"Wedding Song (There Is Love)" is a title of a 1971 hit single by

Paul Stookey Noel Paul Stookey (born December 30, 1937) is an American singer-songwriter and activist who is known for being a member of the 1960s folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary along with Peter Yarrow and Mary Travers. He has been known by his first name, N ...

. The song, which Stookey credits to divine inspiration, has since been recorded by many singers (with versions by

Petula Clark Sally "Petula" Clark (born 15 November 1932) is a British singer, actress, and songwriter. She started her professional career as a child actor, child performer and has had the longest career of any British entertainer, spanning more than 85 y ...

and

Mary MacGregor Mary MacGregor (born May 6, 1948) is an American singer. She is best known for singing the 1976 song "Torn Between Two Lovers", which topped the ''Billboard'' charts for two weeks. Career MacGregor was born May 6, 1948, in St. Paul, Minneso ...

returning it to the ''Billboard'' Hot 100) and remains a popular choice for performance at weddings.

Composition and original recording

Stookey had first performed the song at the wedding of

Peter Yarrow Peter Yarrow (May 31, 1938 – January 7, 2025) was an American singer and songwriter who found fame as a member of the 1960s folk music, folk trio Peter, Paul and Mary along with Paul Stookey and Mary Travers. Yarrow co-wrote (with Lenny Lipton ...

—Stookey's co-member of

Peter, Paul and Mary Peter, Paul and Mary were an American Contemporary folk music, folk group formed in New York City in 1961 during the American folk music revival. The trio consisted of Peter Yarrow (guitar, tenor vocals), Paul Stookey (guitar, baritone vocals), ...

—to Mary Beth McCarthy at Saint Mary's Catholic Church in

Willmar, Minnesota Willmar ( ) is a city in, and the county seat of, Kandiyohi County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 21,015 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. History Agricultural expansion and the establishment of Willmar as a division ...

. Stookey was

best man A groomsman or usher is one of the male attendants to the groom in a wedding ceremony. Usually, the groom selects close friends and relatives to serve as groomsmen, and it is considered an honor to be selected. From his groomsmen, the groom usuall ...

at the ceremony, which took place in the evening of October 18, 1969. Stookey recorded "Wedding Song (There Is Love)" for his solo album ''Paul and'', which was released on July 23, 1971. On this track he accompanied himself on a

12-string guitar A twelve-string guitar (or 12-string guitar) is a steel-string guitar with 12 strings in six courses, which produces a thicker, more ringing tone than a standard six-string guitar. Typically, the strings of the lower four courses are tuned in ...

tuned a tone and a half down. On June 28, 1971, "Wedding Song" was issued as an advance single from the ''Paul and'' album. It reached No. 24 on the

Hot 100 The ''Billboard'' Hot 100, also known as simply the Hot 100, is the music industry standard record chart in the United States for songs, published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine. Chart rankings are based on sales (physical and digital), o ...

in ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' and reached No. 3 on the

Easy Listening chart The Adult Contemporary chart is published weekly by ''Billboard (magazine), Billboard'' magazine and lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary music, adult contemporary radio stations in the United States. The chart is compiled based on ...

. Internationally, Stookey reached No. 31 and No. 12 (AC) in Canada, and No. 55 in Australia with "Wedding Song".

Petula Clark version

recorded "Wedding Song (There Is Love)" in the August 1972 sessions at

Trident Studios Trident Studios was a British recording facility, located at 17 St Anne's Court in London's Soho district between 1968 and 1981. It was constructed in 1967 by Norman Sheffield, drummer of the 1960s group the Hunters, and his brother Barry ...

in London for her album ''Now'' produced by

Mike Curb Michael Curb (born December 24, 1944) is an American politician, record executive, and philanthropist who served as the 42nd Lieutenant Governor of California, lieutenant governor of California from 1979 to 1983. He is the founder of Curb Recor ...

with the album's arranger

Don Costa Dominick P. "Don" Costa (June 10, 1925 – January 19, 1983) was an American conductor and record producer. He discovered singer Paul Anka and worked on several hit albums by Frank Sinatra, including '' Sinatra and Strings'' and '' My Way'' ...

. "Wedding Song..." was issued in September 1972 as the second advance single from the ''Now'' album which would be a December 1972 release: "Wedding Song..." would chart at No. 9 on the

Adult contemporary music Adult contemporary music (AC) is a form of radio-played popular music, ranging from 1960s vocal and 1970s soft rock music to predominantly ballad-heavy music of the 1980s to the present day, with varying degrees of easy listening, pop, sou ...

charts and reached No. 65 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100. In the UK "Wedding Song (There Is Love)" had an October 6, 1972 single release, being Clark's first UK single release since "

I Don't Know How to Love Him "I Don't Know How to Love Him" is a song from the 1970 album and 1971 rock opera ''Jesus Christ Superstar'' written by Andrew Lloyd Webber (music) and Tim Rice (lyrics), a torch ballad sung by the character of Mary Magdalene. In the opera sh ...

