During the 2004 Grammy Awards, "Dance with My Father" earned Vandross the Song of the Year and Best Male R&B Vocal Performance accolades.
[2] On the backdrop of strings and interplay of piano and drums,[3] Vandross recalls fond memories with his late father who used to dance with his mother.
"[4] Barry Walters of Rolling Stone magazine qualifies the memories invoked in the lyrics as painful and private, adding that when Vandross asks God to return his father, it "turn a potentially maudlin song into a meditative, deeply personal prayer".
On his review for the album, David Jeffries of AllMusic wrote that its release "makes the song's references to absent loved ones even more poignant".
[7] The director asked permission from the label, but it was not until after the hospitalization that J Records permitted the airplay, following the song being featured in Boston Public on April 28, 2003.
At the same event, singer Celine Dion agreed to perform a live rendition of the song in lieu of Vandross, and Marx accompanied her on the piano as she recently lost her father.
[10] Celebs who made cameos are Monica, Beyoncé, Brian McKnight, Johnny Gill, Stevie Wonder, Garcelle Beauvais, Damon Wayans, Holly Robinson Peete, Whitney Houston, Jason Kidd, Master P, Lil Romeo, Babyface, Morris Chestnut, Ashanti, Celine Dion, Nona Gaye, Patti LaBelle, Ruben Studdard, Brandy, Quincy Jones, Wyclef Jean, Wayne Brady and Shaquille O'Neal.