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In memory of Dad

Memorial songs for Dad, and one that's only about him

Songs for each part of the service, help with the slideshow and the funeral home, and, when you're ready, an original song made from your memories of him.

  • His name and his sayings in it
  • Hear it before you pay
  • From $34.99
Write a song for DadSee the songs⁠
A father's wristwatch, reading glasses, flat cap, folding ruler and enamel mug on a linen cloth by a window at dusk, lit by a single candle (AI photo)

The order of service

Songs played at memorial services, in running order

Thirty songs for memorial services and the gathering after, grouped by the moment each one suits. Most services use four to six. Choose the ones that sound like him.

Suggested order of service

  1. A bright room set for a memorial gathering, rows of light wooden chairs and a tall arrangement of white roses and eucalyptus, before anyone arrives (AI photo)

    As everyone arrives

    When Before the service, 10 to 20 minutes

    Soft and familiar, played low while people find their seats. An instrumental lets conversation carry on gently.

    • Clair de LuneClaude DebussyInstrumental
    • HallelujahLeonard Cohen
    • Bridge over Troubled WaterSimon & Garfunkel
    • Fields of GoldSting
    • Amazing GraceJudy CollinsHymn
  2. An old wooden record player with a vinyl record, a stack of worn record sleeves and a pair of reading glasses on a sideboard in warm lamp light (AI photo)

    Songs about fathers

    When Just before or after the eulogy

    A song written about a dad can say what a eulogy can't. One is usually enough, placed right after the family has spoken.

    • Dance with My FatherLuther Vandross
    • The Living YearsMike + The Mechanics
    • Leader of the BandDan Fogelberg
    • Daddy's HandsHolly Dunn
    • Song for DadKeith Urban
  3. A shoebox of old family snapshots spilled across a linen tablecloth while two hands sort them into small piles (AI photo)

    Under the photo slideshow

    When Usually 5 to 12 minutes

    Warm rather than heavy, so people can smile at the pictures. Save the brightest song for the funniest photos.

    • In My LifeThe Beatles
    • Remember WhenAlan Jackson
    • PhotographEd Sheeran
    • SmileNat King Cole
    • MemoriesMaroon 5
  4. A single lit candle and a sprig of rosemary on a windowsill against a lavender dusk sky (AI photo)

    A moment of reflection

    When A minute of silence, a candle, a reading

    Choose one song and let it play all the way through. People need something to hold on to while they think of him.

    • Tears in HeavenEric Clapton
    • Go Rest High on That MountainVince Gill
    • Wind Beneath My WingsBette Midler
    • AngelSarah McLachlan
    • NimrodEdward ElgarInstrumental
  5. A family of four seen from far behind, walking arm in arm along a gravel path under a great oak tree in golden afternoon light (AI photo, fictional people)

    Walking out, and at the graveside

    When The recessional, a burial or a scattering

    Something that lifts a little as people stand. Outdoors, make sure someone has a charged speaker and the files saved offline.

    • My WayFrank Sinatra
    • Time to Say GoodbyeAndrea Bocelli & Sarah Brightman
    • Knockin' on Heaven's DoorBob Dylan
    • I'll Fly AwayAlison Krauss & Gillian WelchHymn
    • You'll Never Walk AloneGerry and the Pacemakers
  6. A backyard at dusk with string lights over a long wooden table, a few people talking softly, and a grill and two fishing rods by the fence (AI photo, fictional people)

    The celebration of life afterward

    When The reception, the wake, the backyard

    This is where his own taste belongs: the songs he sang badly in the car. Brighter is fine here, even welcome.

    • Take Me Home, Country RoadsJohn Denver
    • Three Little BirdsBob Marley & The Wailers
    • Spirit in the SkyNorman Greenbaum
    • MargaritavilleJimmy Buffett
    • Mr. Blue SkyElectric Light Orchestra

The practical part

Planning songs for a memorial service, a few days ahead

Music is one of the few things at a service you can get exactly right. These are the details funeral directors most often ask families about.

Checklist

Handing the music to the funeral home

  1. Ask how they play music

    Some venues use a laptop and speakers, some a USB stick, some only a streaming playlist. Ask what they need before you download anything.

  2. Send the files two or three days ahead

    Downloaded MP3 files are the safest choice. A streaming playlist needs a working connection and can play an ad between songs.

  3. Number the files in running order

    Name them 01 Arrival, 02 After the eulogy, 03 Slideshow, and so on, so nobody has to guess on the day.

