Over the past week, I’ve asked Twitter for some recommendations that had nothing to do with romance, but a few folks asked me to compile the list of responses and share it, so I’m doing so here. It’s all below the fold – obviously this has little to jack all to do with romance novels, but if you’re looking for some music, this might help you out.
In response to my tweet asking for warm-weather music, here’s the master list of every recommendation I received. It rocked my socks, and might warm your feet, too, if it’s as cold where you are as it is here – and if you’re in the southern hemisphere (G’day, mate!) enjoy some seasonally-appropriate tunage.
The Outfield Your Love
Wake Up Happy by Greta Gaines, recommended by @knitmeapony
Dust in the Wind by Kansas, Margaritaville by Jimmy Buffett, or A Horse with No Name by America, recommended by @silverwriter
Summer of 69 by Bryan Adams, Boys of Summer by Don Henley, recommended by @elise_logan
And @elise_logan recommended the playlist here, as well.
Kokomo, by the Beach Boys, In the Summer Time by Mungo Jerry, Summertime Blues by Eddie Cochran, recommended by @peggyhailey
@wiremama seconds “Boys of Summer,” which, oh yes, I third and fourth that.
@wiremama also recommends Blister in the Sun by the Violent Femmes.
My college friend @LadyLiberal recommended Jimmy Buffet’s cover of Stars Fell on Alabama, and Preservation Hall Jazz Band’s “Do U Know What it Means to Miss New Orleans.”
@younglibrarian suggests Vacation by The Go-Go’s.
@bookslover says Walking on Sunshine by Katrina and the Waves.
@jodyth says I Melt with You– which OMG Yes. I hear that song and I’m grubby and at summer camp again.
@Brooksbelle suggests Cruel Summer by Bananarama, plus re-ups the rec for Boys of Summer, and Summer of ‘69.
@StephaniHaefner says Summertime by the Fresh Prince – Yes! This is one of those songs where it’s not actually summer until I hear it on the radio.
Over on Facebook, where everyone knows everyone and everything, I have more recommendations:
Chris Hamilton suggests Margaritaville, California Girls by the Beach Boys, Beach Baby (First Class), Summer in the City by Lovin’ Spoonful, Magic by The Cars, and A Horse with No Name – everyone thinks summer with this song, really.
I think everything by The Beach Boys pretty much qualifies, now that I think about it.
Carrie Lofty says that anything by Chris Isaak should be on the playlist, particularly Blue Spanish Sky.
Suddenly Last Summer by the Motels is recommended by Zoe Archer.
Tanja Cilia recommends 9 Million Bicycles (covered by Norah Jones in that link), and Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.
And Santa O’Byrne recommends Margaritaville, The Summer Wind (covered by Michael Buble) – oh, good one! – and Summer in the City.
Thanks for the awesome list, y’all. My iTunes is a rocking place. I’m surprised the icon doesn’t shimmy like when I hold the home button down on my iPhone too long.
Still feeling cold? Leave your warm weather song in the comments. I’ll pick one winner at random to receive a $20 iTunes giftcard. And yes, if you already recommended one above, you can enter again. I’m off to make margaritas!
Amidst my eclectic music tastes is a deep and abiding love for torch singers from the 30s and 40s and I’ve been dying to add this one to the list all day. Just couldn’t do it from work. Summertime by the incomparable Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong. There is, also, this absolutely gorgeous live version from Janis Joplin, however. There is also a really good “mash up” of “Summertime” and “Doin’ Time” by Sublime that has a nice reggae/rap thing going on with some very nice vocals. I think it’s a really nice use of one of my all-time favorite bluesy, languid summer songs.
The top songs that make it feel like summer to me:
1. Stone Temple Pilots’ cover of Led Zeppelin’s Dancing Days:
2. Summertime by Sublime
3. Vacation by the Go-Gos
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/x1zdce_the-gogos-vacation_music
And I’d like mine on the rocks with salt please đ
Oh, and for summer listening in general…I love Ravinia (an outdoor music festival here in Chicagoland) and nothing beats laying on a blanket under the summer stars, sipping wine and listening to Diana Krall. We catch her there everytime she comes to perform….now if only Jack Johnson would do a Ravinia show – I think he’d be awesome there!
You know what sounds like summer? The ukulele.
