The mother and son dance at wedding receptions has become a tradition only in recent times and represents a dance of the mother with her son (The Groom) before she “gives him away” to his new love.
Because most of the attention has been on the bride and her family all day, this is the groom’s opportunity to show his mother she hasn’t been forgotten.
The music for the mother and son dance should be slow and melodic, something moving, lyrically suited and beautiful.
This will, like the father and daughter dance that took place before it, be a dance that the bring tears to many eyes.
The groom should focus on his mother during this dance and let her enjoy these last few uninterrupted minutes of being his mother to the fullest.
He should make sure this dance is memorable for her and keep in mind that she is feeling a sense of loss as well as a sense of joy on this special day.
Popular Mother & Son Dance Songs
2010’s
93 Million Miles – Jason Mraz
2012 | Youtube
Mama Hold My Hand – Aloe Blacc
2010 | Youtube
2000′s
Hero – Enrique Iglesias
2001 | Youtube
I Hope You Dance – Leanne Womack
2000 | Youtube
Mama – Il Divo
2004 | Youtube
Mom – Lucero
2009 | Youtube
A Mother’s Song – T Carter Music
2009 | Youtube
Take Your Mama – Scissor Sisters
2004 | Youtube
Thank you Mom – Good Charlotte
2000 | Youtube
Treat Yo Mama (With Respect) – John Butler Trio
2004 | Youtube
You Raise Me Up – Josh Groban
2003 | Youtube
1990’s
A Song for Mama – Boyz II Men
1997 | Youtube
Because You Loved Me – Celine Dion
1996 | Youtube
Blessed – Elton John
1995 | Youtube
Have I Told You Lately – Rod Stewart
1993 | Youtube
I’ll Stand By You – The Pretenders
1994 | Youtube
Lucky Man – The Verve
1997 | Youtube
The Time of Your Life – Green Day
1997 | Youtube
1980’s
Sweet Child O Mine – Guns N Roses
1988 | Youtube
1970’s
Always on My Mind – Elvis Presley
1972 | Youtube
Child of Mine – Carole King
1970 | Youtube
Close To You – The Carpenters
1970 | Youtube
Dancing Queen – Abba
1976 | Youtube
Long and Winding Road – The Beatles
1970 | Youtube
Loves Me Like a Rock – Paul Simon
1973 | Youtube
The Rose – Bette Midler
1979 | Youtube
1960’s
L-O-V-E – Nat “King” Cole
1965 | Youtube
Memories – Elvis Presley
1968 | Youtube
1950’s
That’s Amore – Dean Martin
1953 | Youtube
The next tradition to consider after the Mother & Son dance is the Anniversary Dance and the Bouquet Toss
More about the Mother and Son Dance
The song for the mother and son dance is often the most difficult to choose. There aren’t nearly as many songs out there about Mothers and Sons as there are about Fathers and Daughters.
Finding a song that both Mum and Groom like – and the Bride approves of – can be difficult.
Add in the “cheese” factor (no one wants to dance to a song that’s too cheesy when everyone is staring at them) and you have a real problem.
To avoid this situation, start looking months in advance. Fortunately, the Internet makes it much easier.
You can listen to audios of dozens, if not hundreds, of songs until you find the right one. There are some popular mother and son dance songs in the middle of this page.
It’s All About the Feeling of a Song
Keep in mind that it’s the overall sentiment and feeling rather than the specific words that convey how you feel – the song doesn’t have use the words “Son” and “Mom” or even talk about a parent/child relationship to be about this kind of love.
Songs like Wind Beneath My Wings and You Raise Me Up tell a mother unmistakably what she’s meant to her son and make beautiful tribute songs for the Mother and Son Dance.
The groom and his mother should decide together on a song that they both enjoy and that is meaningful and important to them.
The bride should try to be very flexible – remember, this moment is less about her and more about the groom and his mother!
And after all, once this dance is over, the bride and groom will have each other for the rest of their lives!