Paramore. The only exception.

Every once in a while, a great song slips through your radar.

I first heard The Only Exception in the spring of 2021. I was meeting with Danielle and Graeme Russell in preparation for their upcoming wedding. We were in the midst of auditioning processional cues, and struggling to find the perfect song.

In a flash, Danielle casually inquired about The Only Exception by Paramore. I had never heard it before, so I pulled it up on YouTube, along with a couple of chord charts.

It might sound exaggerated to say that the clouds parted as I listened to this track for the first time. That said, I was taken aback by its haunting simplicity… and left with the question “how did I miss this?” 

For anyone that has heard me play before, you’ll immediately know that The Only Exception is 1000% my kind of song. It has that dreamy, lazy feel—with haunting chords that leave you questioning how you’re supposed to feel. It’s romantic but open— allowing the listener to project a little more onto it.

I love music like this for wedding ceremonies and major wedding cues. A solo acoustic guitar lets them seamlessly slip into the occasion—yet adding a modern and contemporary twist. Wedding audiences vary widely, and connect with a song like this in completely different ways. Someone who doesn’t know it simply hears a beautiful melody. Someone who does, gets taken aback… thinking “wow, Paramore, how cool is that…”

Recording notes – Danielle and Graeme Russell’s anniversary project. 

I had the privilege of being a part of Danielle and Graeme Russell’s wedding in 2021. It was a high note in a year where we were all adjusting to a post-pandemic world… slowly easing back into things. It’s odd in retrospect see how we had to take these wedding photos as a distance.

They were a memorable couple for several reasons… first and foremost, for bringing a jolt of hope, optimism and romance during a difficult time. Second, they introduced me to a Paramore song (The Only Exception), that I can’t believe I missed somehow along the way 🙂

They chose some great songs for their major wedding cues. For their processional, I learned The Only Exception (Paramore). This is an incredibly beautiful acoustic guitar song—it has that perfect 6/8 feel, haunting major-seventh chords, and an easily-accessible melody on a solo acoustic guitar. For their first dance, they went with a polar opposite… Can’t Help Falling in Love. 

Danielle had reached out a number of times about an anniversary recording for Graeme. Finally, the stars aligned this summer, and we were able to put something together. In the end, she decided to do two songs: The Only Exception and Can’t Help Falling in Love—the former having a stronger connection to her memories of the day, and the latter for Graeme.

In recording The Only Exception, I focused on this as the primary keepsake. When performing this live, I play the main rhythm part (left side) and the lead melody (right side) simultaneously. In this instance, however, I wanted to do a longer performance—adding more layers.

Many thanks to some phenomenal talents involved in this recording: James McKenty for the mastering, Haileigh Rantin for the cover art, and Sue Morley for the photography.

Recorded at the ‘H,’ Mount Pleasant, ON, Canada • August 2024 • ℗ 2024 Jake Dudas (SOCAN) • © Hayley Williams and Josh Farro (2010) • For audition purposes only • Not for sale or distribution. • All rights reserved.

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