It was 1975. Bell-bottoms were everywhere. Toni Tennille and Daryl Dragon—better known to the world as Captain & Tennille—were basically the reigning royalty of easy-listening pop. Everyone knows "Love Will Keep Us Together," but if you were getting married in the mid-to-late seventies, there was another track that felt like the absolute gold standard for a ceremony. People still search for the Captain and Tennille wedding song There Is Love, though there’s a funny bit of history behind it that most folks forget.
Technically, the song is called "Wedding Song (There Is Love)."
It wasn't originally theirs.
The track was written by Noel Paul Stookey of Peter, Paul and Mary. He wrote it for the wedding of his bandmate, Peter Yarrow, back in 1969. Legend has it he felt the song was so divinely inspired that he set up a charitable organization to handle the royalties. By the time Toni and Daryl got their hands on it for their 1976 album Song of Joy, it had already become a massive folk staple. But they gave it that polished, melodic, "A&M Records" sheen that turned it into a definitive wedding processional for a whole generation of couples.
The Story Behind the Captain and Tennille Wedding Song There Is Love
Honestly, the 1970s was a weird time for music. You had disco blowing up on one side and this incredibly earnest, almost spiritual soft rock on the other. Toni Tennille had this voice—rich, contralto, perfectly controlled—that could make a phone book sound like a romantic vow. When she sang "The Wedding Song," it didn't feel like a cover. It felt like a statement.
Daryl Dragon, "The Captain," was a wizard on the keyboards. While the original folk version by Stookey was acoustic and raw, the Captain & Tennille version added layers. It felt bigger. It felt like a "production." For many brides in '76 and '77, it was the only choice. It bridged the gap between the traditional religious hymns their parents wanted and the contemporary pop they actually liked.
Some people think the song is strictly about a man and a woman. If you look at the lyrics, though, it’s much more metaphysical than that. It talks about "two or more are gathered" and the presence of a higher power. It’s a heavy song. It’s not just "I like you, let's get married." It’s "This union is part of a much larger cosmic design." That’s probably why it stuck. It’s got weight.
Why This Version Topped the Charts
The 1976 album Song of Joy was a monster. It had "Lonely Night (Angel Face)" and "Muskrat Love" (yeah, the one with the synthesizer muskrat noises). But buried in there was this gem. It wasn't the biggest radio hit they ever had—that would be "Do That to Me One More Time" later on—but it had incredible legs in the "real world."
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You have to understand the context of their public image. They were the couple. They seemed inseparable. They wore matching outfits. They had those bulldogs. When Toni sang about love being a "spirit," people believed her because they believed in the Captain and Tennille as a unit.
Of course, we know now that the "perfect couple" image was a bit of a facade. Toni eventually wrote in her memoir about the emotional distance in their marriage. It’s kind of heartbreaking to listen to the Captain and Tennille wedding song There Is Love now, knowing that the man she was singing to—and the man arranging the music—was often cold or detached behind the scenes. It adds a layer of melancholy to the track that wasn't there in 1976.
Comparing the Versions: Stookey vs. Tennille
If you play the Noel Paul Stookey version, it’s a guitar and a prayer. It’s very "Peace and Love" era.
Toni’s version is different.
- The Tempo: It’s slightly more driven.
- The Vocals: It’s less "whispery folk" and more "theatrical pop."
- The Vibe: Stookey’s feels like a campfire; Toni’s feels like a cathedral.
Most people today actually confuse the two. They’ll hear the song and say, "Oh, I love that Captain and Tennille song," not realizing it was a cover of a folk artist. That’s the power of a great interpreter. They own the space.
The "There Is Love" Legacy in Modern Weddings
Does anyone still use the Captain and Tennille wedding song There Is Love today?
Surprisingly, yes. We’re seeing a massive 70s revival. Gen Z and Millennials are digging through their parents' vinyl collections and finding this stuff. It’s got a "vintage" cool factor now. It’s not "cheesy" anymore; it’s "retro-authentic."
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There’s a specific kind of nostalgia that hits when those first chords start. It reminds people of a time when songs had clear melodies and lyrics that didn't require a dictionary or a background in urban slang to understand. It’s simple. It’s direct. "Well, a man shall leave his mother and a woman leave her home." It’s classic storytelling.
