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A melancholy/ nostalgic/ contemporary song?

A somewhat folk-y, non-contemporary song to sing at a friend's wedding ceremony?

  • Suggestions for a somewhat folk-y, non-contemporary song to sing at a friend's wedding ceremony? I've searched all over, to no avail, to find something that is hauntingly beautiful in just the right way. A very long-time friend has asked me to sing in her wedding in August, and I'm having a terrible time finding a song that seems appropriate, given her guidelines. She wants something that is not too contemporary (not jazz, for example). She's having a somewhat pagan-oriented ceremony. She said that she'd like something that has a musical feel similar to "Scarborough Fair," but with lyrics that are more wedding appropriate. She's open to the possibility of folk songs, but would probably prefer something that is romantic and a little bit haunting, if that makes any sense. As far as the non-contemporary thing goes, she also said that it could be cool if it were something that would feel appropriate as the soundtrack to "Pride & Prejudice," but I'm not sure what that means. I may sing a cappella (I've done that in two other weddings - it doesn't freak me out), or my husband could accompany me on his violin, which could actually be pretty cool given the right song. Please help.

  • Answer:

    You may find some good ideas http://www.folkalley.com/archives/000405.php?entry_id=405.

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The first thing that came to mind was "http://www.joanbaez.com/Lyrics/sweetsg.html" by Joan Baez. I'm pretty sure she does it just with her guitar, so it could easily be sung a cappella or adapted for violin. Not all the lyrics are exactly wedding-y, but I've always found it a bit haunting, and the end goes like this: Sweet Sir Galahad went down with his gay bride of flowers, the prince of the hours of her lifetime. And here's to the dawn of their days, of their days.

CiaoMela

davey_darling

at my wedding, we had someone sing the beatle's "i will." it was a great wedding song.

lester

This is contemporary, but might fit the atmosphere she's going for: http://www.lifesci.ucsb.edu/~haddock/tabs/eachcomingnight.html by Iron & Wine. It's a gorgeous song about being together until death do us part.

MsMolly

Ruth MacKenzie adapted a trad. Finnish melody with an English translation of Estonian lyrics for the song http://phobos.apple.com/WebObjects/MZStore.woa/wa/viewAlbum?i=67768855&id=67768911&s=143441. She sang it at my wedding; there wasn't a dry eye on the block. (Alternately, if you choose "Wild Mountain Thyme" for the ceremony, you can sing The Kipper Family's http://www.mudcat.org/@displaysong.cfm?SongID=7157 afterwards!)

omnidrew

"The Wind" by Cat Stephens, or "Here Comes The Sun" by The Beatles (George Harrison).

contessa

Seconding "I'll follow you into the dark." I've tabbed it for (soprano) ukulele, so it couldn't be much different on the violin.

tmcw

It's thought of as a quaker song, but " http://www2.gol.com/users/quakers/simple_gifts.htm" can be nice at a wedding. I've also seen the Sabbath Prayer song from Fiddler on the Roof sung at weddings with the words changed in various ways. Mind you, I always find this disturbing [especially at the Catholic wedding]. You could also change the words to Scarborough Fair, make the song work for your purpose.

Mozzie

http://www.google.com/musics?lid=srADQJ47uFI&aid=DmWYdNWWJyL&sid=_si8UbWTqGN&sa=X&oi=music&ct=result by Shawn Mullins was my pick for a modern-folky-style wedding song. I liked it because it refers to darker stuff, and surviving it together. That's more real to me than an "everything is so perfect" love song. Your mileage may vary.

Tbola

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