A slideshow at the wedding reception can be a great way to celebrate the happy couple. Although sometimes it can be difficult to find a song that strikes the right tone.
We’ve put together this list that will help you pick out the perfect song for your presentation, depending on your role in the wedding and the mood you want your slideshow to be.
Friends of the Happy Couple
Here are some great slideshow songs that you can use to make your friends’ day even more special.
To Make Them Laugh
Thank You For Being a Friend – Andrew Gold
‘If it’s a car you lack
I’d surely buy you a Cadillac
Whatever you need, any time of the day or night’
What better way to celebrate a friendship than by evoking the image of the iconic Golden Girls. We don’t know anyone who can resist dancing to this bop and it makes us smile every time we hear it.
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A slideshow full of embarrassing photos of you and the happy couple combined with this song is sure to split a few sides.
I Get A Kick Out of You – Frank Sinatra
‘I get a kick every time I see
You standing there before me.
I get a kick though it’s clear to see
You obviously
Do not adore me.’
This song caused a lot of waves at the time of its release for its tongue in cheek attitude towards love.
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However, the lyrics of this song set up for the perfect opportunity to mock and celebrate you ‘loosing’ your friend to their new marriage.
British Jazz Singer Jamie Cullum has a particularly upbeat cover of this song that would work very well.
To Make Them Smile
You’ve got a friend in Me – Randy Newman
‘We stick together and we see it through
Cause you got a friend in me’
This song may bring a little tear to their eye as well as making them smile, but we had to include it here because this is the perfect friendship song. This song is a love letter to friendship and platonic love. It strikes the perfect wedding tone of happy go lucky, with references to support and long-lasting bonds.
Plus the lines ‘ Some other folks might be a little bit smarter than I am // Bigger and stronger too, maybe’ are the perfect opportunity to get a laugh out of the audience with a funny picture or two of yourself.
‘But none of them will ever love you the way I do
It’s me and you, boy
And as the years go by
Our friendship will never die
You’re gonna see, it’s our destiny
You’ve got a friend in me’
You’re my best friend – Queen
‘Whatever the world can give me, it’s you, you’re all I see’
Like Randy Newman You’ve Got a Friend in me, this song is a beautiful celebration of love and friendship.
These lyrics are simple but profound. We think this song is a great option as it strikes the balance between referencing your friendship with the pair, and celebrating the friendship of the happy couple.
‘You’re the first one
When things turn out bad
You know I’ll never be lonely
You’re my only one
And I love the things
I really love the things that you do
You’re my best friend’
To Make Them Cry
You’ve Got the Love – Florence and the Machine
‘You’ve got the love I need to see me through’
Who doesn’t adore this chart-topping powerhouse from Florence and the Machine? It’s a song about being able to cope with the struggles of life when you have the right person by your side.
The song has a gorgeous arrangement with harps, guitars, and Florence Welch’s spectacular voice.
It slowly builds, getting more emotional as it goes. We can’t think of a better song to help you celebrate the start of a marriage.
‘Sometimes I feel like throwing my hands up in the air
I know I can count on you
Sometimes I feel like saying “Lord I just don’t care”
But you’ve got the love I need to see me through’
Only Exception – Paramore
‘I’m on my way to believing’
This is a slow and evocative love song that was very left field for the emo band. Only Exception is a bitter-sweet, raw love song about having one’s expectations of love shattered by the one.
Singer Hayley Williams’ voice takes the song to a whole other level as she belts out the tear-jerking bridge.
This is a particularly great choice for older couples getting married for the first time.
Take a look at our favorite lyrics from this song:
‘Up until now, I had sworn to myself that I’m content with loneliness
Because none of it were ever worth the risk
But you are the only exception’
Parents of the Happy Couple
A slideshow done by the parents of one the happy couple can be the perfect way of showing your child’s new partner that you welcome them into your family.
To Make Them Laugh
The Power of Love – Huey Lewis & the News
‘It might just save your life, that’s the power of love’
This is a fast-paced song that will have everyone dancing around their tables. It’s a celebration of love and its changing power.
This is a great opportunity to bust out some baby photos and any embarrassing childhood pictures. That’s always guaranteed to get a giggle from the audience.
The joy in this music also gives you a great opportunity to be a little bit cheeky towards the happy couple without coming across as mean.
‘They say that all in love is fair
Yeah, but you don’t care
But you’ll know what to do
When it gets hold of you
And with a little help from above
You feel the power of love’
I say a little prayer for you – Aretha Franklin
‘Forever, and ever you’ll stay in my heart and I will love you’
We had to put this song in the ‘To Make Them Laugh’ category as the lyrics give you such a great opportunity to have the audience rolling in the aisles.
Putting together a slideshow that makes it look like you’re praying for the new partner as they begin married life with your child will have everyone – including the happy couple – giggling to themselves.
The sweet, doting lyrics of the song will help take the edge off the ribbing and help you to create an unforgettable tribute.
‘My darling, believe me
For me, there is no one but you
Please love me too
I’m in love with you.
(Answer my prayer)’
To Make Them Smile
You’ll be in my heart – Phil Collins
‘You’ll be in my heart from this day on
Now and forevermore’
Arguably the gem of the Phil Collins Tarzan soundtrack – You’ll be in my heart is an ode to parenthood and love.
