Playing secular songs during Jewish wedding intros and entrances

You know that point of an Orthodox Jewish wedding, after you’ve wolfed down on hor d’oeuvres and finding your seats inside? When the girls go to one of the doors with their arches, which the newly married couple will soon run underneath and thus lead into the wild and crazy dancing? And then the band leader introduces “for the first time as a married couple: So and so & So and so!!” Of course you know it…

But while this frum wedding equivalent of getting amped up for a sports game is taking place – and with their obvious differences in plain sight – there is one custom that the frummies have completely adopted from the goyim: The secular intro song which is played right before the couple runs in under the arches and into the throes of overexcited wedding guests.Even though I love the custom, I don’t get it. Perhaps with all the traditional frum characteristics, it seems rather odd or bizarre when all of a sudden you hear this goyishe song playing either by the band or via a tape.

And speaking of the band, I find it rather hilarious when you see a band that looks extremely frum – all of sudden busting out the most goyish song in the world. Case in point – A Lady Gaga song. It’s also weird to see and hear a band with saxophones, trumpets and other non-modern rock related musical instruments, play secular songs. It’s like they took these awesome songs and made them sound like frummy songs (probably to mask their goyishe nature perhaps.)

It does make a lot of sense though – these songs are picture perfect for pumping up the crowd for what’s bound to be a crazy crazy night of dancing and simcha.

And what songs you’re most likely to often hear? There’s the classic arena jams like the NFL on Fox song (love this one), Jump by Van Halen, Rock and Roll Part 2, the Final Countdown (probably a Chicago favourite thanks to the Bulls), Bakers Street (the saxophone song), Crazy Train by Ozzy Osbourne.

Sometimes they play Jewish songs, but it makes more sense to keep them in the bag for the actual dancing.

If you’re still not sure what I’m talking about, check out this clip of the DJ playing Jai Ho and then the band playing a song I don’t + Beyonce’s Crazy In Love:

It’s funny cause you hear these frummies knowing the songs and singing along 🙂

The only other times I’ve heard secular songs at frum weddings was when the choson did a spin on singing “Eishes Chayil“. I’ve heard the I Want It That Way by The Backstreet Boys, A Whole New World from Aladdin, and my favourite of them all – Nothing Else Matters by Metallica (with guitar) and then an Eddie Van Halen-esque guitar solo in the middle. (btw the guy in the Eddie Van Halen link is actually the guy who did the Metallica/Van Halen solo at his wedding… He’s awesome :))

When I get married (and if I have a say in the matter), I would pick Won’t Get Fooled Again by The Who aka the CSI Miami Song (not because I like the show, but because the song is one of my all-time favourites) OR Enter Sandman by Metallica.