Frequently Asked Questions for Weddings

The band performs a huge stylistic variety of popular music for dancing. To see and hear specific examples of the songs we play, have a look at our songlists. We always strive to provide music that is familiar, fun and entertaining. Above all our goal is a full dance floor for the entire evening.

Absolutely. We pride ourselves in being able to please everyone from the youngest cousin to the eldest grandparent. The band specializes in performing tried and true songs that appeal across cultural and generational lines. We have a great variety of upbeat party favorites, and we also know all the classic ballads. Typically at events such as weddings with a wide range in ages, we begin with songs that older guests will enjoy, and as the party heats up we add more and more modern music in the mix as well. But at all times we use a wide variety of great music to make sure guests of all ages are dancing and having fun.

Certainly! We have a repertoire of well over a thousand songs and our clients are sent a full songlist upon booking so they can be aware of all their music options. Although there are well over 400 songs listed on our website, this is still just a portion of our entire repertoire (if you would like a copy of our full songlist in advance of booking please just email to request one). There is certainly no requirement to choose songs for the band to play, and indeed in many instances our clients just let us know their general preferences and then leave the specific song selection entirely to us, which gives you once less thing to organize. Be rest assured that clients who allow the band to choose the repertoire have incredibly successful events, since our ability to perform the right song at the right time is likely the most important skill we bring to your wedding.

That being said, many people who wish to have a live band are serious music fans, and so our clients often have many specific songs they would really love to hear. In that case all your song requests are absolutely welcome, and in this instance we ask our clients to prepare a list of all their favourite songs, and then select up to ten of these songs as their “Top 10.” This lets us know which songs are the most important and helps prioritize your preferences. Your larger list can be as large as you like (although about 60 songs might be the most that would be played in a single evening). Your larger list gives us a good general idea of what you are wanting musically and we try to play as many of these requests as possible. Every single song you designate as one of your Top 10 requests will be performed for certain. Organizing your repertoire choices in this way strikes a good balance between making sure you will hear all your favourites and still allowing us to play the right song at the right time depending on whatever music your guests are best responding to at the time.

With well over a thousand songs to choose from, chances are very good we already know your favourite song. We don’t know every song however, and unfortunately we do not learn new songs upon request. Our repertoire is considerably larger and more diverse than most bands, and we also spend a great deal of time getting all the details of our songs right so they sound just the way you remember them. Accordingly, simply maintaining this repertoire is a very demanding task and thus we ask our clients to select from our song list to allow our musicians to focus on knowing this repertoire inside out, rather than constantly learning new songs requested by clients. Because we perform almost all the biggest hits in most genres, very typically requests for songs not already in our repertoire are for songs that are less well known, and accordingly not as useful to the band for future events. Even so, be rest assured that even if the most obscure song happens to be your personal favourite, you can definitely hear it on your wedding night: what we do in these instances is acquire a copy of the desired track and play it through our sound system during one of the band breaks, or even for your first dance right before the band begins performing.

The band performs a huge stylistic variety of popular music for dancing. To see and hear specific examples of the songs we play, have a look at our songlists. We always strive to provide music that is familiar, fun and entertaining. Above all our goal is a full dance floor for the entire evening.

Quite possibly. Our list of first dance suggestions contains a number of popular songs that couples frequently request. Even if your special song is not part of our repertoire however, you can have any song in the world by playing your first dance track through the sound system and then having the band begin immediately afterward, which is a very common practice that many couples opt for. If you would like a dance with your parent you can also select songs outside our band repertoire, although we also have a list of parents dance suggestions for you to consider that the band currently performs.

Not at all. Indeed, we owe our popularity to the fact that so many couples wanted a band that didn’t sound like a “typical wedding band.” Unlike many groups, ours is a band that routinely played at the best nightclubs in the Greater Toronto Area for well over a decade. In addition to our ability to play all kinds of music that your parents and grandparents will thoroughly enjoy, when the time calls for it we can really rock, and our younger clients are always amazed at how well we can also perform the songs that they love. Over 3000 performances have given the band a reputation for superb musicianship, and unlike many bands who work less frequently, or hire freelance musicians to read sheet music all night, we know our material inside out.

Above all it is our ability to authentically perform so many musical styles that has set us apart for our enthusiastic fans and clients. Dave learned the all the rock and roll classics during a five year tenure with Ronnie Hawkins; the Dave Murphy Band’s love of funk earned them an opening spot for James Brown, and Dave played the blues worldwide with the late guitar legend Jeff Healey. Dave is also fully trained as a classical pianist with an ARCT degree from the Royal Conservatory of Music. When our band plays a song we have both the ability and respect to make your favorite songs sound just the way you remember them. And unlike many bands who give you the strange sensation you are hearing a lot more music than you are actually seeing performed, our music is 100% live, played by musicians – not machines. We never enhance our music with computers, sequencers or backing tracks; we believe if you wanted to hear recorded music you would have hired a DJ. Above all we rely on great music played with passion to create an amazing evening, and we studiously endeavor to avoid the trite and cheesy – be rest assured no one will be asked to do the Chicken Dance at your wedding!

While we have certain traditional songs like waltzes or polkas at the ready for emergency purposes, generally speaking our forte is popular music from the last sixty years, as opposed to any particular forms of cultural music (the one exception being Jewish wedding music, which we perform a great deal of as mentioned above). That said, we have played many weddings where our clients’ heritage has been a major part of their celebrations. A common approach that always works really well is for our clients to provide us with their favourite ethnic music on CD which we play for you DJ style through our sound system during band breaks, and this is very successful since it provides traditional music for the families to enjoy as well as the band playing popular music, giving you the best of both worlds. On occasion, some couples have even opted to have a second band from their cultural background perform earlier in the evening, or perform alternating sets with our own band.

We always arrive at least two hours before the scheduled start time of your wedding to get all our equipment loaded in, set up, and thoroughly tested so that you can be certain our sound checks will be totally completed before the arrival of your first guests. We allow ourselves two hours just to provide plenty of time to deal with anything unexpected that might arise, but in the unlikely event that there is a very limited window of time for the band to set up, it is possible to get everything done as quickly as one hour if it is very easy to load in and set up at your venue.

A band that drives guests away with excessive volume can ruin an event, so we take great care to get it right. We strongly believe that our music should never overwhelm your guests, and we always strive for a volume that is just right for dancing on the dance floor, but also perfect for facilitating easy conversation away from the dance floor. Because the satisfaction of our clients is paramount, we encourage our clients to let us know exactly where they would like the volume, but since no one ever seems to say anything we must be doing something right!

If you would like to book the band, simply email (or phone) with your contact information and let us know you would like to confirm. Shortly afterwards we will contact you by phone to double check some details, after which we mail a simple contract that you sign and mail back along with a $200 deposit, and then your date will be totally locked in for yourself.

Because music makes the party, and a great band will really make it a party to remember. Rather than a DJ, live music makes any special event truly special, and will make your wedding as unique as it deserves to be.