Wedding Song Search
August 2, 2010 7:52 PM Subscribe
We're putting together a playlist of older, romantic, fun songs (that's amore, fly me to the moon, baby its cold outside, etc) for our wedding. There's a song I've heard once on pandora, but can't seem to find now. 40s or 50s era sound, sort of swingy, female singer, all I remember was the lyrics were a list of places, followed by "but I love to be with you" - or something very similar. ie "I love the beach, I love the sand... but I love to be with you." Does anyone know what it was? (And any other suggestions for songs happily received!)
I don't know the song you are talking about, but
1) "Baby, It's Cold Outside" has some kind of creepy lyrics if you listen to it (still a great song, but just listen)
2) "Hey Girl, Hey Boy" by Jeannette Baker and Oscar McIollie is a great song that might fit the bill (available on iTunes). I like this version better than Louis Prima's.
3) "My Baby Just Cares for Me" - Nina Simone
4) Etta James
posted by Frank Grimes at 8:01 PM on August 2, 2010
1) "Baby, It's Cold Outside" has some kind of creepy lyrics if you listen to it (still a great song, but just listen)
2) "Hey Girl, Hey Boy" by Jeannette Baker and Oscar McIollie is a great song that might fit the bill (available on iTunes). I like this version better than Louis Prima's.
3) "My Baby Just Cares for Me" - Nina Simone
4) Etta James
posted by Frank Grimes at 8:01 PM on August 2, 2010
Lots of Nina Simone, too.
And re Frank Grimes' #1 - I have to stop myself from listening too closely to the lyrics of any old "American Standards". They all tend to be pretty messed up, or at least woefully non-reflective of todays gender/relationship mores.
posted by Sara C. at 8:06 PM on August 2, 2010
And re Frank Grimes' #1 - I have to stop myself from listening too closely to the lyrics of any old "American Standards". They all tend to be pretty messed up, or at least woefully non-reflective of todays gender/relationship mores.
posted by Sara C. at 8:06 PM on August 2, 2010
Best answer: I think you're thinking of I Love Being Here With You recorded by Peggy Lee.
posted by donajo at 8:07 PM on August 2, 2010 [1 favorite]
posted by donajo at 8:07 PM on August 2, 2010 [1 favorite]
"You Belong to Me" by The Duprees is classic and epic. I also love "We Belong Together" by Ritchie Valens.
Congratulations! Such a great idea for a wedding playlist.
posted by libertypie at 8:11 PM on August 2, 2010
Congratulations! Such a great idea for a wedding playlist.
posted by libertypie at 8:11 PM on August 2, 2010
What donajo said. Diana Krall did it too.
My perennial fave of that genre of song is The Way You Look Tonight.
Congratulations, you crazy kids you!
posted by ladygypsy at 8:14 PM on August 2, 2010
My perennial fave of that genre of song is The Way You Look Tonight.
Congratulations, you crazy kids you!
posted by ladygypsy at 8:14 PM on August 2, 2010
donajo has it right it's Peggy Lee who did the penultimate cover.
posted by brookeb at 8:15 PM on August 2, 2010
posted by brookeb at 8:15 PM on August 2, 2010
Johnny Ace, "Pledging My Love."
And these are all great songs, even in spite of the authors' unconscionable failure to see fifty years into the future and adjust their writing according to the social norms found there.
posted by drjimmy11 at 8:22 PM on August 2, 2010
And these are all great songs, even in spite of the authors' unconscionable failure to see fifty years into the future and adjust their writing according to the social norms found there.
posted by drjimmy11 at 8:22 PM on August 2, 2010
Response by poster: Donajo, that's it!! And thanks all for the song ideas - if you don't mind, I'll take as many as you can send.
posted by korej at 8:23 PM on August 2, 2010
posted by korej at 8:23 PM on August 2, 2010
Chris Connor has a great voice! Her versions of "Poor Little Rich Girl" and "S'Wonderful" are great!!!
Fats Waller - any Best of album is sure to please!!!
Also - any "Chet Baker Sings" - type album is fantastic for dreamy/romantic standards!!!
