Matrimony Mony
Background: In the few and far between love songs that I have written in my career, I always seem to want to end them with a wedding to put some sort of closure on the courtship from the first few verses. Sometimes these wedding songs (whether my own or someone else’s) are written from the perspective of the bride or groom and sometimes they are written from the perspective of a jilted ex-lover, who’s trying to come to grips with their ex moving on. In this blog, we will talk about both kinds of wedding songs.
“Today” by Gary Allan
Lyrically: The song tells about the heartache the narrator is experiencing after his ex-girlfriend gets married. Among the most powerful lines in the first verse are, “...And he was right there with her, making all the memories without me.” and in the pre-chorus, “It hurts to say this out loud, looks like she’s really gone now,” The chorus contrasts “The happiest day of her life” with his lamentation that he “Lost everything (he) ever wanted today.” Though it doesn’t say explicitly what happened, the implication is that it was something he did. This is revealed in the second verse when he says, “She’s found a new beginning and I’m wishing I could have just one more chance. God knows it’s too late for that.”
Melodically: The chords to “Today” can initially be heard on piano, especially in the intro and first verse. Those chords are reflected, before switching over to guitar in the second verse on. As a whole, the song is written in B major. The intro uses B, F, Gm, F, and E, following a I, V, vi, V, IV pattern, while the verses use the same I, V, vi, V, IV intro pattern, which gets played twice, before the pre-chorus comes in using C and Bb (a V, I pattern). The chorus then uses F, C, Gm, Bb, C, and F (a V, II, vi, I, II, V pattern) followed by C, Gm, Bb, C, Bb, C, F, and C (a II, vii, I, II, V, II pattern). Verse 2 uses F, C, Dm, Bb, F, C, Dm, Bb, C, Bb, C, and Bb (a V, II, iii, I, II, I, II, I, pattern).
Structurally: The song follows a verse, pre-chorus, chorus, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, solo, chorus, ending format. Its repetitive nature has the same effect that it does in the song “Sylvia’s Mother,” as it’s evident that the narrator is playing back his time with her in his mind, as well as everything he’s had to take in. No new information after the second verse lets us into his mind, thinking he cannot possibly take any more heartache today. The ending may allude to some sort of closure, as it just repeats the first part of the first verse: “Today he told her that he loved her, put a ring around her finger.” It goes back to objectively telling what happened, without expressing any feelings about the situation.
Closing note: “Today” has been a very influential song for me as a writer. It influenced my songs “Just to Hear Your Voice Again” as well as my song “Days Go By”. I hope listening to it has the same effect on you as it did on me!
You can listen to “Today” today, tomorrow, or whenever you want! It’s embedded below.
2. “Tin Can on a String” by Brad Paisley
Lyrically: Similar to “Today,” “Tin Can on a String” focuses on a jilted ex-lover, as his ex’s wedding day is happening. Unlike “Today,” it doesn’t appear that the narrator in this song is at the ceremony, but rather the first visuals he paints are what contrasts his vision for where their relationship would go (them making up). Instead, he says, “Somewhere ‘cross town you can hear the sound of wedding bells ringing. But there’s birdseed on the concrete, and she’s waving goodbye.” The visual of her driving away and waving goodbye, with “everybody cheering her on,” juxtaposed against the narrator’s feelings, which he later reveals have him “holding on like a tin can on a string,” is incredibly powerful. We talked in our discussion on similes about the importance of giving something fresh (as in not “It cuts like a knife”), and comparing his holding on to a tin can on a string just feels fresh.
Unlike “Today,” it doesn’t really mention who’s to blame for the breakup, but the second verse sees the narrator discussing the honeymoon he’d planned out, as well as their kids and the house they’d live in. It is worth noting that Brad Paisley also has a song called “Today,” but it’s a love song about how when he has troubled times with his new wife, he hopes they can remember all the good ones they had “Today.” Though both are great songs, “Tin Can on a String” has influenced my writing in numerous ways, and I hope it does the same for you!
Melodically: The song is in the key of A major, but with the capo on the second fret, Brad plays A, Amaj7, F#m/Gbm, E, B, E, F#m/Gbm in the verses. As a result, the verses follow a I, vi, V, II, V, vi pattern. The pre-chorus uses D, A, and D, a IV, I, and IV chords. The chorus uses a D, A, E (the IV, I, and V) pattern for the first four lines, before reversing that (going V, I, IV with E, A7, and D) and closing on D, A and E (the IV, I, and V) for the last two lines, which serve as a pre-chorus. The interlude before the last chorus uses A, D, E, A (I, IV, V, I). In the first verse, only guitar and piano can be heard. The drums come in during the second verse and can be heard throughout the rest of the song.
