Top 10 Inappropriate Wedding Songs

Having been taken over by wedding fever, this month had to have a wedding-related theme.  Firstly I thought about the best songs I'd sung at weddings in the past... boring!  Much better are the bizzare songs that I can't believe I've been asked to sing at weddings, and a few songs which you should never select if singing at a wedding!

1. Mad World (Donnie Darko version)
This was requested by my sister as the music to walk out of the wedding ceremony to (well, it was actually a request from my brother-in-law which my poor sister didn't have the heart to veto.  How inappropriate!)

2. Stronger than me by Amy Winehouse
I was asked to sing this as a first dance once - totally bizarrely, as it's about a woman moaning that her man isn't the man that he ought to be and is a bit of a push over.  Hmmm...?

3. Leave right now by Will Young

This was the first song on a bride's ipod selection

And now a few which should never make it to your play list... (just read it as a titles list - forget what the song's actually about)

4. Let's call the whole thing off 


5. Miss Otis Regrets


6. You've Changed


7. It Don't Mean a Thing


8. Good Morning Heartache


9. The Lady is a Tramp 


10. Until the Real Thing Comes Along

New album recording

This month, I've started recording my new album which will be ready for release in the autumn.

My band and I spent 3 days at Derek Nash's studio in Kent, laying down new tunes and some old ones too!  It was great fun and very productive.

Derek's studio is fantastic, and Derek himself is a great engineer.  He's also a very accomplished and very busy musician - gigging regularly with Jools Holland's band, and writing arrangements for them too.  At the moment, he has a display on the studio wall of signed copies of arrangements he's done for people like Eddie Floyd and Kylie Minogue.  And there was me drinking tea on his sofa!  What an amazing world the music industry is.

We recorded my first album at Derek's studio too, in July 2009... It's nearly sold out, so buy your copy while you still have the chance! - www.sarahellenhughes.co.uk/darningthedream

Screen shot of our monitors - Top left: Darren Altman, Bottom left: Rick Simpson,
Top right: Derek behind his desk, and sofa in background, Bottom right: me peering at some music

Bassist Tom Farmer, with the ghost of Rick Simpson on the left,
and Darren Altman on the right.

Top Ten Spring Songs

Spring is here!  To celebrate, I have selected my favourite recordings of spring-related songs.  Where available I have linked to YouTube samples, so you can enjoy them as much as me.

1. It Might as Well be Spring - by Rodgers and Hammerstein - performed by Jacqui Dankworth and James Pearson from the album "For All We Know"

2. Joy Spring - by Clifford Brown - performed by the Buddy Rich Big Band 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6vg9CNCPxKY

3. It Might as Well be Spring - by Rodgers and Hammerstein - performed by Jane Monheit Live at The Rainbow Room 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjgkAHt38NA

4. Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most - by Fran Landesman and Tomy Wolf - performed by Gill Manly on the album "With a Song in my Heart"

5. Spring is here - by Rodgers and Hart - performed by Gretchen Parlato 

Gretchen Parlato performed at Ronnie's during last year's London Jazz Festival.  I reviewed the gig for LondonJazz, which you can read here

6. April in Paris - by Vernon Duke - Kurt Elling from the album The Messenger

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AQqyaJxnD60

7. You Must Believe in Spring - by Alan Bergman - Tony Bennett / Bill Evans 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2bDFDYhXqPM

8. Younger Than Springtime - by Rodgers and Hammerstein - performed by Amel Larrieux 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gWpBGx1x1z8

9. I'll remember April - by Gene de Paul - performed by Carmen McCrae 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjRGxv-ULY0

10. Spring Can Really Hang You Up The Most - by Fran Landesman and Tomy Wolf - performed by Betty Carter 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ldLetTFrtrc