Great stuff!
posted by ashtabula to opelika at 8:25 PM on August 2, 2010
Fats Waller - any Best of album is sure to please!!!
Also - any "Chet Baker Sings" - type album is fantastic for dreamy/romantic standards!!!
Great stuff!
posted by ashtabula to opelika at 8:25 PM on August 2, 2010
I'm really fond of the Andrews Sisters' version of "Bei Mir Bist Du Schoen".
posted by asterix at 8:29 PM on August 2, 2010
posted by asterix at 8:29 PM on August 2, 2010
I *love* the song Daisy Bell. (you might think it's actually called Bicycle Built For Two.
posted by bibliogrrl at 8:41 PM on August 2, 2010
posted by bibliogrrl at 8:41 PM on August 2, 2010
)
posted by bibliogrrl at 8:42 PM on August 2, 2010
posted by bibliogrrl at 8:42 PM on August 2, 2010
You want suggestion do you...
Isn't it Romantic - Johnny Hartman
I Go For You - Sammy Davis Jr. & Carmen McCrae
As I Love You - Joe Williams & Count Basie
How Are Ya' Fixed for Love - Frank Sinatra
Let There be Love - Nat King Cole
posted by brookeb at 8:48 PM on August 2, 2010
Isn't it Romantic - Johnny Hartman
I Go For You - Sammy Davis Jr. & Carmen McCrae
As I Love You - Joe Williams & Count Basie
How Are Ya' Fixed for Love - Frank Sinatra
Let There be Love - Nat King Cole
posted by brookeb at 8:48 PM on August 2, 2010
"How Are Ya' Fixed For Love?" is a little-known duet by Frank Sinatra and Keely Smith that is adorable, and all about two people deciding they want to go forward and have a memorable relationship complete with the ups and downs, the ins and outs.
posted by pineapple at 8:48 PM on August 2, 2010
posted by pineapple at 8:48 PM on August 2, 2010
Louis Prima and Keely Smith:
Hey Boy Hey Girl
That Old Black Magic
posted by marsha56 at 9:08 PM on August 2, 2010
Hey Boy Hey Girl
That Old Black Magic
posted by marsha56 at 9:08 PM on August 2, 2010
More Peggy Lee: What Are You Doing the Rest of Your Life?
posted by kattyann at 9:41 PM on August 2, 2010
posted by kattyann at 9:41 PM on August 2, 2010
Ain't Misbehavin'. If you can find the version by George Burns, it's totally adorable. Especially in light of his sweet relationship with Gracie.
posted by corey flood at 10:42 PM on August 2, 2010
posted by corey flood at 10:42 PM on August 2, 2010
Louie Armstrong: What a Wonderful World
Jimmy Durante: Make Someone Happy
Ella Fitzgerald: Night and Day
Check out a collection by Cole Porter - he specialized in songs that were fun & romantic.
posted by kbar1 at 10:58 PM on August 2, 2010
Jimmy Durante: Make Someone Happy
Ella Fitzgerald: Night and Day
Check out a collection by Cole Porter - he specialized in songs that were fun & romantic.
posted by kbar1 at 10:58 PM on August 2, 2010
"You Go To My Head" by Billie Holiday
"My Romance" by Tuck and Patti
posted by Mertonian at 11:31 PM on August 2, 2010
"My Romance" by Tuck and Patti
posted by Mertonian at 11:31 PM on August 2, 2010
Possibly exclude "Baby It's Cold Outside," as it is about a man drugging a woman's drink and forcing her to spend the night with him.
Do you have a particular earliest/latest year range? I used to do this freelance, so I have an enormous library of this kind of stuff all cross-referenced by composer, lyricist, performer, tempo, rhythm, year, orchestration, etc.
I suggest to all of my clients that they go to All Music, and look up the songs they like. The database houses an enormous list of who has performed what songs. With standards such as what you're asking for here, you're liable to get insanely high search returns (there are over 1,500 versions of "That Old Black Magic," for example), but they can be great fun to browse. Look up your favorite singers, as well--never know who might have covered something that you didn't know about!
