Don't you just hate it when you are asked for inappropriate requests. For example, for the first dance at a wedding "I Will Always Love You". That gets off to a good start doesn't it with "If I should stay, I would only be in your way, so I'll go..." and then later "Bittersweet memories, that is all I am taking with me".

"My Heart Will Go On" is another one - is the groom dead already, having just slipped below a rather large chunk of ice?

And teh worst offender of all- the Stevie Wonder version of Happy Birthday. That song is quite clearly for Martin Luther King's birthday and was used as the platform to make Martin Luther King's birthday a public holiday in teh US. So it is not desperately fitting for Auntie Doris at herr 60th.

Agreed.....Bob the Builder springs instantly to mind as being an unsuitable request that I was asked for at a Wedding over the weekend

When I started DJing back in the '80's, I used to play Cherish by Kool and the Gang a lot at weddings - and even used it as first dance song.

That was until I found out it was about a girl dying...........

I suppose Bob the Builder would be inappropriate if the "can we fix it" lyric is applied to the newly created marriage.

Another one I was asked for once was Big Pany Woman by Barefoot Man (as regularly featured on the Dawn Patrol with Sarah Kennedy)

I was just a little concerned that the Birthday girl was at least 25 stone and may not see the funny side. Since I knew this lady's brother in law who was present, I asked him to persuade her husband to withdraw his request

Nothing compares 2 u

Ronan Keating - When You Say Nothing At All..

Clearly the easist way of a man telling a woman not to talk... Or the original where she is telling the man not to talk....

Politest way of saying shut up I know but they still want it for their weddings...

I always check now if at a wedding the Bride minds me playing Young Hearts Run Free or It's Raining Men....

Not really wedding friendly songs... "Whats the sense in sharing this one and only life, ending up as just another lost and lonely wife......."

Freda Payne - Band Of Gold

Since you've been gone, all that is left is a band of gold........Hmmm

I enjoyed a wedding with a bit of Roxette...

It must have been Love..... but its over now


what more can i say.... though on the side lines, a while back I received a request for the music man, Black Lace my thoughts were

Later, after trying some other crowd starters, I resort to it as a request.

Never looked back that night!!!!

People ask for the strangest things, that often work... thats me shown.

Music Man by Black Lace, cheesy though it is, can often be quite useful.

One of teh more unusual ones I have been asked for is "Bring Your Daughter to the Slaughter" by Iron Maiden. Oddly enough I didn't have it.

I agree softie Music Man rocks

Played Gloria Gaynor at a wedding on Sat as requested by the bride.

apart from the "first dance" I dont think that many people are too bothered about the lyrics.... as long as they like the tune! If we started to analise all the lyrics of all the songs we play then I reckon we would have to put loads on the back shelf!

Anyone ever played The Smiths song that ends with "Hang the DJ, Hang the DJ, Hang the DJ"?

Shotgun wedding

I Agree with Kazz, the punters don't listen to the verse, the majority of them only listen to the chorus, and if that has a seemingly happy refrain then they'll dance along to it no matter what dark sentiments are being expressed in the verse!

I reckon at any gig/wedding if you told most of the audience that for example Young Hearts Run Free is a bit of an anti-marriage song, or that band of Gold is hardly a happy wedding song that most of them would be quite surprised.

As much as I love the beautiful game, I never play football songs.

I learnt my lesson as a novice by causing a bit of a riot in a pub many years ago!

Having said that I did play Three Lions at a wedding in 1996 but only because the bride asked me to play it, and it went down an absolute storm.

Both of these as mentioned....

Band of gold, have never played at a wedding and dont recall ever playing at a function,

Youngs Hearts, classic 70s tune that I play at most weddings and rarely fails.

my point was steve, that people DONT analise the lyrics..... if they like the tune they dance... no matter what the song is about!

I agree with Kazz & Eskie here, they never listen to the lyrics

I think that people don't listen to the lyrics of songs...I have very often been asked to play Young Hearts "to get them going after the first dance". I don't object, but IF the couple have asked me for advice or say something like "of course you know more about music and discos", I do point out inconsistencies like that in a friendly fashion, pointing out that some people in the crowd might think it strange, but that I don't really mind....

The only one that makes me feel really uncomfortable is "Leaving On A Jet Plane" requested by someone in a crowd for somebody else. As Mr Denver died in a plane crash I think that unless you are requesting it for yourself that's a bad one, almost a curse...and I refuse to play it...playing either the Frank Sinatra or the Me First And The Gimmee Gimmee's version depending on the ambience...

Interesting thread...

Id turn down, or ignore, an inappropriate request if I felt that it would offend anyone.

I get quite a few "joke" requests eg: "D.I.V.O.R.C.E", or "Like a virgin...specially for the bride" etc at a wedding, which are worthy of an on~mic "mention", but I wouldnt waste 4 minutes each, playing them to an empty floor, as some kind of in-joke.

Some functions, and requests need a more careful, thoughtful approach however.

For example. Ive done a funeral wake disco and also a family get-together arranged by someone who knew they had only a few weeks left to live.

At one of these functions soneone requested 3 songs, ALL inappropriate eg "Land of the living", "Anything by: Dead or Alive" etc... toooo much a coincidence to be just innocent requests, so none got played.

We had a whole thread a while ago on "songs not to play at funerals" (or similar)...

A bride a few weeks ago, who finally got to marry her partner after the mans former wife delayed every aspect of the divorce, did ask me for "Ding dong, the wicked witch is dead", but alas I didnt have it...