Could someone tell me some "acceptable" songs which have ttraditionally been played at LDS dances/social events? I've been trying to Google to find the answer to my question, but the top results all redirected to iTunes, which I don't have. Thanks for any replies.

Well, Stairway to Heaven was a perennial favorite when I was attending LDS church dances.

Oh, and a lot of stuff by Bread and Seals and Crofts.

"Somebody" by Depeche Mode. It's a shame, too, because I really like that song.

From my time serving in ward and stake young men's presidencies and chaperoning dances, the only song that comes to mind is Cotten Eyed Joe. They played it all the time, sometimes multiple times at one dance.

ditto - late 90's

over and over and over they would play cotton eyed joe. and then we would all whisper "did you know this song is about abortion?"



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 08/11/2011 08:05PM by blacksheep.

lol, probably scared them half to death. I'd love to have seen the look on their faces.

Though the truth is it's a remnant of an old slave-era black song, and cotton-eyed Joe was another black man who ran off with the singer's girl.

songs like "Light My Fire" "Live for Today" "I can't get no Satisfaction" "Jumpin Jack Flash" etc. We played them so loud that the windows in the "recreation hall" of the church would rattle loose.

Several times while we were playing, someone from the bishopric would come up and ask us "Priests" to "tone it down." So we would lower the volume and play a slow one for them.

But by the time we got to the next song, the volume would be back up again. The priestood leadership apparently were allowing us play because they didn't want to lose the "youth." We were the only band that anyone liked within 150 miles.

One time while we were playing, someone in the bishopric quietly went behind us and found the circuit breakers and switched our power off DURING a really good, loud "Good Lovin'" type song. Those were the days.

This all occurred in the late sixties. I don't think loud rock and roll is allowed at church dances anymore.

All of us "Priests" in the band are now either Bishops, or High Priests...all that is except for dirty apostate Dark Sparks.

Be a little more specific to time period for more help. I was in charge of the music at stake dances when I was 16 - 17 in the mid 1980s. I played all kinds of songs by various bands. If it didn't come out and say "lets get naked and screw" or something like that, or any reference to alcohol or drugs, and all things Devil, I played it. favorites were all things Billy Idol, Van Halen(except Runnin with the Devil), Def Lepard, The police, Bob Sieger, Zepplin, The Go-gos, The Pretenders, Billy Squire, Journey, Reo Speedwagon, Loverboy, Heart, some KISS(if the right adults were around) Rush (Tom Sawyer got everyone on the floor) Brian Adams, ELO, Blue Oyster Cult and many others. Also many flash in the pan 1980s bands that I would get on compelation albums. I don't know what they use now because I don't know the new music that well, and have not been to the morg since the 1980s.

Every dance I went to in Rexburg (yes I was there one miserable year) played that song by alphaville "forever young" (pukes a little in mouth).

Heh, "Forever Young" was our Senior Prom theme (yes, just like on "Napoleon Dynamite")...I graduated HS in 1986.

...and has been sanded down because of church dances and school dances.

"You are Not Alone" Michael Jackson
"Electric Slide"
"Boot Scoot Boogie"
""Run Around" Blues Traveler
"Crazy for You" Madonna (I was informed this was the only Madonna song that was acceptable)

lol...One time a DJ played "The Time Warp." I brought my nonMo BFF and we were the only two who knew the dance. I heard later the DJ was ripped a new one for playing it.

Its funny you mentioned Crazy for You by Madonna. I was at a dance at youth conference in the 80's and the DJ played it. Right in the middle a leader came up and made them stop the song because it was inappropriate. I have listened to the song many times since, wondering what was so offensive. My guess is the line" I've never wanted anyone like this." That's all I can come up with.

The funny part is because of his overreaction I have put so much thought into what nasty meaning any part of the song could have, causing impure thoughts. If the whole song just played and was removed from future playlists I would never have paid any attention.

lol...See and I couldn't figure out why "Holiday" was banned. One of the lines in "Crazy for You" is "Strangers making most of the dark.." so to a Mo, wouldn't that be nastier?!?

My senior class (1976) voted to have Lynyrd Skynyrd's "Freebird" as our class song.
The asswipe principal overruled us, and made us have The Carpenter's "We've Only Just Begun", for the fifth straight year.
When the band started playing it, most of us walked out.

We wanted our high school class song to be another brick in the wall, but we weren't allowed, so it ended up being something by the smashing pumpkins.

But vetoed by the admin. So we ended up with a shitty Diana Ross song.

It always killed me when they would play "Stroke" by Billy Squire. duh!!!! For us Freebird was still the last dance because it was so long, this was 82-85. Also, fav was rock lobster, we loved to get on the floor with our dresses on......

I remember when I moved out to provo in 85 being shocked at the songs they would play at the byu dances. I htought they would have been more picky, but they weren't!! Oh, grand master flash white line, pretty awesome dance music.