I've found that the best way to get the version you like most is to jot down a few contenders from All Music, and then go listen to samples at the iTunes Store and Amazon.com. Obviously, you won't find everything you want, but it'll help you create a playlist that's much broader than you might have come up with on your own (or even with AskMeFi's help).
Just a few off the top of my head:
Orange Colored Sky (my personal favorite 40s/50s standard for weddings, and just a great song in general; I recommend Nat King Cole's version. I've recommended this song to a lot of engaged couples over the years. Most couples add it to their playlist, and a few even changed their "first dance" song for this once they'd heard it)
There's A Small Hotel
That Old Devil Moon
He Loves and She Loves
It Only Happens When I Dance With You
They All Laughed
Come Fly With Me (different from "Fly Me To the Moon")
It Had to Be You
The Best Is Yet To Come
Stepping Out (With My Baby)
Cheek to Cheek
I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm
My Blue Heaven
posted by tzikeh at 12:14 AM on August 3, 2010 [3 favorites]
Do you have a particular earliest/latest year range? I used to do this freelance, so I have an enormous library of this kind of stuff all cross-referenced by composer, lyricist, performer, tempo, rhythm, year, orchestration, etc.
I suggest to all of my clients that they go to All Music, and look up the songs they like. The database houses an enormous list of who has performed what songs. With standards such as what you're asking for here, you're liable to get insanely high search returns (there are over 1,500 versions of "That Old Black Magic," for example), but they can be great fun to browse. Look up your favorite singers, as well--never know who might have covered something that you didn't know about!
I've found that the best way to get the version you like most is to jot down a few contenders from All Music, and then go listen to samples at the iTunes Store and Amazon.com. Obviously, you won't find everything you want, but it'll help you create a playlist that's much broader than you might have come up with on your own (or even with AskMeFi's help).
Just a few off the top of my head:
Orange Colored Sky (my personal favorite 40s/50s standard for weddings, and just a great song in general; I recommend Nat King Cole's version. I've recommended this song to a lot of engaged couples over the years. Most couples add it to their playlist, and a few even changed their "first dance" song for this once they'd heard it)
There's A Small Hotel
That Old Devil Moon
He Loves and She Loves
It Only Happens When I Dance With You
They All Laughed
Come Fly With Me (different from "Fly Me To the Moon")
It Had to Be You
The Best Is Yet To Come
Stepping Out (With My Baby)
Cheek to Cheek
I've Got My Love to Keep Me Warm
My Blue Heaven
posted by tzikeh at 12:14 AM on August 3, 2010 [3 favorites]
As a kid I remember my parents would say, when handed a very strong drink, "whoa, what's in this drink." It's an idiom -- or was an idiom at the time. "Baby, It's Cold Outside" is not a song about a man drugging a woman's drink. Yikes. What a thought.
Great suggestions so far, here's a few more:
You're the Top
Begin the Beguine
Do I Love You (oh my, do I, honey, 'deed I do....)
All of Me (why not take all of me, can't you see I'm no good without you.....)
-- aw, man, I'm going to be humming snatches of these songs all day --
posted by kestralwing at 2:11 AM on August 3, 2010
Great suggestions so far, here's a few more:
You're the Top
Begin the Beguine
Do I Love You (oh my, do I, honey, 'deed I do....)
All of Me (why not take all of me, can't you see I'm no good without you.....)
-- aw, man, I'm going to be humming snatches of these songs all day --
posted by kestralwing at 2:11 AM on August 3, 2010
kestralwing, whether or not it was an idiom at the time, the man is getting the woman drunk in order to have sex with her. The woman's lyrics include "I simply must go" and "The answer is no," while the man's include "how can you do this thing *to me*," and "what's the sense in hurting *my pride*," while at the same time he's taking her hat and moving in closer to her, and telling her the snow is too deep for her to leave, and there's no way she'd get a cab at this point anyhow, and the fire is so nice....
The two voices on the official sheet music are not "the woman" and "the man," but "the mouse" and "the wolf." This is a song throughout which a woman says no, and then at the very end she says yes. Ha ha isn't that funny? So long as you keep pouring liquor down her throat.