  4. Bring a backup

    Keep the same files on a USB stick and on one phone, downloaded to play offline.

  5. Give one person the cue sheet

    Not you. A friend or the funeral director, with a note of when each song starts and where to fade it out.

Rule of thumb

How many songs for the slideshow

Allow about six seconds per photo, and three and a half to four minutes per song.

PhotosRunning timeSongs
40about 4 min1 song
80about 8 min2 songs
120about 12 min3 songs
180about 18 min5 songs

Put the song you most want people to hear last, under the photos that matter most.

Faith and setting

Religious, secular, or a little of both

In a church or place of worship

Ask the minister, priest or rabbi first. Some allow only hymns during the service; other songs can move to the slideshow, the reception or the graveside.

At a funeral home or secular service

Almost anything goes. Many families pair one hymn he loved with one song that was simply his, so everyone in the room feels included.

Not sure what he'd want?

Look at what he actually played: the car radio, the records he kept, the tune he whistled. That usually settles it.

After the service

Memorial songs for the days that come back every year

Grief tends to return on dates. A song saved for those days gives the family something to do together when nobody quite knows what to say.

  • His birthday

    Cook what he always ordered, and play the songs he would have picked for himself.

  • Father's Day

    Go to the place that was his, the garage, the dock, the bench by the course, and let one song play there.

  • The anniversary

    Light a candle at the hour of the service and listen together, even if together means a call across three cities.

  • Holidays and reunions

    Hang the ornament he made, set out his mug, play his song once before the meal. Then let the day be loud again.

A song written about him belongs on these days too.See what goes into one

A song that's only about him

His name, his sayings and his places, in one song

You tell us about him in a few sentences. We write original lyrics around those details and record two full versions, and you listen to both before deciding anything.

What families often write

His name
Walter, but everyone said Walt, and the grandkids called him Pop
What he always said
Measure twice, cut once. And: call your mother.
Places that were his
The garage on Elm Street, the lake at six in the morning
Who it's from
Kate and Ben, and Mom

Two or three details like these are enough to begin.

Families often choose

Mood
  • Calm
  • Nostalgic
  • Sad
Style
  • Ballad
  • Country
  • Gospel
Voice
  • Male voice
  • Female voice
  • Duet
Write a song for Dad

You hear both versions before paying

Hear a finished song first

These are the two real orders we can share, and neither was written in memory of someone: one is an anniversary love song, one a birthday song. Listen for how a name is sung; yours can be slower and quieter.

  • Ordinary Days

    Written for Emma, by her husband, on their tenth wedding anniversary

    • Ballad
    • Female voice
    Play Ordinary Days
    Ballad

  • Celebrate You, Maya

    Written for Maya, by her best friend since ninth grade, on her thirtieth birthday

    • Pop
    • Male voice
    Play Maya's song
    Pop

Words from families

What it meant to hear his name sung

  • A woman in her forties rests her head on her mother's shoulder on a sofa after the memorial service, both smiling softly, the mother holding a phone (AI photo, fictional people)

    His memorial service

    We played it right after the eulogy. Mom held my hand through the verse about Saturday pancakes, and people still bring that verse up to her.
    Kate R.Portland, OR
  • A brother and sister at a kitchen table at night with a laptop and loose old photographs, the sister pointing at the screen (AI photo, fictional people)

    Photo slideshow

    I had 140 photos and no idea what to put under them. His song carried the last five minutes, and it said Coach the way his players always did.
    Marcus T.Columbus, OH
  • A man in his forties sits on an old stool in a cluttered garage workshop, looking at his phone with a small smile (AI photo, fictional person)

    First Father's Day without him

    I listened in his garage, on his stool, next to the radio he never fixed. It got the sawdust and the whistling right. I play it every June now.
    Ben A.Knoxville, TN
  • A family sits together at the end of a wooden lake dock at sunset, seen from behind, with a small speaker beside them (AI photo, fictional people)

    One year on

    On the first anniversary we took it to the lake where he fished. Nobody said much. We let it play twice and watched the water.
    The Lindqvist familyDuluth, MN
  • A grandmother on a porch swing plays a song on her phone for two grandchildren leaning in to listen (AI photo, fictional people)

    For the grandchildren

    The grandkids were small when he died. Now they know he called the youngest Peanut and sang off-key in the truck, because it's in the song.
    Diane P.Spokane, WA
  • Friends and family stand around a backyard table under string lights, one man raising a bottle in a gentle toast (AI photo, fictional people)

