TOPIC: Bride's sister toasts groom
EVER WONDER HOW ANNA'S FIRST COMMISSIONED SONG CAME ABOUT?
| "Because I Do" - Free Download |
Ten years ago, I wrote and recorded my first-ever commissioned song. It was for a wedding. I did so not because I was planning on writing a commissioned song. Back then, I'm not even sure I knew what a commissioned song was. But I'm getting ahead of myself. And this month (--less writing!--) I can let the TV tell you. Because not too long ago, I was the featured guest on yet another TV show, where I was asked how all this commissioned songwriting stuff got started. So here is that story:
BECAUSE I DO
Jason, you know her now better than we ever could
You are close the way that close was meant to be
But there are still some things that we thought we would
Share with you now that you are family
Jill is sensitive and patient, she is generous and kind
But deep inside, she is courageous too
She had bided her time with all of those who came to find her
But all along she has been waiting for you
Did you know that in the past she has always played it cool?
She’d let the world ride on in and slide on through
But on the first day that she brought us to meet you
She said, Do you like him? Tell me! Tell me! Do you?
Because I do
Jason, you know her now like an answer knows a question
Now you’ll carry on as one through lows and highs
The road ahead is fraught with mirages of perfection
As you ride it now with Jill we’re sure you’ll find
Jill’s determined and pragmatic, she is smart and full of fire
But deep inside, she’s vulnerable too
She has journeyed east to west, and let the best of her life guide her
But all along we’ve watched her waiting for you
And did you know that in the past she has always played it cool?
She’d let the world ride on in and slide on through
But today when she was asked, Do you take this groom
To have and hold, let life unfold, and learn to grow beside you?
She said, I do
And she loves you
And we love you two
And she said, I do
© Anna Huckabee Tull, Custom Crafted Songs
Sheila, Stacy, & Jill 10 years ago THE SONG: TEN YEARS LATER
Despite my rocky start, the wedding-toast song, "Because I Do" was a huge reception-night success. As you may have gathered from the TV clip above, the two sisters who commissioned this song, Sheila and Stacy, discovered they could dare to express themselves more deeply than they might have initially guessed (see lyrics, above). And Jill, the bride and recipient of the song, was pretty much blown away. I tracked her down this week, and she shared the following "Ten Years Later" perspective on her song experience:
Despite my rocky start, the wedding-toast song, "Because I Do" was a huge reception-night success. As you may have gathered from the TV clip above, the two sisters who commissioned this song, Sheila and Stacy, discovered they could dare to express themselves more deeply than they might have initially guessed (see lyrics, above). And Jill, the bride and recipient of the song, was pretty much blown away. I tracked her down this week, and she shared the following "Ten Years Later" perspective on her song experience:
Sheila, Stacy & Jill today "I have to say I am HONORED to have our song featured. It is to this day my most cherished possession (if you can call music a possession) and I love to listen to it. My husband says it makes him too emotional, so he limits his listening more than I do. But here is the story: The song was presented to us at our wedding reception. It certainly made an impression. My sisters got up and made a brief speech regarding the background of the song--something to do with the first time THEY met
Jason and how much I wanted them to like him. I was not expecting to hear a song written specifically about ME. The first couple of lines of the song made me pretty nervous because it implied that they were going to share all the dirt they had on me with my new husband. I was really stunned when I realized what a NICE
song it was--I have to admit, that's a little unusual considering our rather cynical, sarcastic senses of humor. I admit, it can still make me cry. And it is something I listen to around our anniversary, every year.
After 2 kids and 10 years of marriage, it's interesting to reflect on the lyrics you wrote, "To have and hold, let life unfold, and learn to grow beside you" So much LIFE happens and so many changes take place. But fundamentally we are doing just that...
Jason and how much I wanted them to like him. I was not expecting to hear a song written specifically about ME. The first couple of lines of the song made me pretty nervous because it implied that they were going to share all the dirt they had on me with my new husband. I was really stunned when I realized what a NICE
song it was--I have to admit, that's a little unusual considering our rather cynical, sarcastic senses of humor. I admit, it can still make me cry. And it is something I listen to around our anniversary, every year.
After 2 kids and 10 years of marriage, it's interesting to reflect on the lyrics you wrote, "To have and hold, let life unfold, and learn to grow beside you" So much LIFE happens and so many changes take place. But fundamentally we are doing just that...
Jill & Jason 10 years ago SONGWRITER'S NOTE AT THE TEN YEAR MARK
Working on this song ten years ago was my first taste of what it can be like to really take in someone else's message--both the things they are saying, and the things they are not saying--and weave it all into a song. Once I had a taste of it, there really was no turning back! I have been doing it ever since, creating songs for new babies, grieving family members, giving voice to those who have passed on, creating a song for an African Tribe that tribe members still sing every morning after saluting their flag, and even once in awhile getting to do very silly songs, like the recent Man of Action Theme Song. It has been a wild and wonderful journey, and I will be eternally grateful to Sheila Heen for, clearly, hearing not only what I was saying, but what I was not, in terms of where my future might take me. To all of you for whom I have had the honor of creating a song....thank you for ten years of truly astonishing, unexpected, amazing, learning-filled journeys. And for those of you out there who will become my future commissioning journeymen and journeywomen--I can't wait to meet you! I am so grateful for this path I get to walk. Thanks, each of you, Song-of-the-Month subscribers, for being a part of it. And thanks to Jill and Jason whose marriage, by all accounts, seems to be going as gangbusters as my commissioned songwriting! Long may both wave!
Working on this song ten years ago was my first taste of what it can be like to really take in someone else's message--both the things they are saying, and the things they are not saying--and weave it all into a song. Once I had a taste of it, there really was no turning back! I have been doing it ever since, creating songs for new babies, grieving family members, giving voice to those who have passed on, creating a song for an African Tribe that tribe members still sing every morning after saluting their flag, and even once in awhile getting to do very silly songs, like the recent Man of Action Theme Song. It has been a wild and wonderful journey, and I will be eternally grateful to Sheila Heen for, clearly, hearing not only what I was saying, but what I was not, in terms of where my future might take me. To all of you for whom I have had the honor of creating a song....thank you for ten years of truly astonishing, unexpected, amazing, learning-filled journeys. And for those of you out there who will become my future commissioning journeymen and journeywomen--I can't wait to meet you! I am so grateful for this path I get to walk. Thanks, each of you, Song-of-the-Month subscribers, for being a part of it. And thanks to Jill and Jason whose marriage, by all accounts, seems to be going as gangbusters as my commissioned songwriting! Long may both wave!
Jill & Jason today THE ARTIST(S)
That's Anna Huckabee Tull on vocals, Ksenia Mack on acoustic guitar, Katrin Peterson on percussion and Larry Luddecke on piano. Together, we four brought "Because I Do"to life--the very first AHT Commissioned Song!
LINKS
That's Anna Huckabee Tull on vocals, Ksenia Mack on acoustic guitar, Katrin Peterson on percussion and Larry Luddecke on piano. Together, we four brought "Because I Do"to life--the very first AHT Commissioned Song!
LINKS
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