Daddy Music

June 19, 2008 6:00 AM

If you don't enjoy country music, do hip, relatively new songs exist about fatherhood, or more specifically, fathers and daughters?

Google finds me pages and pages of overemotional wedding dance music, and almost everything I've heard reminds me of the awful Daddy's Hands. Paul Simon's Father & Daughter is a good start, but there have to be enough other non-schmaltzy, non-country tracks to fill a mix CD, right?

posted by brozek to Media & Arts (33 answers total)

Mark Knopfler had a song called "All That Matters" on his album, "Shangri-La", it's more generally a lullaby type thing to both genders, but it starts as "My darling girl" so it sort of fits.
posted by wabbittwax at 6:10 AM on June 19, 2008

There is Loudon Wainwright's "Daughter".
posted by donajo at 6:16 AM on June 19, 2008

Eminem has songs about being a father.
posted by thirteenkiller at 6:20 AM on June 19, 2008

"I Love My Daddy" by Electrocute.
posted by kitty teeth at 6:26 AM on June 19, 2008

Ben Folds "Gracie" ("You can't fool me, I saw you when you came out/ You got your momma's taste but you got my mouth")
posted by joannemerriam at 6:37 AM on June 19, 2008

If you're looking for irony + humor - schmaltz, John Hiatt is your man on any topic! He's sometime lumped in with country stuff, but he is so not Top 40 country. The songs listed below are pretty old, but hold up well (IMO).

"Your Dad Did" from Bring the Family (about becoming your dad)
"Georgia Rae" from Slow Turning (about his daughter)
"The Wreck of the Barbie Ferrari" from Perfectly Good Guitar (not really uplifting, but funny)

You can listen here. (Poor navigation - click on Discography, then Songlist / Lyrics, then All Songs.)
posted by SuperSquirrel at 7:09 AM on June 19, 2008

Tough question! But a couple ideas, some of which may violate country or schmaltz guidelines:

"Dancing on Daddy's Shoes" by Leon Redbone.

"September When It Comes" by Roseanne Cash with Johnny Cash (only sort of a father-daughter song topic-wise).

"Texas Girl at the Funeral of Her Father" by Randy Newman.

"Tenderness on the Block" by Warren Zevon.

And possibly the biggest stretch of all, "Miss Fortune" by John Wesley Harding.
posted by j-dawg at 7:14 AM on June 19, 2008

Winter by Tori Amos
posted by JustKeepSwimming at 7:29 AM on June 19, 2008

Ben Folds also has "Still Fighting it", though that specifically mentions a son instead of a daughter.
posted by geeky at 8:04 AM on June 19, 2008

"Sweet Pea, My Sweet Pea" by Paul Weller (specifically about his eldest daughter, Leah) -- not schmaltzy, just very sweet and jaunty.
posted by scody at 8:47 AM on June 19, 2008

2nding a Loudon Wainwright III direction. He has lots of songs about his kids (Rufus and Martha et al).

"Hitting You" will break your heart and has an absolute zero schmaltz factor.

I understand your country reticence, but that's a huge cut to make if you want concise, sincere, well-written relationship songs...
posted by quarterframer at 8:50 AM on June 19, 2008

Billy Joel's Lullabye (Goodnight, My Angel) was written for his daughter.
posted by amyms at 8:59 AM on June 19, 2008

"Wonder" by Colin Meloy is about having a child. I think it's only available on his live tour EP.
posted by ludwig_van at 9:15 AM on June 19, 2008

John Mayer - "Daughters"
posted by saradarlin at 9:32 AM on June 19, 2008

"Dad's Yard" by Catie Curtis might work. Also, "Raina" by Peter Himmelman.
posted by 912 Greens at 9:33 AM on June 19, 2008

Anthony (Stewart) Head has an song called "Babies [the in between]" that's about missing his daughters while he lived in the US filming "Buffy."
posted by Squeak Attack at 9:41 AM on June 19, 2008

Two great songs from daughter's perspective about learning how and why to forgive:

"Hurt" by Christina Aguilera
"Angry Anymore" by Ani DiFranco

Gorgeous (not hokey) song/lullabye from perspective of father about being there for a child:

