Do you really want to look back and tell your kids that your first dance as husband and wife was to "Wind beneath my wings?"
Booking reception entertainment that fits your personality as a couple will help set the tone, from this day forward, as they say. Finding a DJ, performer or ensemble who can offer suggestions or provide classic musical selections will make the day memorable for the right reasons.
"We have a library of more than 20,000 songs," said Stacy Heath, who with her husband, Tom, owns A+ Digital DJs in Boyne City. "We want every wedding to be different, because every wedding is different. There's so much great music out there. We love it when people say, ‘Oh I haven't heard that song in a while."
For a bride and groom who may not have chosen a wedding song, Stacy might suggest something like "Songbird" by Eva Cassidy. She said one of the most memorable moments at a recent wedding came when the father pre-recorded the song "I Loved Her First," by Heartland. For the father-daughter dance, the Heaths played his version.
"It was very nice," Stacy said.
Their voluminous music stock includes everything from the 1920s through today, spanning all genres - rock, pop, country, etc.
Stacy said she and her husband specialize in bringing a classy touch to wedding receptions. "We are the preferred vendors at the Inn at Bay Harbor and Castle Farms," she said.
And while one or two of their couples might ask for the "Chicken Dance," odds are they won't, she added. "Couples are spending $20,000 to $75,000 to $100,000 on their weddings. They don't want some cheesy DJ."
Helping to make each couple's evening an elegant affair is part of the Heaths' talent.
"We want their event to run flawlessly and I'm very adamant about that," she said.
Avoiding the spotlight themselves is also the way they do business. They will formally introduce the couple and emcee the event but the Heaths aren't into drawing attention to themselves.
"We don't want to be the center of attention," Stacy said. "We want the bride and groom to be the center of attention."
 
Karl Gilewicz, leader of the Charlevoix-based Up North Big Band, said his group of 20 performers brings an extravagant touch to wedding receptions.
"People are impressed. They aren't used to seeing a band this large," said Gilewicz.
Big Bands typically include a minimum of 12 to 18 players, he added, and the Up North Big Band includes male and female vocalists.
The band, together for 12 years, is known for its renditions of Count Basie, Duke Ellington and Glen Miller tunes, for example.
Because of the band's size, they play mostly Northern Michigan area receptions and other events, because of the travel expense. Many brides and grooms often wonder whether a smaller version of the Big Band is available for receptions, Gilewicz said.
"The first question is how much do you charge, then it's, do you do a smaller group," he said. "I do, but then you can't call it a Big Band."
Gilewicz can provide a set list of songs the band will perform and can also cater to special requests by the bride and groom, yet he cautions anyone looking for current hits won't find it by booking his group. "The newest song we probably do is ‘Moon Dance,' 1970 or 1971," he said. "If they're looking for a Top 40 band or Motown, that's not us. We are strictly the American standards."

A+ Digital DJs, Boyne City, 582-0628
www.aplusdigitaldjs.com, info@aplusdigitaldjs.com
 
Up North Big Band, www.rusticballroom.com

(according to about.com poll)
Beyonce featuring Jay-Z, Crazy in Love (2003)
Boyz II Men, I'll Make Love to You (1994)
Peabo Bryson and Roberta Flack, Tonight I Celebrate My Love (1983)
Roberta Flack, The First Time Ever I saw Your Face (1972)
Debbie Gibson, Lost in Your Eyes (1989)
Norah Jones, Come Away With Me (2003)
Dave Matthews Band, Crash Into Me (1996)
Paul McCartney, My Love (1973)
Savage Garden, Truly Madly Deeply (1997)
Barry White, You're the First, the Last, My Everything (1975)