    Celebration of life

    Dad wanted a party, not a funeral. We played his song right before the toast, then his old cumbias until midnight. It set exactly the right tone.
    Luis G.San Antonio, TX
  • A woman in her thirties in an oversized gray cardigan stands in a small kitchen at night holding a mug, eyes closed, a phone propped by the kettle (AI photo, fictional person)

    Couldn't fly home in time

    My brother played it at the service and I listened at the same minute in my kitchen, wearing Dad's old cardigan. It was the closest I could be.
    Priya N.Listening from London
  • A grandmother, her adult son and a little granddaughter hang a small wooden ornament on a Christmas tree together (AI photo, fictional people)

    First Christmas

    We hung his fishing-lure ornament and played the song once, before presents. It turned the quietest part of the day into a good one.
    Ellen W.Burlington, VT

How it works

All you write is a few things about him

Nothing complicated in a hard week. Most families finish in one sitting, often together at the kitchen table.

  1. Step 1

    Tell us about him

    His name and what you called him, who the song is from, and two or three memories: a saying, a place, a habit. Choose the occasion In memory.

  2. Step 2

    Choose how it should feel

    A genre, a mood such as calm, nostalgic or sad, and a male voice, a female voice or a duet.

  3. Step 3

    Listen to two full versions

    Both arrive a few minutes later with a light preview watermark. If a line isn't right, change it and two new versions come back.

  4. Step 4

    Keep it, share it when you're ready

    After paying, download the MP3 for the service, the lyric video and the lyrics PDF, or send the family a private link to listen.

Write a song for Dad

Nothing is charged until you choose a version

Pricing

One price, and you listen first

There is nothing to pay until you have heard both full versions and chosen the one that sounds like him. No subscription.

Memorial song

A song in memory of Dad

From$34.99

  • Lyrics from your memories of him
  • Two full versions to choose from
  • Edits before you pay
  • MP3, lyric video and lyrics PDF
  • A private link for the family
  • Streaming release, if you'd like
Write a song for Dad⁠

You pay only after you've listened to both versions.

Questions

Questions families ask about a memorial song

Answered plainly, so you can decide in your own time.

Can we play the song at the memorial service or funeral?

Yes. After payment you download it as an MP3, which the funeral home, church or venue can play like any other track. Paying also transfers our rights in the song to you, so where it is played is your decision.

Can it go into the photo slideshow or a tribute video?

Yes. Drop the MP3 into any slideshow or video editor, or hand it to the funeral home for their tribute video. You also get a vertical lyric video (MP4) that can include your photos of him, and a lyrics PDF you can print in the program.

The service is in a few days. How fast can I have it?

Two versions are usually ready two to three minutes after you send your story, and the files unlock as soon as you pay. That leaves time to listen together, make an edit if needed, and send the file to the funeral home a day or two before.

Can it use his name, his nickname and the things he always said?

Please include them. The lyrics are written from your details, so Walt, Pop, Coach or whatever you called him, and the line he said every single time, are what make it his. If a name is unusual, add how it sounds in parentheses.

Can it be from the whole family?

Yes. Say who it is from in your story, his wife, his children, the grandchildren, and the verses can speak for all of you. One person makes it; everyone can be in it.

Can it be religious, or suit a church service?

You can choose the Gospel style, which many families use in church. We write original lyrics, so the song can't quote an existing hymn, prayer or scripture. If his faith mattered to him, you can say so in your story and the lyrics can carry it in their own words; a hymn he loved can be played alongside his song.

Can someone sing it live at the service?

Yes. Add the instrumental version at checkout: the same song without the vocals, plus the lyrics PDF, so a family member or the church musician can sing it.

What if it doesn't feel right?

Then don't pay. Change a line, the mood or the voice and two new versions come back; the app shows how many rounds you have left. After payment, purchases are final except as described in our refund policy.

Which files do we get, and can the family have copies?

An MP3 of the song, a vertical MP4 lyric video and a lyrics PDF, plus a private gift page with a link and a QR code anyone in the family can open. The downloads are yours to copy and share.

Something we haven't covered?

⁠Email us
A front porch at dusk with the light on, an empty rocking chair with a folded flannel shirt on the seat and a mug on the railing (AI photo)

When you're ready, a song about him

Not today, if today is too soon. It takes a few quiet minutes whenever it feels right, and you hear it before you decide.

Write a song for Dad

Nothing to pay until you've listened