" in November 1971. "Wedding Song..." did not enter the UK singles chart despite being aired on October 26, 1972 ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British record chart television programme, made by the BBC and broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show. For most of its histo ...

'' broadcast. In

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

the song reached No. 67. "Wedding Song (There Is Love)" afforded Clark a major hit in Australia in the spring of 1973, spending 11 weeks in the Top 20 with a peak of No. 10. Clark also recorded a French rendering of "Wedding Song (There Is Love)" entitled "Il est temps", featuring lyrics by

Pierre Delanoë Pierre Charles Marcel Napoléon Leroyer (16 December 1918 – 27 December 2006), known professionally as Pierre Delanoë (), was a French lyricist who wrote thousands of songs for dozens of singers, including Dalida, Edith Piaf, Charles Aznavou ...

: this version was issued as the B-side of Clark's December 1972 French single release "Bleu, Blanc, Rouge" and was included on Clark's 1973 francophone album ''Petula''. The 2002

DVD The DVD (common abbreviation for digital video disc or digital versatile disc) is a digital optical disc data storage format. It was invented and developed in 1995 and first released on November 1, 1996, in Japan. The medium can store any ki ...

release ''Petula Clark: A Sign of the Times'' which features footage from Clark's performance at the

Virginia Arts Festival The Virginia Arts Festival is a Norfolk-based non-profit arts presenter which serves southeastern Virginia, offering dozens of performances during the spring and throughout the year. Virginia Arts Festival performances have included international b ...

May 20–21, 2001, includes her performance of "The Wedding Song (There Is Love)" (so entitled).

Other versions

Prior to the release of the Petula Clark version,

Southern Comfort Southern Comfort (often abbreviated SoCo) is an American naturally fruit-flavored whiskey liqueur with fruit and spice accents. The brand was created by bartender Martin Wilkes Heron in New Orleans in 1874, using whiskey as the base spirit. Whi ...

had recorded "Wedding Song (There Is Love)" for their 1972 album ''Stir Don't Shake'' from which it was issued as a single in August 1972. The song became a Top Ten hit in Ireland via the May 1974 release credited to the veteran

showband The Irish showband () was a dance band format popular in Ireland from the 1950s to the 1980s, with its peak in the 1960s. These bands typically had seven to ten members, including a rhythm section and a brass section with various combinations o ...

Kelley and the Nevada, fronted by vocalist Eileen Kelley. The single reached No. 3 on the Irish hit parade dated July 11, 1974. This was the Nevada's second hit version of a Petula Clark US charting single -

Red Hurley Brian "Red" Hurley (born 11 November 1949) is an Irish singer. Hurley's career includes singing lead for bands such as The Colours, The Wheels, and The Nevada (né The Nevada Showband). He had a series of number one records in the 1970s while p ...

and the Nevada scored a 1971 Irish No. 1 hit with a remake of Clark's 1968 US Top 20 hit " Kiss Me Goodbye". "The Wedding Song" was the second and final chart single by the Nevada fronted by Kelley—subsequent to the band's version of "

How Great Thou Art "How Great Thou Art" is a Christian hymn based on an original Swedish hymn entitled "" written in 1885 by Carl Boberg (1859–1940). The English version of the hymn and its title are a loose translation by the English missionary Stuart K. Hine f ...

" (No. 8 in 1972) and was the fourth and final collaboration between Kelley and the Nevada.

Captain & Tennille Captain & Tennille were an American recording duo whose primary success occurred in the 1970s. The husband-and-wife team were "Captain" Daryl Dragon (1942–2019) and Toni Tennille (born 1940). They have five albums certified gold or platinum a ...

recorded the song for their 1976 album '' Song of Joy''. "Wedding Song" was intended to be issued as a fourth single from the album and would have followed up the 1976-77 top ten hit "

Muskrat Love "Muskrat Love" is a soft rock song written by Willis Alan Ramsey. The song depicts a romantic liaison between two anthropomorphic muskrats named Susie and Sam. It was first recorded in 1972 by Ramsey for his sole album release ''Willis Alan Ramse ...

