A custom song for a 40th birthday

One song that the kids, the old mates, and the parents all get at the same time.

Lyrics you review and approve · 7,99 € · ready in minutes

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Forty is the birthday where the room finally contains everyone: the friends from before, the person they married, the kids who think they invented them, and the parents who remember them at four. Most gifts speak to exactly one of those groups.

A custom 40th birthday song speaks to all of them at once. It can name the kids, nod to the school friends who still call them by an old nickname, and land a joke about their spreadsheet habit, in three minutes instead of a speech nobody sits through.

How to write your brief

Ideas to include

A song the kids can sing

Name the children, borrow the things they say about their parent, and build a chorus small voices can shout back. It is the version that undoes the grown ups in the room.

The friends who go back furthest

The school nickname, the band they were in, the holiday from 1998. Give us the era and we let the old crowd hear themselves without losing everyone else.

The surprise party reveal

Tell us the room, the moment, and who is pressing play. We shape the opening so it works as the thing that stops the party dead.

Perfect for

  • A partner who insists on absolutely no fuss
  • A parent, gifted by their kids
  • A friend of twenty five years and counting
  • A whole group who would rather not buy another watch

Tone ideas

  • Funny and family safe, sharp without being unkind
  • High energy, made to open the party
  • Tender and honest, a happy account of where they got to
  • Sung from the kids, simple enough for small voices to join in

Message example

Forty, Dan. La Ritournelle heard about the Sunday barbecues, the seven year old who copies your walk, and the school lot who still call you Dazza, and sent back a 40th birthday song.

Brief examples

A song the kids can sing

Name: Dan. Bond: dad of two. Occasion: 40th birthday. Tone: tender and honest. Anecdote: the seven year old who copies his walk, to adapt with a real memory. Delivery: played at the family table. Indicative example, exact lyrics not promised.

The friends who go back furthest

Name: Rachel. Bond: school friends since year eight. Occasion: 40th birthday. Tone: funny and family safe. Anecdote: the band that lasted one gig, to adapt with a real memory. Delivery: played when the old crowd arrives. Indicative example, exact lyrics not promised.

The surprise party reveal

Name: Priya. Bond: wife, organizing in secret. Occasion: 40th birthday. Tone: high energy. Anecdote: forty people hiding behind a sofa, to adapt with a real memory. Delivery: the reveal moment. Indicative example, exact lyrics not promised.

How it works

You tell us

Who is in the room, the kids' names, the jokes that are fair game, and the ones that are not.

We compose

We write the lyrics for your review, then produce a fully sung, studio quality track.

You gift it

Play it at the table, use it as the surprise party reveal, then send the file round afterwards.

Why La Ritournelle

Frequently asked questions

Can the song mention the kids by name?

Yes, and it usually should. Give us the names and a line or two about each and the song can be sung from them, which is what makes the room go quiet.

How do I keep it funny with family listening?

Tell us the topics that are off limits in the brief. We aim the jokes at habits everyone recognizes, and you read every line before it is sung.

The party is tomorrow and I have nothing. Too late?

No. The song is ready in minutes, so a last minute gift for a party tomorrow is completely doable. Tell us it is the surprise reveal and we shape the opening so it grabs the room.

Please do not make it about being over the hill.

We will not. Ask for the tender or high energy tone and the song is about the life they built, not about candles and back pain.

Other occasions

Birthday30th birthday50th birthday

Go further

Birthday songsGo back to the main birthday page for a song at any age.50th birthday songsSee the milestone where four separate decades of friends fill one room.

Ready to write their song?

Tell us the story, we handle the rest. Your song is ready in minutes.

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