Yeah, sometimes a song is just a song, and sometimes it's really, really not just a song, and it's no longer okay. Back then it was wink-wink-nudge-nudge, but with even the smallest amount of hindsight it's painfully obvious that it's an ugly scene masquerading as a cutesy song. Just as is true of any examples of an art form, some will stand the test of time, and some will not.
posted by tzikeh at 3:11 AM on August 3, 2010
The two voices on the official sheet music are not "the woman" and "the man," but "the mouse" and "the wolf." This is a song throughout which a woman says no, and then at the very end she says yes. Ha ha isn't that funny? So long as you keep pouring liquor down her throat.
Yeah, sometimes a song is just a song, and sometimes it's really, really not just a song, and it's no longer okay. Back then it was wink-wink-nudge-nudge, but with even the smallest amount of hindsight it's painfully obvious that it's an ugly scene masquerading as a cutesy song. Just as is true of any examples of an art form, some will stand the test of time, and some will not.
posted by tzikeh at 3:11 AM on August 3, 2010
Our first song was Our Love is Here to Stay sung by Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong, which seems to fit your criteria.
posted by Jugwine at 4:55 AM on August 3, 2010
posted by Jugwine at 4:55 AM on August 3, 2010
Time after Time - Margaret Whiting; otherwise known as the song at the end of Julie and Julia
posted by pintapicasso at 5:27 AM on August 3, 2010
posted by pintapicasso at 5:27 AM on August 3, 2010
I always thought "Baby, It's Cold Outside" was more about the woman looking for an excuse to defy the rules/social conventions and stay.
But, yeah, it's no worse than pretty much any other "romantic" song that now seems horrible in retrospect. I also still listen to The Rolling Stones despite "Brown Sugar" and "Under My Thumb". I just have to make myself not think about the lyrics. Because if I didn't take this approach, I could pretty much only listen to Ani DiFranco.
posted by Sara C. at 5:37 AM on August 3, 2010 [1 favorite]
But, yeah, it's no worse than pretty much any other "romantic" song that now seems horrible in retrospect. I also still listen to The Rolling Stones despite "Brown Sugar" and "Under My Thumb". I just have to make myself not think about the lyrics. Because if I didn't take this approach, I could pretty much only listen to Ani DiFranco.
posted by Sara C. at 5:37 AM on August 3, 2010 [1 favorite]
BTW, The Bobby Womack version of Fly Me To The Moon is vastly superior to every other version.
posted by Confess, Fletch at 6:02 AM on August 3, 2010
posted by Confess, Fletch at 6:02 AM on August 3, 2010
Rosemary Clooney sang a lot of old standards. If you put her name into Pandora, you'll get a lot of great old songs. What a voice, too.
posted by butternut at 8:24 AM on August 3, 2010
posted by butternut at 8:24 AM on August 3, 2010
I Do, either The Marvelows or the J. Geils version.
posted by Confess, Fletch at 11:32 AM on August 3, 2010
posted by Confess, Fletch at 11:32 AM on August 3, 2010
Sorry, tzikeh, but I actually got out my Christmas music and listened to this song (it's on several holiday albums but none of my big band ones), and I still strongly disagree with your interpretation. It is a song about sex, very definitely, but it's a song about flirtation and attraction, full of laughter and teasing, and I think the dark shadows are brought to it, rather than implicit in it. I also wonder about the "mouse" and "wolf". Mouse and cat, wolf and girl or sheep, but mouse and wolf? Of course, it's true that wolves in the arctic live mostly on mice, but I seem to be wandering off the thread here......
posted by kestralwing at 12:59 PM on August 3, 2010
posted by kestralwing at 12:59 PM on August 3, 2010
I also wonder about the "mouse" and "wolf". Mouse and cat, wolf and girl or sheep, but mouse and wolf?
Scanned from the songwriter's biography. Hope that helps answer your wondering.
posted by tzikeh at 3:15 PM on August 3, 2010
Scanned from the songwriter's biography. Hope that helps answer your wondering.
posted by tzikeh at 3:15 PM on August 3, 2010
This thread is closed to new comments.
You should include some Blossom Dearie though, and also a good version of "Bushel And A Peck".
posted by padraigin at 7:56 PM on August 2, 2010