Wedding Dance Songs: Father, Mother and First Dance

A wedding usually has three dance songs to choose: the couple's first dance, the father and daughter dance, and the mother and son dance. Each one has a different job. The first dance is about the two of you. The parent dances are about thank you, and the best choice is usually a song the parent already loves rather than the one with the most fitting lyrics.

I write for Ditty City, where we make personalized songs, so I will tell you plainly where ours fits at the end. Everything before that is about songs you can buy or stream today.

Father daughter dance songs

• "My Girl," The Temptations (1964). Upbeat and easy to dance to, good for a dad who would rather laugh than cry in front of 120 people.
• "What a Wonderful World," Louis Armstrong (1967). Slow, short and warm. It suits almost any father.
• "Isn't She Lovely," Stevie Wonder (1976). Written about his newborn daughter, which gives it a lovely full circle at a wedding.
• "I Loved Her First," Heartland (2006). A country song sung from the father's side, about handing her over. Have tissues ready.
• "My Little Girl," Tim McGraw (2006). Gentle and specific about watching a daughter grow up.

Our father daughter dance song guide covers how to make the moment work on the actual dance floor.

Mother son dance songs

• "A Song for Mama," Boyz II Men (1997). The most requested modern choice, and written exactly for this.
• "Simple Man," Lynyrd Skynyrd (1973). A mother's advice to her son, for a family that grew up on classic rock.
• "Wind Beneath My Wings," Bette Midler (1988). A thank you song, best for a mom who carried the family.
• "You Raise Me Up," Josh Groban (2003). Big and emotional. Works well for a mom who loves a ballad.
• "Forever Young," Rod Stewart (1988). Warm and a little playful, good for a mom who would rather dance than cry.

The mother son dance song guide goes deeper on timing and on blended families.

First dance songs

• "At Last," Etta James (1960). The standard for a reason: slow, grand and short.
• "Can't Help Falling in Love," Elvis Presley (1961). Simple enough for two people who have never danced together.
• "Thinking Out Loud," Ed Sheeran (2014). About growing old together, with a steady beat that is easy to sway to.
• "Perfect," Ed Sheeran (2017). Modern, gentle and very popular, so expect your guests to sing along.

How to choose

Start with tempo, then story. A slow song gives an anxious dancer somewhere to hide. A mid-tempo song lets a confident pair have fun. Then ask what the song says. If you would be embarrassed to read the lyrics out loud as a speech, it is the wrong song.

For a parent who has died, many couples replace the dance with a tribute: a song played over a photo, or the surviving parent dancing with the bride or groom while the song is about the one who is missing. "Dance with My Father," Luther Vandross (2003) is the song most often chosen for this.

When no existing song fits

Every song above is about someone else's father, mother or partner. It can come close, but it cannot mention the fishing trips, the night she learned to drive, or how you met.

That is the gap a personalized song fills. At Ditty City you answer a few questions about the person, we write and record a song with their name and your details in it, and you hear a free sample before you pay. A Quick Ditty is about 60 seconds for $9, a Little Ditty about 2 minutes for $29, and a Big Ditty about 4 minutes for $49, ending with a sign-off from you by name. It arrives as a link you can play through the venue speakers or send to the parent the morning of the wedding. The custom first dance song and song for your daughter's wedding guides cover what to put in one.

Every guide in this hub

The guides below cover wedding songs by role and by moment.