* Unforgettable (Nat King Cole)
* Can’t Help Falling In Love (Elvis Presley)
* Can I Have This Dance? (Ann Murray)
* The Way You Look Tonight (Frank Sinatra)
* It Had To Be You (Harry Connick, Jr.)
* What A Wonderful World (Louis Armstrong)
* Endless Love (Diana Ross and Lionel Richie)
* I Cross My Heart (George Strait)
* I Swear (John M. Montgomery or All 4 One)
* A Whole New World (Peabo Bryson & Regina Belle)
* As Time Goes By (A Kiss Is Just A Kiss) (Michael Feinstein)
* When You Say Nothing At All (Allison Krauss)
* Faithfully (Journey)
* No Ordinary Love (Sade)
* Here And Now (Luther Vandross)
* I Can Love you Like That (John M. Montgomery)
* Power Of Love (Celine Dion)
* Tonight I Celebrate My Love (Roberta Flack & Peabo Bryson)
* Everything I Do {I Do For You} (Bryan Adams)
* When A Man Loves A Woman (Percy Sledge or Michael Bolton)
* All My Life (Linda Ronstadt & Aaron Neville)
* I’ll Be There (Mariah Carey)
* On Bended Knee (Boyz II Men)
* At Last (Etta James)
* Don’t Know Much (Linda Ronstadt & Aaron Neville)
* From This Moment On (Shania Twain)
* Our Love Is Here To Stay (Harry Connick, Jr.)
* Unchained Melody (The Righteous Brothers)

What is your First Dance song?

Photo credit: istockphoto

Here are a few of my favorite choices, which will add a touch of class to both civil and religious wedding ceremonies.

If Thou Must Love Me
Elizabeth Barrett Browning

If thou must love me, let it be for naught
Except for love’s sake only. Do not say,
‘I love her for her smile – her look – her way
Of speaking gently, for a trick of thought
That falls in well with mine, and certes brought
A sense of pleasant ease on such a day’ -
For these things in themselves, beloved, may
Be changed, or change for thee – and love, so wrought,
May be unwrought so. Neither love me for
Thine own dear pity’s wiping my cheeks dry:
A creature might forget to weep, who bore
Thy comfort long, and lose thy love thereby!
But love me for love’s sake, that evermore
Thou mayst love on, through love’s eternity.

Because She Would Ask Me Why I Loved Her
Christopher Brennan

If questioning would make us wise
No eyes would ever gaze in eyes;
If all our tale were told in speech
No mouths would wander each to each.

Were spirits free from mortal mesh
And love not bound in hearts of flesh
No aching breasts would yearn to meet
And find their ecstasy complete.

For who is there that lives and knows
The secret powers by which he grows?
Were knowledge all, what were our need
To thrill and faint and sweetly bleed?

Then seek not, sweet, the “If” and “Why”
I love you now until I die.
For I must love because I live
And life in me is what you give.

The Art Of A Good Marriage
(shortened version)
Wilferd Arlan Peterson

A good marriage must be created.
In marriage the little things are the big things…
It is never being too old to hold hands,
It is remembering to say “I love you” at least once a day,
It is never going to sleep angry,
It is having a mutual sense of values and common objectives,
It is standing together and facing the world,
It is forming a circle of love that gathers in the whole family,
It is speaking words of appreciation and demonstrating gratitude in thoughtful ways,
It is having the capacity to forgive and forget,
It is giving each other an atmosphere in which each can grow,
It is a common search for the good and the beautiful,
It is not only marrying the right person, it is being the right partner.

These are songs that DJ’s tend to play at weddings, but are really dreadful. I know some of them are meant to get people up and dancing. But really … there are better alternatives.

Here are some obvious choices for the “Do Not Play” List:

“Cha Cha Slide”
“Chicken Dance”
“Macarena”
“YMCA”

I would also add “Hokey Pokey” to the list. But if you have a lot of kids at your reception, it could be cute for them.

Some other songs that are often played at wedding receptions, but really shouldn’t be, include the following:

“Every Breath You Take” (Sting) – Too stalker-ish
“My Heart Will Go On” (Celine Dion) – Umm… she’s singing about her dead husband
“I Will Always Love You” (Whitney Houston) – It’s a breakup song
“White Wedding” (Billy Idol) – He’s singing about hating his sister’s fiancé

What songs are “musts” for your wedding reception? What others have you included on your “do not play” list?

Photo credit: © Bill McCullough

Here’s my list -

1. Brown Eyed Girl – Van Morrison
2. My Girl – Temptations
3. The Way You Look Tonight – Frank Sinatra
4. Butterfly Kisses – Bob Carlisle
5. What A Wonderful World – Louie Armstrong
6. Have I Told You Lately – Rod Stewart
7. Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton
8. Wind Beneath My Wings – Bette Midler
9. Isn’t She Lovely – Stevie Wonder
10. Hero – Mariah Carey