Whilst grandpas and granddaughters usually only cross paths for a quarter of each other’s lives, the memories shared through this unmatchable bond remain forever until your own old age.
Our playlist collects some of the best songs about grandpas and granddaughters, for whatever your situation may be
Songs About Grandpas & Granddaughters
1. Kristen Tuff – Grandpa
Kristen Tuff’s captivating country track, Grandpa, is devoted to revealing a grandpa’s life story through different eras.
From tales of his childhood, fighting in WWII, to marrying and starting a family, this song captures all the stories told by a grandpa to his family; the narrator naturally adopting the role of the youngest granddaughter with whom he shares his wisdom.
Using a pure, heartfelt acoustic ambience, Kristen’s lyrics beautifully connect the past with the present, in the way only a grandparent can do;
“Then in 1988, I was born that summer day, but he still never ran out of things to do, he taught me about tying Navy knots, building things and working hard, I remember it like it was yesterday.”
2. Lauran Duski – The Weather (Grandpa’s Song)
This is one of the saddest songs you’ll ever hear in your life. Lauren Duski elegantly crafts her title, “The Weather”, as a reflection of her grandpa’s grief following the death of her grandma during the first family Christmas spent without her;
“If he still drank, he’d be drinking, if he still smoked, he’d be lighting one up, if he wasn’t shutting down, about right now, he’d be opening up… telling me all about sixty-five years together, but right now he can only talk about the weather.”
Not only does Duski’s track subtly suggest the grandma’s profound positive impact in making her grandpa a stronger, sober man, but also lays bare the equally unconditional support of a granddaughter after the disastrous inevitable;
“Christmas wasn’t the same without her, but we put up that tree anyway, he said, ‘Kids don’t make a fuss. This year it’s just another day.’”
Duski exhibits the close bond between a grandpa and granddaughter in a stunningly unique way, as she’s able to look through his emotions like glass, “I catch him looking at her favourite chair, I can almost read his mind, I bet he can see her sitting there, I bet he’s going back in time.”
3. Karriane Jean – Catch You (Grandpa’s Song)
Karriane Jean’s sentimental track, Catch You (Grandpa’s Song), harbours a magnificently stripped-back acoustic sound to showcase her pure message of devotion.
Karianne spreads the love and empowerment her grandpa gave her as a girl, using a simple, child-like metaphor to illustrate her grandpa’s unconditional support and pick-you-up attitude;
“You can only fall so far before I catch you… Go ahead spread those wings, I got no doubts, you can do anything, but if you lose sight of faith just breathe, ’cause I’ll catch you.”
4. Al Grant – Grandpa’s Little Girl
Al Grant’s retro track is crafted from the opposite perspective of what we’ve seen so far, alternatively writing from a grandpa’s point of view to his granddaughter.
This song is anchored in the love of a grandpa for his young granddaughter, with every verse wrapped in protection and peace; “I’ll chase away those bad things that comes into your world, I’d give my life, my everything, ’cause you’re grandpa’s little girl.”
Al Grant evocatively captures the sweetness of wanting your granddaughter to remain youthful forever; “So when you grow too old to sit upon your grandpa’s knee, and all our magic moments are distant memories… just don’t forget you’ll always be your grandpa’s little girl.”
But the best part about this track is that it unknowingly harbours the Windows notification sound at the start of the song. The culprit is the first, unexpected note of the xylophone/marimba harmony, appearing just after 15 seconds into the track.
5. Charlie Roth – Grandpa’s Little Girl
Charlie Roth’s track Grandpa’s Little Girl is unexpectedly cinematic, mixing conversational spoken word with light-hearted, curious melodies reflecting the wild adventures of a grandpa and his granddaughter;
“Well that sure is a pretty flower, but not half as pretty as your smile … What’s that! Looks like you found a feather, I bet it’s from a baby bird … Grandpa’s little girl, with her hand around my finger, showing me the wonders of her world.”
The guitar track underlying Roth’s lyrics is equally as majestic, roaming with endless, soft energy and flickering with imaginative details like the lyrics’ adventures, whilst artfully highlighted by a xylophone hook which adds a refreshingly youthful ambience to the piece.
Grandpa’s Little Girl finishes its story in the future, watching the granddaughter get married and giving a unique insight into the small loss of a grandpa; “You were Grandpa’s little girl… he’ll put a golden band around your finger, and you’ll wander off into his world.”
6. The Judd – Grandpa (Tell Me ‘Bout The Good Old Days)
The Judd’s country track, Grandpa (Tell Me ‘Bout The Good Old Days), is about a granddaughter joining her grandpa in reminiscence over his youth, allowing them both to escape to a seemingly better world;
“Grandpa, tell me ’bout the good old days, sometimes it feels like this world’s gone crazy, Grandpa, take me back to yesterday, when the line between right and wrong didn’t seem so hazy.”
This is a track for anyone feeling let down by the throwaway culture of the modern age which seeps insidiously into our relationships, preferring the idea of traditional relationships and honest morals instead;
“Did lovers really fall in love to stay and stand beside each other come what may? Was a promise really something people kept, not just something they would say?.. Did daddies really never go away? Grandpa, tell me ’bout the good old days.”
7. Kenny Rogers – Handprints On The Wall
Kenny Rogers cleverly uses his song’s title, Handprints On The Wall, to demonstrate how a grandpa refuses to punish the mistakes of a child, as long as it shows that they’re leaning and finding their own strength, “I’ll catch you when you fall, I don’t mind if you leave behind a few handprints on the wall.”
The pure devotion woven throughout this track resonates profoundly with any grandparent thinking about their granddaughter, whilst hiding a stunning metaphor within its chorus to reflect the ageing of a grandparent alongside the growth of a baby granddaughter; “Summer turns to fall. Seems like only yesterday that you began to crawl.”