Bom, bom, bom, bom, bom, bom bom bom, drng (trying to make van halen guitar thingys) now i got running with the devil in my HEAD!!!! THANKS!!!

I live my life like theres no tommorrow....all I've got, I had to steal

Was Kodachrome vetoed because of the stuff it says about education? I love that song!

when I think back
on all the crap
I learned in High school ( / GOD DAMN EARLY MORNING LDS SEMINARY)

its a wonder
I can think at all

(CLASSIC)

My eldest daughter worked my head to agree to go to a stake family dance. I agreed, only if they would play something I could enjoy, cuz I hated all their '50's poodle skirt bs,

She agreed, and was dating the dance's organizer's son, so sure enough, at one point, the sweet Jimi started playing, I think it was "Foxy Lady" hehhheee. DW and I started to dance and have fun, but the bastards killed it after only a few bars.

So we left.

A lot of the music mentioned here, I consider to be completely undanceable. I went to youth dances in the 80s. There were a few things that were forbidden, but most of the time, the adult authorities in charge didn't really understand what they were hearing. Every now and then, a song would come out that was just blatantly obviously inappropriate ("Push it" by Salt n Pepa comes to mind :>)), but for the most part, the grownups didn't seem to notice. Prince was forbidden, but I'm sure I heard 1999 at a dance at some point. Sometimes the PH holder in charge exerted more control over the DJ than others. Depends on the event (just a stake dance vs. youth conference dance).

P.S. I have been trying to figure out for years what EFY is and why I never heard of it. I think it's the name they gave to Youth Conference after I stopped going to church (late 80s). Can anyone confirm this?

Dogzilla,

I'm no expert on EFY but this is what I think it is. EFY (Especially for Youth) used to be a summer event held on BYU campus where the elite of the elite would send their kids. At least that's who attended from my area (suburban Chicago). It was expensive and rather exclusive. The rest of us had your standard Youth Conference (or confernts, if you're speaking in Utahnics). Now it seems there are more EFY's than just the original at BYU so out of staters don't have to travel so far, however, it's still, like, $400 per kid to go. I think it has replaced the regular Youth Confernts. I suppose they need to start weeding out which kids are likely to be in for the long haul.

YMCA, our "dj's" played that song at every dance

Mid 70s boy here. Colour My World was the fav slow song. I loved it. I would snuggle up really close with my girl friend in a dark corner. Vertical dry humping at its best.

In the mid-to late 90s, they played "Lady in Red" at almost every dance. Not....really sure why.

This doesn't really have to do with actual church dances. Anyway, when I was in high school we had a YM/YW group talent show. My friends and I danced to the song Shake Shake Shake Senora by Henry Belafonte. We were up there in little wrap skirts with cute hawaiian tank tops (pretty modest though). We were up there doing our little dance routine and shaking our hips. By the end of the dance, all the PH guys were sitting there with their jaws dropped. We thought it was all pretty innocent but my mom and some other adults were there and my mom let me know afterward it was a little too sexy for a church function. Ooops!

Some already mentioned:

Somebody
Forever Young
Lady In Red

I don't think I attended any stake dances where those weren't played.

It Takes Two by Rob Bass
Look Away by Chicago
Chances Are by Peter Cetera and Cher
Bizarre Love Triangle by New Order
Just Like Heaven by The Cure
Anything from Information Society and B-52's with Rock Lobster being a crowd favorite.
Hands to Heaven (?) by The Cutting Crew

This was in the Schaumburg, IL (Chicago 'burbs) Stake in the late 80s/early 90s.

I was just at a TBM wedding reception and can confirm that the popular songs at today's dances (based on the enthusiasm of the 14-22 year old crowd) are the worst of the worst Top 40 pop!

Totally forgot about the Mo obsession with synth-pop, not that I blame them. I love New Order and Erasure!

I can still hear "who let the dogs out?!" when I think about church singles dances :)

Just out of curiosity, how late in life do single Mormons continue attending awkward church dances? I ask because the girl mentioned practicing dances for a sock hop that was coming up and when I asked if they were putting in on for the kids I was told that it was for her ward (which is 19 to 30 year olds). Do grown ups really have sock hops? Really? This is very odd to me, but since I've never been a member I don't know if it seems normal from within the church...?

As for me, (non-ChurchCo dances, obviously)
My Heart Will Go On was our friggin prom theme song. Worst. Song. Ever.
C'mon Ride the Train
One Sweet Day by Mariah Carey and Boyz 2 Men
Gettin' Jiggy Wit It by Will Smith
No Scrubs and/or Waterfalls by TLC

I think maybe the Madonna songs were banned because they were by Madonna. The lyrical content probably wasn't even examined. She had a black Jesus in a music video, for crying out loud.