So I second the rec for Israel Kamakawiwo?ole’s music (heck, all of it!). Train’s song “Soul Sister” works, too.
Sly and the Family Stone, Hot Fun in the Summertime.
La La Lie by Jack’s Mannequin! Maybe it’s the lyrics about palm trees…
Never Let You Go by Third Eye Blind
Hands down my favorite country summer song:
Six Pack Summer by Phil Vassar
“Uh, oh another six-pack summer comin’
Sing to me babe I’ll be your dashboard drummer and
Let’s turn the radio up as loud it can go
Got the ultra-ray wraparound sunglass vision
Got the sails up iced down a cool ambition
Just to relax and let the six-pack summer roll”
And another country favorite is: Good to Go to Mexico by Toby Keith
“Baby if youâre good to go weâll go down to Mexico
Get a place in Cabo, kick back in the sand
If youâll get off that telephone and put your shorts and sandals on
Tomorrow weâll be dancing to a mariachi band”
Frankly, it doesn’t matter what song it is, anything sung by Barry Manilow warms me up! But especially “This Is Fine” which is a previously unreleased song that’s now on the extended This One’s For You CD.
Well, we’ve already had an America suggestion, but I like “Ventura Highway” for summer music :]
Come Dancing – such a great song!!
What I Like About You – The Romantics
Hot Blooded – Foreigner
And We Danced – The Hooters
I’m having a lot of fun with this list, if you haven’t noticed đ
Los Tupamaros – La Gran Manzana (they played this in the hotel during my Cuba vacation all of the time)
Dawn Penn – You Don’t Love Me
Carrapicho – Tic Tic Tac
Will Smith – Welcome to Miami
Kaoma – Lambada
far away by ingrid michaelson
Summer! Jimmy Cliff with Reggae Night, of course ^^[ url=http://vids.myspace.com/index.cfm?fuseaction=vids.individual&videoid=11404723]Video on Myspace[/url].
“Carolina in My Mind” by James Taylor
“Mexico” James Taylor
“Vincent Black Lightning 1952” by Richard Thompson
“Fun and Games” by Chuck Mangione
“Feels So Good” Chuck Mangione
“SItting on the Dock of the Bay” Otis Redding—my ultimate summer song, instantly transports me to a dock on a lake, and I can indeed picture the tide rolling away…
“Piece of My Heart” Janis Joplin
“La Bamba” Ritchie Valens
Kokomo by the Beach Boys
Makes me think of languishing on the beach, relaxed atmosphere, sipping tropical drinks. No hurry, no worry.
(Which is in total contrast to the three feet of snow we have on the ground with 6 more inches on the way. Add in the fact that our county and its cities (right on the lower side of Lake Erie in Ohio—Snow belt, anyone? Lake effect snow, anyone? DUH!—had a brill idea to save money by NOT buying salt for the roads until they needed it. What little they had stored was almost used up on the first day of the blizzard.)
Rant over. I’m dreaming of Kokomo
It sounds like the Northern Hemisphere’s theme song at the moment is Tenth Avenue Freeze Out by Bruce Springsteen while here in Melbourne, Australia our theme song is Candy in the Sun by Swirl 360, because with the upcoming 3 – 4 days of 100 F and over we’ll feel like candy melting in the sun. If only we could send each other a little of our respective weather and get a nice middle ground of temperature (wouldn’t that be nice?!).
This list has me downloading like crazy.
If it’s not too late to add, what about “Summer Wine” by Natalia Avelon and Ville Valo?
I would add
Alabama—Dancing, Shagging on the Boulevard
Deana Carter—We Danced Anyway
Lazy Girls, by Jill Cunniff. Perfect summer song. I love putting that album in my car on hot days and driving around with the windows open.
The Beatles’ entire Revolver album is my staple sunshiny-summer-day music. I’m thrilled, too, that somebody else mentioned Janis Joplin’s version of “Summertime”; Billie Holiday does a kickass rendition as well. (Ditto The Two Man Gentleman Band.)
@megalith: Honey Hill Beach? Oh, I’m so there. They had that 40’ slide (or was that Phil’s Beach?). I cried when they closed it.
I remember they played a lot of Four Seasons there.
How about the quintessenital summer band the Beach Boys? Especially Good Vibrations and California Girls.
And almost anything by NRBQ – especially Me and the Boys and Rain at the Drive-In.