Delamitri79 Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 Well folks I'm in a 5 piece wedding band and we are all in our 30s and 40s and we're very busy and good at what we do. We have a manager who doesn't be at any of the gigs. Our set consists of all the big numbers you'd expect to hear at a wedding and songs that we know works. There isn't much, if any, really modern stuff. Nothing form the last 10 years. Our manager wants us to throw in at least 8 new songs from the last decade but we're not sure they'll really work. What do ye all think when it comes to keeping the floor full at a wedding. Does a lot of the modern (last 10 yrs) music work in that setting? Many thanks Derek 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
police squad Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 I would say, some Ed Shearan and that Uptown funk song, also Marry you by Bruno Mars 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spacecowboy Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 The most modern we play is a couple of Dua Lipa tracks and if you play “don’t start now” you’ll get to play a cracking bass line! 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
christhammer666 Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 same as above, some bruno mars always goes down well. lady gaga hits the spot as well depending on the crowd 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casapete Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 (edited) Being in a wedding band involves having a set list to cater for probably the widest audience demographic you’ll ever encounter! As you point out, the most often played stuff is in the safe zone of classic pop/ soul/rock which appeals to the widest section of the guests, but IMO you shouldn’t ignore some newer stuff for the younger people ( maybe even the bride and groom!) as well as having a few old tunes up your sleeve for the older folk or those guests who may want to show off their ‘Strictly’ moves. This is especially important when there isn’t a DJ to cater for these guests. In my old function band, we’d maybe start with a bit of Sinatra ( so the older guests could have a dance or two), then go into the pop stuff for the rest of the first set. Second set would be gradually getting more current as the younger guests would often be the only people left, and usually hammered by this time! We used to get a lot of wedding work because we catered for all ages, which many bands could not. It helped being an 8 piece with a brass section, enabling us to authentically cover most eras. For us the hardest stuff was often the most current, but done in the right way we managed to pull it off. With the majority of couples getting married (and their friends) being late 20’s to mid 30’s it would be foolish to ignore their preferences. Edited December 5, 2023 by casapete Stupidity 6 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casapete Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 Just now, casapete said: Double post, soz. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickeyboro Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 I went to a niece’s wedding in the summer. The song that got the whole room dancing was unknown to me - the first I hadn’t recognised, let alone played. Apparently it was from Shrek the movie - so I reckon that’s a cert! pS Just googled and its All Star by Smash Mouth. I had guessed Joe Jackson! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nilorius Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 I think the variation of simpsons intro song would work fine. Main vocalist could rest a bit. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheddatom Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 The band played lots of Dua Lipa, Lizzo, Bruno Mars etc at the last wedding I went to, it was great! 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crusoe Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 People who were born at the turn of the Millennium will be getting married now, so they will want to hear the songs they grew up with, a lot of which will be stuff from the last decade. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cetera Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 Juice by Lizzo seems to go down well when we do it..... great bassline too. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 Specifically last ten years? A lot of the bigger songs by Bruno Mars and Last Gaga are from 2000-2010. I know, it feels like they're "new".... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delamitri79 Posted December 5, 2023 Author Share Posted December 5, 2023 50 minutes ago, uk_lefty said: Specifically last ten years? A lot of the bigger songs by Bruno Mars and Last Gaga are from 2000-2010. I know, it feels like they're "new".... Yeah mainly the last 10 yrs as the manager wants to bring in stuff from very recent and current chart stuff altho I'm not convinced it'll work too well. The average person at a wedding wants to hear all the floor fillers 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
uk_lefty Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 7 minutes ago, Delamitri79 said: Yeah mainly the last 10 yrs as the manager wants to bring in stuff from very recent and current chart stuff altho I'm not convinced it'll work too well. The average person at a wedding wants to hear all the floor fillers Agree with you completely. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mickeyboro Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 49 minutes ago, uk_lefty said: Agree with you completely. To put it bluntly, classics appeal to all ages. The newer you get, the bigger the risk of losing half your audience. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casapete Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 4 minutes ago, Mickeyboro said: To put it bluntly, classics appeal to all ages. The newer you get, the bigger the risk of losing half your audience. Agreed, but bear in mind that the other half may be the bride & groom and their friends? A few good recent tunes can help please everybody. The real gift for wedding bands is when old songs become known by younger audiences, often when used in films etc. I’m thinking of all the Blues Brothers / Commitments stuff which made classic soul more popular, all the Glee stuff, Shrek (I’m a believer), Peter Kay ‘500 miles’ etc etc. These songs work on multi levels, ideal for weddings. 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delamitri79 Posted December 5, 2023 Author Share Posted December 5, 2023 12 minutes ago, Mickeyboro said: To put it bluntly, classics appeal to all ages. The newer you get, the bigger the risk of losing half your audience. Couldn't agree more 👍👍👍 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
acidbass Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 Walk The Moon - Shut Up And Dance Anything by George Ezra Ed Sheeran Etc etc etc 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tauzero Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 Maybe some George Ezra? The problem with playing music from the last decade is that in order to select what to play, one of you needs to subject yourself to music from the last decade. Perhaps allocate two years apiece so with any luck you'll all come out the other side relatively intact. 1 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delamitri79 Posted December 5, 2023 Author Share Posted December 5, 2023 13 minutes ago, acidbass said: Walk The Moon - Shut Up And Dance Anything by George Ezra Ed Sheeran Etc etc etc Shut up and dance is our opening tune. It's a bonafide floor filler 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fretmeister Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 Another vote for Uptown Funk. But for the love of dog, play it on a 5 string so it has the low end booty. Playing an octave up ruins it. Runaway Baby is another great high energy tune from Mr Mars. Dua Lipa is a great shout too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delamitri79 Posted December 5, 2023 Author Share Posted December 5, 2023 2 minutes ago, fretmeister said: Another vote for Uptown Funk. But for the love of dog, play it on a 5 string so it has the low end booty. Playing an octave up ruins it. Runaway Baby is another great high energy tune from Mr Mars. Dua Lipa is a great shout too. We did uptown for a few years but we dropped it cos it kinda started killing the vibe. Don't regret it either. Just wasnt sitting well in our set. I do play a 5 string L2500 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cetera Posted December 5, 2023 Share Posted December 5, 2023 11 minutes ago, fretmeister said: Another vote for Uptown Funk. But for the love of dog, play it on a 5 string so it has the low end booty. Playing an octave up ruins it. Sounds fine on a 4 with a good octave pedal. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shamshoo Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 (edited) My friend's wedding band added a few recent hits, and surprisingly, it worked like magic! People love a mix. Maybe try blending in a couple of newer tunes and see how the dance floor responds. Also, I suggest you choose the best tuxedo here: https://www.gentlemansguru.com/product-category/wedding-tuxedos/. Good luck! Edited January 12 by Shamshoo 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Delberthot Posted January 10 Share Posted January 10 The problem with modern music is that it's popular for about 5 minutes then it gets forgotten about. We've tried to keep up with the charts but you're lucky if you get 4 or 5 months out of a song before no-one wants to know. Tik tok, Instagram and tv/movies are giving younger people access to older songs so we try to keep up with those 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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