I recommend The Beach Boys 1963 album Surfer Girl, I so enjoyed the songs on this album which I listened to driving RT66 in California a few years ago. Sheer unadulterated heaven. Utter nostalgia, sun and sea a bonus!!
July 13, 2025 - Dear Pauline, my personal favorite among the Beach Boy albums. Is the Holland album. My favorites are the trilogy of the California Saga which includes Sur, The Beaks of Eagles (for me is an ode to Nature), and California. The harmony in "California" makes my heart sing every time I hear the guys sing..🎶Water... Water.. get yourself down to the cool clear water🎶💖🤗You folks experiencing your current heat wave probably can appreciate that part of the song.😉 I happily live in New England, U.S., but I had the pleasure of spending my 40th birthday years ago in the Bay Area of California. I drove on the Coastline Highway, and visited the Redwood trees. Good times. It breaks my 💔heart to see what the Democrats have done to one of our wonderful states. 😡😢 Stay well, and have a wonderful Summer.😉
This is great nick. I always feel like my music knowledge is so limited , I too often play songs from my youth and hardly ever seem to expand it. i find your encyclopedic music knowledge fascinating , especially with it's political cross referencing.
Good Day Sunshine is a bit obvious but one of my absolute faves. Love a bit of Beach Buys too and have fond memories of listening to 20 Golden Greats on the car cassette player with all the windows rolled down (using the manual window-roller-downerer)……
A well put together list! Not exactly a summer song but my favourite song (for personal nostalgic reasons) with summer in the name is Summer Storm by Pellumair
Barbados by Typically Tropical aka Mike Batt. It would probably be banned for cultural appropriation now. In the Summertime has already been censored on the vintage pop channels, the sound cuts out when he sings “if her daddy’s poor, just do what you like” True! Float On by the Floaters. Anything by KC.
I think the inference was, if her daddy’s rich, treat her well, if her daddy’s poor you can get away with, erm, anything you like. Class rape! They also censored the “have a drink, have a drive” line too. No sense of humour.
I know so few of these songs but will listen to them as a sort of cultural homework as Nick’s music chops seem pretty solid. I need to finish watching the three hour version of Kingdom of Heaven first though.
Thanks for posting on a Sunday Nick, it clears the tumbleweeds away.
Great knowledge. Yes you’ve got kicking a couple around, red apple falls, and knock knock, which may be his best. All in that period. Though overall I’d probably still go for a a river ain’t too much to love, perhaps a normie choice.
I discovered Callahan around 2000, I remember reading a review of Dongs in Uncut and being intrigued, and then I found Wild Love secondhand and went from there. My other big discovery that year was yer man Bonnie Prince Billy. With both of them it was that great moment when you come across an artist who's already got a decent-sized back catalogue, so you just dive in. You think, how have I not heard this guy before?!?
July 13, 2025 - Dear Nick, May I request that you add another two songs making it a whole dozen songs. My personal favorite among the Beach Boy albums. Is the Holland album. My favorites are the trilogy of the California Saga which includes Sur, The Beaks of Eagles (for me is an ode to Nature), and California. The harmony in "California" makes my heart sing every time I hear the guys sing..🎶Water... Water.. get yourself down to the cool clear water🎶💖🤗You folks experiencing your current heat wave probably can appreciate that part of the song.😉 I happily live in New England, U.S., but I had the pleasure of spending my 40th birthday years ago in the Bay Area of California. I drove on the Coastline Highway, and visited the Redwood trees. Good times. It breaks my 💔heart to see what the Democrats have done to one of our wonderful states. 😡😢 Stay well, and have a wonderful Summer.😉
Good playlist - particularly like the inclusion of Graceland and Surfer Girl. Would also add something by The Housemartins (Caravan of Love or Happy Hour), Morrissey (Yes, he may be more wintry for some, but Sing Your Life is kinda upbeat) and Elvis Costello (maybe Oliver's Army). For a whole album, can't go past Woodface by Crowded House. So many more to choose from but I will refrain for fear of ageing myself!
Surfer Girl wasn’t in there unless you mean the album! Moz ‘Glamorous Glue’ quite summery. He has ‘The Lazy Sunbathers’ but not his best track. ‘Everyday Is Like Sunday’ could have made it in for its seaside setting.
