Songs About Summer

With temperatures heating up and the official start of summer just around the corner I thought I’d throw together a list of sorts for those of you wishing to put together a compilation cd or mp3 playlist of wonderful memories of summer of years past. I tried to cover a vast time frame and genre range to cover the bases of all ages. The artist who had a hit with the song is listed after each title. They are also listed in chronological order (by year of release) to make it easier to skip down to those years within your recollection. I’m sure this is not complete (but very comprehensive) and only covers those songs that actually charted or received mainstream airplay. I also focused on songs that actually contained the word “summer” or “summertime” somewhere in the title. I’m well aware there are tons of other songs out there that “evoke” summer thoughts and feelings. Just for the record I listed just a few other honorable mentions at the end of this long list of songs and/or artists that refer to summer in the lyrics. Sit back and enjoy reminiscing some of these memories of summer’s past

1. In The Good Old Summer Time (?)
2. Summertime – George Gershwin (?)
3. Summertime – Billie Holiday (1936)
4. Soft Summer Breeze – Eddie Heywood (1956)
5. Song For A Summer Night – Mitch Miller & His Gang (1956)
6. Summertime – Sam Cooke (1957)
7. Can’t Wait For Summer – Steve Lawrence (1957)
8. Summertime Blues – Eddie Cochran (1958)
9. One Summer Night – Danleers (1958)
10. Lazy Summer Night – The Four Preps (1958)
11. Summertime Summertime – The Jamies (1958)
12. Here Comes Summer – Jerry Keller (1959)
13. Summer’s Gone – Paul Anka (1960)
14. Theme From A Summer Place – Percy Faith & His Orchestra (1960)
15. Green Leaves Of Summer – Brothers Four (1960)
16. Summer Souvenirs – Karl Hammel Jr. (1961)
17. Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days Of Summer – Nat King Cole (1963)
18. My Summer Love – Ruby & The Romantics (1963)
19. That Sunday, That Summer – Nat King Cole (1963)
20. Summer Holiday – Cliff Richard (1963)
21. Wonderful Summer – Robin Ward (1963)
22. A Summer Song – Chad & Jeremy (1964)
23. All Summer Long – The Beach Boys (1964)
24. Summer Nights – Marianne Faithfull (1965)
25. Summertime – Billy Stewart (1966)
26. Summer Wind – Frank Sinatra (1966)
27. Summer In The City – The Lovin’ Spoonful (1966)
28. Happy Summer Days – Ronnie Dove (1966)
29. Lonely Summer – Shades Of Blue (1966)
30. Summer Samba (So Nice) – Walter Wanderley (1966)
31. Summer Rain – Johnny Rivers (1967)
32. Groovy Summertime – The Love Generation (1967)
33. Summertime Blues – Blue Cheer (1968)
34. Hot Fun In The Summertime – Sly & The Family Stone (1969)
35. Summer Wine – Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazelwood (1969)
36. In The Summertime – Mungo Jerry (1970)
37. On The Beach (In The Summertime) – The 5th Dimension (1970)
38. Summertime Blues – The Who (1970)
39. Summer Sand – Tony Orlando & Dawn (1971)
40. Theme From Summer Of ‘42 – Peter Nero (1971)
41. It’s Summer – The Temptations (1971)
42. Summer Breeze – Seals & Crofts (1972)
43. Summer (The First Time) – Bobby Goldsboro (1973)
44. How I Spent My Summer Vacation – Cheech & Chong (1974)
45. Wombling Summer Party – The Wombles (1974)
46. Summer – War (1976)
47. Summer Nights – John Travolta & Olivia Newton-John (1978)
48. Hot Summer Nights – Night (1979)
49. Summertime Blues – Joan Jett & The Blackhearts (1982)
50. Suddenly Last Summer – The Motels (1983)
51. Cruel Summer – Banarama (1984)
52. The Boys Of Summer – Don Henley (1984)
53. Farewell My Summer Love – Michael Jackson (1984)
54. Summer Of ’69 – Bryan Adams (1985)
55. Summer Of Love – The B-52’s (1985)
56. Summertime Girls – Y & T (1985)
57. Summer Nights – Van Halen (1986)
58. Endless Summer Nights – Richard Marx (1988)
59. Summer Wind – Desert Rose Band (1988)
60. Summer Of Love – Jefferson Airplane (1989)
61. Summertime – DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince (1991)
62. Summer Song – Joe Satriani (1992)
63. That Summer – Garth Brooks (1993)
64. Summertime Blues – Alan Jackson (1994)
65. Summer’s Comin’ – Clint Black (1995)
66. Summertime – Sundays (1997)
67. Cruel Summer – Ace Of Base (1998)
68. Summer Girls – LFO (1999)
69. Six-Pack Summer – Phil Vassar (2001)
70. Girls Of Summer – Aerosmith (2002)
71. The Boys Of Summer – The Ataris (2003)
72. Summertime – Kenny Chesney (2005)
73. Sunshine & Summertime – Faith Hill (2006)
74. Summertime – Bon Jovi (2007)
75. Summer Love – Justin Timberlake (2007)
76. All Summer Long – Kid Rock (2008)

Honorable Mention: Here are some other infectious songs of the season, however these do not contain the word “summer” or “summertime” in the title but deserve a plug here anyway.

School’s Out (Alice Cooper), Soak Up The Sun (Sheryl Crow), The Rain The Park & Other Things (The Cowsills), Beach Baby (First Class), Vacation (Go Go’s), Lazy Day (Spanky & Our Gang), Groovin’ (The Rascals), See You In September (The Happenings), Dock Of The Bay (Otis Redding), Fishing In The Dark (Nitty Gritty Dirt Band), WipeOut (The Surfaris), Pipeline (The Chantays), Walking On Sunshine (Katrina & The Waves), Take It Easy (The Eagles), Drift Away (Dobie Gray & Uncle Kracker), Chattahoochee (Alan Jackson), Pacific Coast Party (Smash Mouth), Pinch Me (Barenaked Ladies), American Dream (Nitty Gritty Dirt Band), Dancing In The Streets (Martha & The Vandellas), Sunny Afternoon (The Kinks), School Is Out (Gary US Bonds), Palisades Park (Freddy Cannon), Beach Party (Annette Funicello), Centerfield (John Fogerty), Vacation (Connie Francis), Girl Watcher (The O’Kaysions), etc, etc, etc….

There are also several artists who have multiple songs reminiscent of summertime such as The Beach Boys, Jan & Dean, The Drifters, Chicago, America, Jimmy Buffett, Bob Marley, Lovin’ Spoonful, The Monkees, Kenny Chesney, Alan Jackson, Dick Dale & The Deltones, etc…

Any additional songs or input are always welcomed.

Your comments are also encouraged as well as suggestions for futures “theme” lists.

What are your favorite summer song memories?