Mathew Cullen and Kaleigh Parson Wedding

Of all the many venues we’ve frequented in our travels, few have been better to us than Justin’s Grill. And that’s where we were on 4/19 for our first, but not last visit of 2014. That day, we had the privilege of providing sound and entertainment to Mathew Cullen and Kaleigh Parsons for their wedding, which consisted of a full ceremony, cocktail hour, and reception, featuring a family-made, multi-tiered cake including flowers, steps between tiers, and a working fountain at its base. It became the centerpiece for what was to come.

The day began with an indoor ceremony taking place in the same room that would eventually serve as the reception space. Guests were seated while an instrumental loop of Beanie Sigel’s Feel It In the Air played as a prelude to the ceremony. After the guests were seated and the groom and his entourage made their way to the top of the aisle, the bridesmaids made their appearance into the ceremony, entering to the Brad Paisley song, Waitin’ On a Woman. Kaleigh emerged from the doorway leading into the room and walked down the aisle wearing a white gown with red accents. The song she chose to accompany her down the aisle was Shania Twain’s From This Moment. Finally, when the vows were exchanged and the I-Do’s are said, the newly formed Mr. and Mrs. Cullen walked out of their ceremony to Forever Young by Audra Mae.

As ceremony ended and cocktail hour began, the staff of Justin’s Grill worked quickly and diligently to transition the room from ceremony to reception mode. However in the mean time, the bar was open and the guests obliged to drink, eat, and have a pleasant time during cocktail hour while the pictures were taken. With an added bonus, Salt City Sound Machine had the pleasure of reconnecting with a few familiar faces. Kaleigh’s family members have used our services in the past, so it was a good time to see Becky and Mike Green and long time friends Lori and Andy Volski. With those two groups in attendance, you’re sure to hear a little Jerry Garcia from time to time.

As the day moved on, the reception began with the introductions. The first song played was reserved for the parents and the wedding party, which was Give Me Everything by Pitbull. The groups, consisting of parents, grandparents, some extended family, and close friends, lined the dance floor as Mathew and Kaleigh made their entrance as Mr. and Mrs. Cullen to the song Bottoms Up by Brantley Gilbert. They followed up their entrance with the first dance, which was a late change to Christina Perri’s A Thousand Years, a very appropriate song for a wedding featuring the surname Cullen. At the song’s conclusion, it was time to sit down, relax, and enjoy Justin Grill’s dinner.

It was a wonderful sit down dinner with some very low-key music ranging different genres. Of course, as a matter of respect for our past clients, SCSM played a couple Grateful Dead songs for the Volski and Green families. The end of dinner was marked by the speeches and toasts by the bride and groom’s loved ones and began a multi-song family dance sequence where Matt and Kaleigh did slow dances with various members of their family. The songs were shortened in the interest of time, but it did give both our bride and groom a chance to get some quality dance times in with special family members. Mothers, Grandmothers, and Cousins were represented in these dances with shortened versions of A Song for Mama by Boyz II Men, Wind Beneath my Wings by Bette Midler, Crazy by Patsy Cline, Wonderful Tonight by Eric Clapton and others were among the songs shortened for these dances, and it allowed several special moments to be shared between the bride and groom and members of their family.

The rest of the night was marked with lots of dancing and memories. The dance floor was filled throughout the night with a mix of modern hip hop with classic pop and country. Dance time accounted for the final two and a half hours of the night. During that time, the family made multi-tiered cake was cut by Kaleigh and Matt to She’s In Love with the Boy by Trisha Yearwood. Shortly following the Cake Cutting were the Bouquet/Garter tosses. The bouquet was tossed to Martina McBride’s She’s In Love With the Boy, while the garter was removed and tossed to Flower by Moby. Finally, to complete the moment, the garter was placed on the leg of the lucky lady who caught the bouquet to Maino’s That Could Be Us.

As the day and the dances went on, it was finally time to wrap things up. Mathew and Kaleigh had been through a lot that day… preparation, travel, a wedding ceremony, pictures, and a reception. Now it was time to move on with into the institution of marriage. Their final song of the day was a slow one, K-Ci and JoJo’s All My Life, and it was a sweet way to end such an important day in their lives.

Congratulations to Mathew and Kaleigh.  Thank you for choosing Salt City Sound Machine.  We wish you the best in the future!!

Notable Songs

• Feel It In the Air (Instrumental) – Beanie Sigel (Ceremony Prelude)
• Waitin’ on a Woman – Brad Paisley, feat. Andy Griffith (Processional)
• From This Moment On – Shania Twain (Bridal Processional)
• Forever Young – Audra Mae (Recessional)
• Give Me Everything – Pitbull (Grand Entrance – Family, Bridal Party)
• Bottoms Up – Brantley Gilbert (Grand Entrance – Bride and Groom)
• A Thousand Years – Christina Perri (First Dance)
• A Song for Mama – Boyz II Men (Mother/Groom Dance)
• Wind Beneath My Wings – Bette Midler (Grandmother/Bride Dance)
• Wonderful Tonight – Eric Clapton (In-Law Dance)
• Crazy – Patsy Cline (Grandmother/Groom Dance)
• She’s In Love With The Boy – Trisha Yearwood (Cake Cutting)
• My Baby Loves Me – Martina McBride (Bouquet Toss)
• Flower – Moby (Garter Removal/Toss)
• That Could Be Us – Maino (Garter Placement)
• All My Life – K-Ci & JoJo (Last Dance)