Dad Lyrics – Two Strangers

Song Overview

“Dad” is Dougal’s first big reveal - the vulnerable I-want moment where a lifetime of imagined fatherhood collides with a real invite. First issued on the Studio Cast EP on February 21, 2024, then slotted as track 3 on the Original London Cast album that summer, the cut sits early in the show and quietly resets the stakes from city sightseeing to family reunion.

Review & Highlights

Review

The song sneaks up on you. It starts like a letter and blooms into a fantasy montage, flipping between shy confession and daydream swagger. Production keeps Tutty’s voice right at the lens - clean piano, pocketed drums, a gentle lift in the strings - so every list, joke, and slip of hope reads. The runtime is brisk at roughly three minutes, but the aftertaste lingers.

Plot

Dougal is in New York to meet the father he’s never known. “Dad” catalogs that anticipation: a kid’s scrapbook pasted onto an adult’s nerves. He relays school grades, childhood illnesses, first love, then spins into sitcom-ready images of the bond he might finally get - burgers charred, ball games, “watching Terminator Two together.” The humor shields a core fear: what if the reunion doesn’t match the picture he’s carried for years?

Creation History

Written by composer Jim Barne and lyricist Kit Buchan, the track appeared first on the Studio Cast EP in February 2024 and returned on the Original London Cast album in July 2024. Lux Pyramid is credited as producer/arranger across the releases.

Key takeaways

• A letter-song that doubles as a character x-ray.
• Lists and comic images soften - and underline - the ache.
• Pop-length clarity with contemporary musical theatre bones.

Song Meaning and Annotations

“Dad” is a wish on fast-forward. The lyric toggles between facts and fantasies, and that switch is the point: the adult tries to sound measured while the child blurts out everything he’s missed.

Sonically, it sits in the sweet spot where pop ballad structure meets MT storytelling. Verse lists carry conversational melody; pre-chorus phrases open; the chorus lands like a held breath finally released. Bright piano and a steady kit keep the pulse walking-speed, never melodramatic.

The emotional arc moves from tentative address to unguarded hope. He starts with a careful salutation and ends stacking futures: beers, games, holidays, even movie marathons. The comedy - “Signing carols ’round a tree together / Watching Terminator Three together” - isn’t just cute; it’s armor.

“Have I held a candle high for you?”

That single line flickers with double meaning: vigil and pedestal. He’s mourning an absence and making a hero, all in one breath.

“Do you still have all your hair, are you still a millionaire?”

He doesn’t actually need the answers. He’s testing the fantasy outlines he’s been sketching since childhood. The specifics are almost beside the point.

“Think of all the time we’ve earned together / After all the time we weren’t together”

The math is heartbreak math: he tries to convert lost years into a future dividend, as if hope could balance a ledger. That tension - optimism vs. arithmetic - drives the scene into the meeting that follows.

Production, instrumentation, color

Lux Pyramid’s fingerprint is tidy and character-first. Vocals sit above a lean band palette; dynamics breathe; the bridge sneaks a lift without grandstanding. It’s built to travel from earbuds to stage without rethinking the architecture.

Context in the show

Placed after the opener and Robin’s table-side self-audit, “Dad” reframes the story. Suddenly the wedding isn’t just a destination; it’s a repair attempt. The broader project rolled out across multiple releases - Studio Cast EP, a Sing-Along edition in May, and the full Original London Cast album - which helped the material find audience ahead of the West End transfer and later U.S. premiere.

Key Facts

• Artist: Two Strangers (Carry A Cake Across New York) company - vocal lead by Sam Tutty
• Composer: Jim Barne; Lyricist: Kit Buchan
• Producer/Arranger: Lux Pyramid
• First release: February 21, 2024 on the Studio Cast EP
• Album placement: Track 3 on the Original London Cast Recording (released July 26, 2024)
• Length: 3:02
• Label/Rights: If I Believed Ltd
• Genre: musical theatre, pop
• Language: English
• Notable alternate issue: “Dad (Sing-Along)” released May 7, 2024

Questions and Answers

Who produced “Dad”?

Lux Pyramid, credited as producer and arranger on the commercial releases.

When did “Dad” first hit streaming?

February 21, 2024 as part of the eight-track Studio Cast EP.

Where does the number sit in the show?

Early in act one, after the city-intro songs; it’s Dougal’s interior monologue before meeting his father.

How long is the track?

About three minutes - specifically 3:02 on the Studio Cast EP and cast album listings.

Are there alternate or karaoke-style versions?

Yes - a Sing-Along release arrived May 7, 2024 via If I Believed Ltd.

Awards and Chart Positions

UK charts: the Original London Cast Recording peaked at no. 28 on the Official Album Downloads Chart and no. 14 on the Official Soundtrack Albums Chart in August 2024.

Additional Info

Alongside “Dad,” the team rolled out clips and videos to grow an audience before and after the West End transfer, then set sights on the Broadway run at the Longacre. The official site documents the path from Kiln Theatre to American Repertory Theater to Broadway previews.