Mungo Jerry " in the summertime" " Sun is shining" by Bob Marley. " Sunny afternoon" The Kinks. " Schools out" Alice Cooper. " Here comes the sun " Beatles
I’m always in favour of including a Pink Floyd number in any list of the greatest songs, but I’d pick Grantchester Meadows. I mean, it even starts with a bee buzzing!
Crush by Jennifer Paige makes me think of summer whenever I hear it. The song isn't about summer as such, and I assumed that I associate it with summer because I heard it a lot during the summer when it was released but it turns out it was released in September in the UK, it does feel like a summer song though. It's not a record that would get massive critical acclaim and I doubt there are corners of the internet where the lyrics are analysed to death, it's just a decent pop song that was a big hit. Unfortunately for Jennifer Paige she never had another one
Yes, one hit is better than none though. I've just listened to her follow up Sober, don't think I'd heard it before. It's pleasant enough and maybe I'd grow to like it more if I heard it regularly, realistically it's just not as good as Crush
I’m pretty sure that had you become aware of these songs during winter, maybe just released or whatever, and you listened a lot at that time: you would classify these as the best winter songs. (exception: Beach Boys)
That Summer Feeling is a winter song? Or Girls In Their Summer Clothes? Or Malibu, a song about going to the beach that contains the lyrics ‘it's supposed to be this hot all summer long’? Just doesn’t add up on any level I’m afraid.
Edit cos we can only have one song:
Be My Baby - Ronettes, August '63
I stopped listening to popular music with the first Smiths recording, so the nineties, noughties and c21 passed me by. A boomer musical Galapagos.
Reminds me of Goodfellas
I recommend The Beach Boys 1963 album Surfer Girl, I so enjoyed the songs on this album which I listened to driving RT66 in California a few years ago. Sheer unadulterated heaven. Utter nostalgia, sun and sea a bonus!!
July 13, 2025 - Dear Pauline, my personal favorite among the Beach Boy albums. Is the Holland album. My favorites are the trilogy of the California Saga which includes Sur, The Beaks of Eagles (for me is an ode to Nature), and California. The harmony in "California" makes my heart sing every time I hear the guys sing..🎶Water... Water.. get yourself down to the cool clear water🎶💖🤗You folks experiencing your current heat wave probably can appreciate that part of the song.😉 I happily live in New England, U.S., but I had the pleasure of spending my 40th birthday years ago in the Bay Area of California. I drove on the Coastline Highway, and visited the Redwood trees. Good times. It breaks my 💔heart to see what the Democrats have done to one of our wonderful states. 😡😢 Stay well, and have a wonderful Summer.😉
Great list, great list..
Some I'd never of thought of listening to..How about the Doobie Brothers 'Another park, Another Sunday..
This is great nick. I always feel like my music knowledge is so limited , I too often play songs from my youth and hardly ever seem to expand it. i find your encyclopedic music knowledge fascinating , especially with it's political cross referencing.
Good Day Sunshine is a bit obvious but one of my absolute faves. Love a bit of Beach Buys too and have fond memories of listening to 20 Golden Greats on the car cassette player with all the windows rolled down (using the manual window-roller-downerer)……
A well put together list! Not exactly a summer song but my favourite song (for personal nostalgic reasons) with summer in the name is Summer Storm by Pellumair
Love the Miley song, hadn't heard it before, beautiful, 550m views, wow.
I always think of Summer in The City by The Lovin' Spoonful.
"Go out and find a girl
Come on, come on and dance all night
Despite the heat it'll be alright"
Barbados by Typically Tropical aka Mike Batt. It would probably be banned for cultural appropriation now. In the Summertime has already been censored on the vintage pop channels, the sound cuts out when he sings “if her daddy’s poor, just do what you like” True! Float On by the Floaters. Anything by KC.
‘Do what you feel’, rhyming with meal, but didn’t know people were censoring that. Insane.
I think the inference was, if her daddy’s rich, treat her well, if her daddy’s poor you can get away with, erm, anything you like. Class rape! They also censored the “have a drink, have a drive” line too. No sense of humour.
I thought it was a fairly innocent claim that she won’t have the same expectations of posh meals. It’s just true, surely.
lol.