"Cody's Song" by Kenny Loggins
posted by jasbet07 at 10:18 AM on June 19, 2008

Can't believe nobody's mentioned "Isn't She Lovely" by Stevie Wonder (though it's quite old).
posted by Madamina at 10:24 AM on June 19, 2008

Everclear, "Annabella's Song"
The others that come to mind immediately have been listed already.
posted by jferg at 11:49 AM on June 19, 2008

Radiohead - Sail to the Moon is somewhat abstract, but very pretty, and clearly written for Yorke's son (whose name is Noah--that makes sense of one of the lines).
posted by abcde at 11:55 AM on June 19, 2008

Will Smith's 'Just the Two of Us' is about the father/son relationship. And most of Common's albums feature 'Pop's Rap' songs. And, just to hit the hip-hop trifecta, Ed OG and da Bulldogs' 'Be A Father To Your Child' is a stone classic.
posted by box at 1:15 PM on June 19, 2008

Paul Simon - "Father and Daughter"
posted by corey flood at 1:21 PM on June 19, 2008

Greg Brown - Daughters (he's not rich, but he's rich in daughters, as I recall)
posted by shothotbot at 1:57 PM on June 19, 2008

"In Her Music Box" by Atmosphere
posted by nameless.k at 3:20 PM on June 19, 2008

"She's Trying" by Dance Hall Crashers is a punk/pop/ska song about fathers letting go of daughters leaving home. The live version, far superior (as is most ska-stuff) to the album version, is available on iTunes.
posted by Pinback at 4:20 PM on June 19, 2008

It has a bit of profanity, but I think The Coup's Wear Clean Draws is one of the most touching father-daughter songs ever. It just seems so focused on a father wanting his daughter to grow up confident and strong. This link auto-plays the song.
posted by lillygog at 6:11 PM on June 19, 2008

Not daughter-specific, but Pink and Blue by The Mountain Goats is a nice daddy song.
posted by bubukaba at 7:22 PM on June 19, 2008

Response by poster: Wow - thanks for the awesome responses! I know (nearly) all these artists, but apparently not the depth of their catalogues!
posted by brozek at 8:05 PM on June 19, 2008

i'm surprised no one mentioned this, but "heaven" by Live.

(i don't need no one
to tell me about heaven,
i look at my daughter
and i believe)
posted by gursky at 9:15 PM on June 19, 2008

You don't need to go far. Mefi's chococat has written (and posted) some great songs about his daughters: You're just new, Lily, and 5. Those links go to the posts at Metafilter Music and, in case you haven't gone there before, you can download those songs there.
posted by micayetoca at 5:53 AM on June 20, 2008

Grateful Dead's "I Will Take You Home"

Lyrics By: Brent Mydland
Music By: Brent Mydland

Little girl lost in a forest of dreams
It's a dark old wood, and it's damp with dew
Hoot owl hoots, for a moment it seems
Something big and cold got a hold of you
Just when everything gets scary
Daddy's coming round for his darling again
Hold my hand with your little fingers
Daddy's loving arms gonna gather you in

Ain't no way the Bogeyman can get you
You can close your eyes, the world is gonna let you
Your daddy's here and never will forget you
I will take you home
I will take you home
Gonna carry you back home in my arms
I will take you home

Long is the road we must travel on down
Short are the legs that will struggle behind
I wish I knew for sure just where we're bound
What we will be doing, and what we're gonna find
Wherever we go, there will be birds to cheer you
Flowers to color in the fields around
Wherever we go, I'll be right here near you
You can't get lost when you're always found

Ain't no fog that's thick enough to hide you
Your daddy's gonna be right here beside you
If your fears should start to get inside you
I will take you home
I will take you home
Gonna carry you back home in my arms
I will take you home
posted by premortem at 9:29 AM on June 20, 2008

Sweet Sophia, by Stephen Kellogg.

John Mayer has mentioned a number of times that Daughters is not actually such a charming song if you read the lyrics... it's more along the lines of "please don't screw up your girl before I can get to her."
posted by supramarginal at 6:52 PM on June 21, 2008

And he did it again. Fantastic song.
posted by micayetoca at 9:47 AM on June 28, 2008