Collin’s lyrics are vulnerable and tender and would make a really emotional way to welcome your new child in law to the family.
‘For one so small
You seem so strong
My arms will hold you
Keep you safe and warm
This bond between us
Can’t be broken’
I Don’t Want to Miss a Thing – Aerosmith
‘Every moment spent with you is a moment I’ll treasure’
This song has become a wedding staple over the years for its tender lyrics, raw vocals, and poignant arrangement.
Singer Steven Tyler has spoken multiple times about how this song reminds him of meeting his child for the first time. So, the song has become synonymous with a parent/child relationship.
There are hundreds of covers of this song around, so if the lyrics speak to you but you’re looking for a different arrangement we’d recommend checking out Boyce Avenue’s or even New Found Gloy’s covers.
‘Cause even when I dream of you
The sweetest dream would never do
I’d still miss you, baby
And I don’t want to miss a thing’
To Make Them Cry
All of Me – John Legend
‘Cause all of me loves all of you
Love your curves and all your edges
All your perfect imperfections
Give your all to me, I’ll give my all to you
You’re my end and my beginning
Even when I lose, I’m winning
‘Cause I give you all of me
And you give me all of you’
This song is a true celebration of love’s ability to conquer all. Legend’s lyrics will have you and the guests going from laughing to crying in less than a minute.
This song paints an honest and frank picture of love that is so full of joy and affection that its too perfect not to be played at a wedding.
‘How many times do I have to tell you
Even when you’re crying, you’re beautiful too?
The world is beating you down
I’m around through every mood
You’re my downfall, you’re my muse
My worst distraction, my rhythm, and blues
I can’t stop singing, it’s ringing in my head for you’
Open Your Eyes – Snow Patrol
Even thinking about this song will bring tears to the eyes of US Office fans, as this song has become synonymous with the highs and lows of Jim and Pam’s relationship – who have recently been voted one of the greatest TV couples of all time.
But everyone, Office fans or not, will be moved by the slow-building strings and gut-wrenching vocals from Gary Lightbody.
‘Every minute from this minute now
We can do what we like anywhere
I want so much to open your eyes
Cause I need you to look into mine’
The Happy Couple
Putting together a slide show to celebrate your relationship so far, leading up the marriage can be a touch your partner will adore.
Here are a few ideas of songs you can use:
To Make Them Laugh
Marry You – Bruno Mars
‘Hey baby, I think I want to marry you’
This is a super peppy, tongue in cheek song about getting married in the spur of the moment.
The song is full of wedding bells, pianos, and a melody that you’ll struggle to get out of your head for weeks. Why not add a little dance routine to the slideshow to rake in the laughs.
Call Me Maybe – Carly Ray Jepson
‘It’s hard to look right at you baby.’
This is such a fun song, it will have everyone dancing. It is a great opportunity to celebrate how you first met, and everything leading up to the wedding.
‘Before you came into my life I missed you so bad’
To Make Them Smile
Lover – Taylor Swift
‘And there’s a dazzling haze, a mysterious way about you, dear
Have I known you for twenty seconds or twenty years?’
Taylor Swift is notorious for being the queen of Break-Up songs, but she also has some breathtaking love songs in her repertoire. Lover is one of these.
Dedicated to her long term partner, this song truly is an ode to true love. It celebrates the comfort and obsession that comes with finding the one. The lyrics are so playful and sweet that anyone would struggle not to smile along to this one.
She even re-recorded a version of the song with Shawn Mendes designed specifically for weddings after being inundated by requests from fans.
‘Ladies and gentlemen, will you please stand?
With every guitar string scar on my hand
I take this magnetic force of a man to be my
Lover
My heart’s been borrowed and yours has been blue
All’s well that ends well to end up with you
Swear to be over-dramatic and true to my
Lover’
Thinking Out Loud – Ed Sheeran
‘And I’m thinking about how people fall in love in mysterious ways
Maybe just the touch of a hand
Well, me, I fall in love with you every single day’
Within a year of its release, Ed Sheeran’s song became the most popular first dance song. So if you’re not doing your first dance to this, then it will make the perfect soundtrack to your celebration slideshow.
The song is a candid love letter to growing old together and making it work with your significant other.
‘Take me into your loving arms, kiss me under the
Light of a thousand stars, put your hand on my beating heart.
I’m thinking out loud, maybe we found love right where we are.’
To Make Them Cry
Can’t Help Falling In Love with you – Elvis Presley
‘Take my hand, take my whole life too,
For I can’t help falling in love with you’
This is one of our all-time favorite love songs. No doubt. Do we need to say anything else, go listen to the song and you’ll understand.
‘Wise men say only fools rush in,
But I can’t help falling in love with you.’
You and Me – Lifehouse
‘Everything she does is beautiful
Everything she does is right’
Jason Wade’s soft and husky vocals have been bringing tears to our eyes for over a decade now. This soft-spoken love song talks about the struggles of concentrating on anything other than love.
The lyrics of this song really speak for themselves so we’ll leave you with some of our favorites:
‘Because it’s you and me and all of the people,
With nothing to do and nothing to prove,
It’s you and me and all of the people
And I don’t know why but I can’t keep my eyes off of you…’