Structurally: “Tin Can on a String” uses a verse, pre-chorus, chorus, verse, pre-chorus, chorus, solo, chorus format. For those of you playing along at home, you may have noticed that it is the exact same structure as Gary Allan’s “Today.” The verses are similarly repetitive and for similar reasons. However, rather than ending with the first line of the first verse, the song ends with a chorus that is slightly different from the others: “I’m holdin’ on, I’m holdin’ on… Like a tin can on a string.”
Thanks for holding on. “Tin Can on a String” is embedded below.
3. “Wedding Day” by the Bee Gees
Background: Sometime around 2011, I did a deep-dive into the Bee Gees discography, listening to all their studio albums in order. When I got to their last one, “This is Where I Came In,” I was mesmerized by the title track, as well as the song “Wedding Day”. I mentioned at the top of this blog about how these songs have influenced my own writing. “Wedding Day” inspired the album title and eventual title track of my own album, even though my “Wedding Day” song was decidedly less cheerful!
Lyrically: “Wedding Day” is sung from the perspective of a groom as he waits for his bride at the altar. It expresses that nothing has changed the way he’s felt about her, demonstrated in the line “From the first time that I saw you to the way you look tonight, I was shaken by your spirit, I was blinded by your light.”
Melodically: Overall, the song is written in D major. The intro uses D, G, A7, (a I, IV, V7 pattern) while the verses use D, A, G, D, A (I, V, IV, I, V). The bridge uses A, D, A, G, D, A, G (V, I, V, IV, I, V, IV) and the chorus uses D, Bm, G, A, D, Bm, G, A, D, A, and G (I, vi, IV, V, I, vi, IV, V, I, V, IV). Instrumentally, the song uses guitar, bass, percussion, piano, and programming (heard in the intro and in between the verses).
Structurally: The song follows a verse, chorus, verse, chorus, bridge, chorus format. My instinct as a writer is to use the bridge to a song like this to talk about actually getting married (like “And all of a sudden, the preacher says, ‘You may now kiss the bride!’”) but using the song to describe everything leading up to that leaves just enough to the viewer’s imagination, and it’s very well done in that regard.
If the late great Pee-Wee Herman were reading this blog right now, he’d say, “If you love this song so much, why don’t you marry it?!” You don’t have to do that, but you can listen to it below.
4. “Lost in This Moment” by Big & Rich
Lyrically: Like “Wedding Day,” Big and Rich’s “Lost in This Moment” chronicles the wedding of the narrator and his bride. It talks about all the people at the wedding, what a big moment it is, and everything they’re taking in. The second verse dives into more detail (which I will do as well in the structure section), about people throwing rice in their hair. Just saying that might sound cliche, so Big & Rich use the sense of smell to take you there, rather than telling you: “I smelled the jasmine floatin’ in the air like a love song.”
Melodically: “Lost in This Moment” is written in F major and uses F, C, G, F, C, G for the intro (a I, V, II, I, V, II pattern), and the verses use G, F, C, a II, I, V pattern, throughout. They stay on the C at the end of the verse to lead into the F chord that begins the chorus. The solo (one of my personal favorites, sonically), gets played over the F, G, C, F pattern of the chorus.
Structurally: Though still a wedding song, “Lost in this Moment” contrasts from the Bee Gees’ wedding day in that the whole thing, not just the build up to the first kiss, is part of the “moment” the narrator gets lost in. Personally, I love the image of lifting a veil, especially when paired with “Such a heavenly sight” in the song. But before he gets to any of that, he sets up everyone else who’s getting lost in the moment: Her mom, her dad walking her down the aisle, as well as his own nerves as he tells the preacher, “Don’t she look beautiful tonight?” The aforementioned Brad Paisley song, “Today,” closes with the line, “Bring on tomorrow, I’ve got today.” But the beauty of this song is that there is not even a thought about tomorrow – they’re lost in this moment and the beauty of that moment, and the event as a whole, is the focus for this song.
You can get lost in this moment yourself, with the video embedded below!
