ACE day!