The song also works for different parts of the wedding. It’s a bit slow for a grand entrance, but for the lighting of a unity candle or a quiet moment during the ceremony? It’s perfect. It fills the room without being overbearing.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Lyrics
There is a common misconception that the song is titled "There Is Love." If you look at the back of the Song of Joy LP, you'll see the full title. The parenthetical is important.
The lyrics are actually quite religious. "Wherever two or more are gathered in His name, there is love." It’s a direct reference to Matthew 18:20. This is why the song became a staple in both secular and church weddings. It’s one of the few pop-adjacent songs from that era that priests and ministers didn't object to. Most pop songs were considered too "suggestive," but you can't really argue with a Bible verse set to a beautiful melody.
Toni Tennille’s delivery of the line "The marriage of your spirits here has only just begun" is often cited by vocal coaches as a masterclass in phrasing. She doesn't over-sing it. She doesn't do the Whitney Houston or Mariah Carey runs. She just says it. And because she just says it, you believe it.
The Technical Brilliance of Daryl Dragon
We have to talk about the Captain. Daryl Dragon was a classically trained musician. He was a perfectionist. When he worked on the arrangement for the Captain and Tennille wedding song There Is Love, he wasn't just throwing together a backing track.
He understood frequency. He knew how to make the keyboards sit right under Toni’s voice so they never competed. Listen to the way the organ swells during the bridge. It’s subtle, but it builds the emotional stakes of the song. Without Daryl’s arrangement, it might have just been another forgotten cover. With it, it became a piece of audio furniture in the American household.
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Is It Still a "Good" Wedding Song?
Music is subjective, obviously. But if you’re looking for something that feels timeless rather than trendy, this is it. The problem with modern wedding songs (think Ed Sheeran or Dan + Shay) is that they become so popular that they feel dated within three years. You hear them at every single wedding until you want to scream.
The Captain and Tennille version has passed that "overplayed" threshold and entered the "classic" zone. It’s like a well-tailored suit. It might not be the height of current fashion, but it’s never going to look bad in photos.
Why the Song Persists in the 2020s
Vinyl sales are through the roof. People are buying turntables again. And when you buy a box of old records at a garage sale, there is a 100% chance you will find a copy of Song of Joy.
A new generation is discovering Toni’s voice. They’re realizing that before the autotune era, people actually had to sing. The Captain and Tennille wedding song There Is Love stands as a testament to that era of craftsmanship. It’s a "real" recording. You can hear the room. You can hear the intent.
Also, in a world that feels increasingly chaotic, there’s something deeply comforting about a song that just asserts that "there is love." No irony. No sarcasm. Just a straightforward declaration of a universal truth.
Actionable Steps for Using This Song Today
If you’re planning a wedding and considering this track, there are a few ways to make it work so it doesn't feel like a time capsule from 1976—unless that’s what you’re going for.
- The Processional: Use an instrumental version of the Captain & Tennille arrangement if you want the melody without the 70s vocal style. The melody itself is incredibly strong.
- The "Retro-Cool" Approach: Use the original vinyl. If your DJ has a turntable setup, playing the actual 45rpm record gives it an authentic, warm crackle that digital files just can't replicate.
- Check the Lyrics: Make sure the religious undertones fit your ceremony. If you’re having a strictly secular humanist wedding, the "He" and "His name" references might feel out of place, or they might feel like a nice nod to tradition.
- Pairing: If you use this for the ceremony, consider using "Love Will Keep Us Together" for the reception entrance. It creates a nice "then and now" narrative for the couple.
The Captain and Tennille wedding song There Is Love isn't just a relic. It’s a piece of pop-culture history that captured a very specific moment in time when the world wanted to believe in the "ever after" of a hat-wearing keyboardist and his powerhouse singer wife. Even if their own story didn't have the perfect ending, the music they made for other people's beginnings still holds up.
To use this song effectively in a modern context, focus on the bridge. The section where the music swells and the lyrics talk about the "marriage of your spirits" is the emotional heart of the piece. Ensure your sound system can handle the mid-range frequencies of the 1970s production style, as modern speakers can sometimes make older recordings sound "thin" if not EQ'd correctly.
Finally, if you are looking for the sheet music, search for the Noel Paul Stookey credits, as that’s how it’s officially filed in most publishing databases. Whether you choose the folk original or the Captain & Tennille polished version, you’re tapping into a song that has blessed literally millions of marriages over the last fifty years.