A&M Records A&M Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group and functions as a branch of Interscope Geffen A&M Records, Interscope-Geffen-A&M. Established in 1962 by Herb Alpert and Jerry Moss, the label initially operated independent ...

had gone as far as assigning a catalog number (A&M 1894) for the track's single release when it was canceled. Captain & Tennille's follow-up single to "Muskrat Love" turned out to be "Can't Stop Dancin'", the advance single from the duo's upcoming '' Come In from the Rain'' album. "The Wedding Song (There Is Love)" returned to the ''Billboard'' charts in the autumn of 1978 via a version by

which reached No. 23 Easy Listening and No. 81 on the Hot 100. MacGregor had been discovered by Peter Yarrow, whose wedding occasioned the song's composition, but Yarrow was not involved in MacGregor's recording of "The Wedding Song", which was produced by

Gene Cotton Gene Cotton (born June 30, 1944 in Columbus, Ohio) is an American pop and folk singer-songwriter. He is best known for his four ''Billboard'' top 40 entries during the years 1976–1978. In the UK, he is most famous for the song "Me and the E ...

and recorded at the Creative Workshop studio in

Berry Hill, Tennessee Berry Hill is a city in Davidson County, Tennessee. As of the 2020 census, the population was 2,112. , the current mayor is Dennis Sheffield. History Much of the area of Berry Hill was originally owned by William Wells Berry (1813–1876) and hi ...

.''Billboard'' Vol 90 No. 45 (November 11, 1978) p.79 The Mary MacGregor version made its album debut on the 1979 release '' Mary MacGregor's Greatest Hits''. Other versions of the song have been recorded by

Harry Belafonte Harry Belafonte ( ; born Harold George Bellanfanti Jr.; March 1, 1927 – April 25, 2023) was an American singer, actor, and civil rights activist who popularized calypso music with international audiences in the 1950s and 1960s. Belafonte ...

(album ''Belafonte...Live!'' (1972)),

the Lettermen The Lettermen are an American male pop vocal trio whose trademark is close-harmony pop songs with light arrangements. The group started in 1959. They have had two Top 10 singles (both No. 7), 16 Top 10 singles on the Adult Contemporary chart (i ...

(album ''Close to You'' (1971)),

Helena Vondráčková Helena Vondráčková (born 24 June 1947, in Prague) is a Czech people, Czech singer and actress whose prolific career as a performer has spanned more than six decades, earning her acclaim both domestically and internationally. Recognized for h ...

(as "Je teď tvá" Czech - album ''Helena a Stryci'' (1974)),

Nana Mouskouri Ioanna "Nana" Mouskouri ( ; born 13 October 1934) is a Greek singer and politician. Over the span of her career, she has released an estimated 450 albums in at least thirteen languages, including Greek language, Greek, French language, French, ...

(album ''Nana's Book of Songs'' (1975)),

Daliah Lavi Daliah Lavi (born Daliah Lewinbuk or Levenbuch, ; 12 October 1942 – 3 May 2017) was an Israeli actress, singer, and model. Early life Daliah Lewinbuk (or Levenbuch) was born in Haifa, British Mandate of Palestine (now Israel). Her mother Ru ...

(as "Liebe Lebt" German - album ''Neuer Wind'' (1976)),

Bonnie St. Claire Bonnie St. Claire (born Bonje Cornelia Swart, 18 November 1949) is a Dutch singer and actress who has a recording history that began in the 1960s and continued into the 1990s. She was part of the trio Bonnie, Debbie & Rosy, and part of the duo ...

(as "'K Hou Van Jou" Dutch - album ''Sla Je Arm Om Me Heen'' (1983)) and Sandler and Young (album ''You've Got a Friend in...''). Two versions with lyrics have been recorded by

James Last James Last (, ; born Hans Last; 17 April 1929 – 9 June 2015) was a German composer and big band leader of the James Last Orchestra. Initially a jazz bassist, his trademark "happy music" made his numerous albums best-sellers in Germany and ...

(albums ''Love Must Be the Reason'' (1972), ''Beachparty 3'' (1972) and ''James Last Live'' (1974) (2 LP-album)). Instrumental versions have been recorded by the O'Neill Brothers (album ''A Day to Remember: Instrumental Music for Your Wedding Day'' (2002)) and

Bradley Joseph Bradley Joseph (born 1965) is an American composer, arranger, and producer of contemporary instrumental music. His compositions include works for orchestras, quartets, and solo piano pieces. He has been active professionally since 1983, and has ...

(album '' Piano Love Songs'' (2006)).

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wedding Song (There Is Love), The 1971 singles 1972 singles Petula Clark songs Captain & Tennille songs Mary MacGregor songs 1969 songs Folk ballads Songs written by Paul Stookey Songs about marriage Polydor Records singles