Time for me to jump in Max‘s and Bill‘s discussion of “radio (summer) songs”. A few that immediately sprang to my mind:
- “Summertime” by DJ Jazzy Jeff and the Fresh Prince (aka Will Smith)
- “How Bizarre” by OMC
- “Sex and Candy” by Marcy’s Playground
Yeah, any list I come up with is going to be limited by the playlist of the only Top 40 station we get in Northeastern Indiana, but still, those are pretty damn anthemic. Everytime I hear one of those songs I remember driving in my car during that specific summer. *sigh*
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Oooh, I love “Summertime” and especially “How Bizarre”.
“How Bizarre” actually gives me goosebumps sometimes, but I don’t really know why. It’s not *that* good! But it does bring me back, and I guess that’s the criterion for this type of song.
I actually *own* the OMC cd that “How Bizarre” is from. I was all set to be embarrassed when my housemates discovered it among my collection, but instead they all went, “YEAH! Put it in!” And then we danced. (Of course, we had been drinking and barbecuing for a number of hours before that.) But “How Bizarre” is always a crowd pleaser.
The novelty single category tend to overlap with these a lot. I mean, the summer before I left for London you couldn’t turn on the radio without hearing Lou Bega’s “Mambo No. 5”. I’d count that one too.
P.S. I LOVE your selections, by the way. “Mmm Bop” – my sister called me at college to tell me that I would love that song, and I did. And “I Want it That Way” is, as far as I’m concerned, one of the supreme examples of pop songs for all time. I have some lesbian friends who aren’t big fans of boy bands normally, but even they were powerless against that song. We all fight over who gets to sing Nick’s part. 🙂
Yeah, “Mambo No. 5” is in the category. So is the inescapable “Livin’ La Vida Loca”. I actually like “Cup of Life” and Enrique Iglesias’ “Bailamos” better, but “Vida Loca” is astonishingly catchy.
And for old school fun, you can’t beat “I Think I Love You” by the Partridge Family.
I LOVE THE PARTRIDGE FAMILY! In honor of this mind meld, I’m playing that mp3 at this very minute. 🙂
Okay, bear with me on this one: “Authority Song” by John Cougar Mellencamp. My family had a cassette of this in our boat and we’d play it incessantly on summer weekends when we were out water skiing. It’s not so much a radio song (or it might have been; I was young when it came out) but it’s DEFINITELY a summer song for me. But maybe that’s just the rural Indiana talkin’. 🙂
I LOVE Mellencamp. I still call him Johnny Cougar, sometimes.
I lived in southern Illinois until I was twelve, so I definitely know where you’re coming from. When our fourth (?) grade class had to name our pet hamsters, “Jack and Diane” won out over “Charles and Di”. Take that, you lousy Brits!
OK, one last song, the one that can make or break a friendship: Juice Newton’s “Queen of Hearts”.
LOVE IT. Seriously, one of my favorite songs from childhood. I’ve got that one on mp3 too.
And don’t forget “Angel of the Morning”.
JUICE IS THE BEST.
She is the best, isn’t she? I think we may be completely musically compatible. Yay!