MOG

Somewhere…there’s a couple who started the growing tradition of assembling, burning and distributing mix CDs as keepsakes at weddings. So much for matchbooks as marriage mementos.

The first wedding CD that I encountered was handed out about five years ago when my longtime fellow nightclub habitué Shannon married her beau Michael. They gave out discs that featured music played during the ceremony and at the reception. Selections included gruff vocalist Tom Waits’ moving rendition of the achingly romantic “Somewhere” from the musical “West Side Story,” and, before it had been completely played out, singer-songwriter Norah Jones’ contemplative love song “Come Away with Me.” The CD cover was as simple and elegant as a wedding invitation: The names of the bride and groom and the date of the nuptials. I suppose it shouldn’t be a surprise that every time I hear Waits sing “Somewhere,” I think of Shannon and Michael.

Things have gotten a little more elaborate on the wedding CD front. Another couple that I know – Scott and Mona – recently produced a beauty to celebrate their union. Scott is a major fan of the Beatles; and Mona is a photographer and designer. For their commemorative disc, Mona took a shot of the twosome and their longhair Chihuahua, Ringo, and created a reproduction of the classic cover that graced the Fab Four’s American debut album Meet the Beatles (including font and color scheme). The inside cover of the souvenir served as a program for the wedding ceremony, while the label on the CD itself recalled the design of the old Capitol Records logo, only retooled as “S & M Records.”

Tracks on the CD ranged from ”Here, There & Everywhere,” “Something” and “Real Love” by the Beatles, “Oh My Love” by a solo John Lennon, and a cover of the Lennon-McCartney song “The Two of Us” by Aimee Mann and Michael Penn to modern folk/cabaret singer Nellie McKay’s tongue-in-cheek “I Wanna Get Married,” jazz legend Louis Armstrong’s “We Have All the Time in the World” (from the James Bond film “On Her Majesty’s Secret Service”), and cool thrush Julie London’s rendition of “Fly Me to the Moon.” On the more rockin’ tip, they threw in the Cure’s “Lovesong,” the Kinks’ “You Really Got Me,” New Model Army’s “Love Songs” and, paying tribute to the rather unique city where they fell in love, the Arctic Monkeys’ “Fake Tales of San Francisco” and the Jam’s “Strange Town.” And there’s more, including a handful of nifty hidden tracks.

I could tell that Scott was thrilled to hand out the CDs to all of us who attended the reception. As for the album itself, it was such a sweet gesture, not to mention easy on the ears. Whenever I play the CD or look at the cover, it’ll be a lovely way for me to remember my friends’ special day, and their affection for one another.

I’d say that, as traditions go, this one’s a keeper.