I know so few of these songs but will listen to them as a sort of cultural homework as Nick’s music chops seem pretty solid. I need to finish watching the three hour version of Kingdom of Heaven first though.
Thanks for posting on a Sunday Nick, it clears the tumbleweeds away.
Ben Folds Five, Paul Simon, Floyd AND the great Smog! You are spoiling us.
The run of Smog lps from Wild Love to Rain on Lens is pretty much flawless. I'd say maybe Dongs of Sevotion is my favourite, but they're all ace.
Great knowledge. Yes you’ve got kicking a couple around, red apple falls, and knock knock, which may be his best. All in that period. Though overall I’d probably still go for a a river ain’t too much to love, perhaps a normie choice.
I discovered Callahan around 2000, I remember reading a review of Dongs in Uncut and being intrigued, and then I found Wild Love secondhand and went from there. My other big discovery that year was yer man Bonnie Prince Billy. With both of them it was that great moment when you come across an artist who's already got a decent-sized back catalogue, so you just dive in. You think, how have I not heard this guy before?!?
Frank Skinner said that about getting into The Fall in his forties. He called them "the band I've been waiting my whole life to discover".
July 13, 2025 - Dear Nick, May I request that you add another two songs making it a whole dozen songs. My personal favorite among the Beach Boy albums. Is the Holland album. My favorites are the trilogy of the California Saga which includes Sur, The Beaks of Eagles (for me is an ode to Nature), and California. The harmony in "California" makes my heart sing every time I hear the guys sing..🎶Water... Water.. get yourself down to the cool clear water🎶💖🤗You folks experiencing your current heat wave probably can appreciate that part of the song.😉 I happily live in New England, U.S., but I had the pleasure of spending my 40th birthday years ago in the Bay Area of California. I drove on the Coastline Highway, and visited the Redwood trees. Good times. It breaks my 💔heart to see what the Democrats have done to one of our wonderful states. 😡😢 Stay well, and have a wonderful Summer.😉
Good playlist - particularly like the inclusion of Graceland and Surfer Girl. Would also add something by The Housemartins (Caravan of Love or Happy Hour), Morrissey (Yes, he may be more wintry for some, but Sing Your Life is kinda upbeat) and Elvis Costello (maybe Oliver's Army). For a whole album, can't go past Woodface by Crowded House. So many more to choose from but I will refrain for fear of ageing myself!
Surfer Girl wasn’t in there unless you mean the album! Moz ‘Glamorous Glue’ quite summery. He has ‘The Lazy Sunbathers’ but not his best track. ‘Everyday Is Like Sunday’ could have made it in for its seaside setting.
All excellent points! Clearly another genre for your podcasts - maybe Dixon Cox Go Musical - you each get to nominate one favourite track and discuss.
Mungo Jerry " in the summertime" " Sun is shining" by Bob Marley. " Sunny afternoon" The Kinks. " Schools out" Alice Cooper. " Here comes the sun " Beatles
I’m always in favour of including a Pink Floyd number in any list of the greatest songs, but I’d pick Grantchester Meadows. I mean, it even starts with a bee buzzing!
Crush by Jennifer Paige makes me think of summer whenever I hear it. The song isn't about summer as such, and I assumed that I associate it with summer because I heard it a lot during the summer when it was released but it turns out it was released in September in the UK, it does feel like a summer song though. It's not a record that would get massive critical acclaim and I doubt there are corners of the internet where the lyrics are analysed to death, it's just a decent pop song that was a big hit. Unfortunately for Jennifer Paige she never had another one
Great song! Pity that was her only hit.
Yes, one hit is better than none though. I've just listened to her follow up Sober, don't think I'd heard it before. It's pleasant enough and maybe I'd grow to like it more if I heard it regularly, realistically it's just not as good as Crush
But then what is?
Fair point
I’m pretty sure that had you become aware of these songs during winter, maybe just released or whatever, and you listened a lot at that time: you would classify these as the best winter songs. (exception: Beach Boys)
That Summer Feeling is a winter song? Or Girls In Their Summer Clothes? Or Malibu, a song about going to the beach that contains the lyrics ‘it's supposed to be this hot all summer long’? Just doesn’t add up on any level I’m afraid.