Long Day's Journey Into Night

June 20, 2008 6:51 AM

To kick off the northern hemisphere's summer solstice, an old favorite from the original Eddie Cochran, The Who, Van Halen, Blue Cheer, Brian Setzer, T. Rex, Bruce Springsteen, yes, even Hanson. But wait, last but not least, Alvin and the Chipmunks.
posted by netbros (25 comments total)

What, no Olivia Newton John?
posted by Slack-a-gogo at 7:03 AM on June 20, 2008

Ah, Blue Cheer, bless their hairy acid-addled hearts. Along with Sabbath, they are the birth squalls of that dysfunctional musical child called Metal.
posted by jonmc at 7:31 AM on June 20, 2008

I thought about doing this post a few days ago! Thanks for picking up my slack. My inspiration for thinking about doing it was a Springsteen performance of it from 1978, couldn't find it on the internet. I really enjoy the Blue Cheer version. I thought this was a Who song for years.

Here's a crummy video of Rush doing the song.
posted by marxchivist at 7:37 AM on June 20, 2008

Don't forget the last T.Rex single, Celebrate Summer!
posted by SmileyChewtrain at 7:49 AM on June 20, 2008

(Which is not, I know, the same song, but I was listening to it when I saw this post)
posted by SmileyChewtrain at 7:50 AM on June 20, 2008

Summer songs music thread!

Lovin' Spoonful: Summer In the City.
Sly and the Family Stone: Hot Fun In the Summertime.
Beach Boys: All Summer Long.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:00 AM on June 20, 2008

Making a bid for summer-song-of-2008:

Rihanna - Disturbia
Natasha Bedingfield - Pocket Full of Sunshine
Carrie Underwood - Last Name
Duffy - Mercy
Katy Perry - I Kissed A Girl
Estelle (f Kanye West) - American Boy
Kardinal Offishall (f Akon) - Dangerous
Kid Rock - All Summer Long
New Kids on the Block - Summertime
Tyga - Coconut Juice
Lloyd (f Lil Wayne) - Girls Around the World
Lil Wayne - Lollipop

Note: these aren't my favorite bands. But my favorite bands also suck.
posted by box at 8:05 AM on June 20, 2008 [1 favorite]

Old-timer summer songs:

Sinatra: Summer Wind.
Nat King Cole: Those Lazy Hazy Crazy Days of Summer.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:12 AM on June 20, 2008

And one more...

Mungo Jerry: In the Summertime.
posted by flapjax at midnite at 8:14 AM on June 20, 2008

middle-aged summer song:

Van Halen - Hot Summer Nights
posted by jonmc at 8:33 AM on June 20, 2008

Chet Atkins - In the Good Old Summertime
Pearl Bailey and Floyd (the Muppets) - In the Good Old Summertime
posted by marxchivist at 8:36 AM on June 20, 2008

Rush - Summertime Blues
posted by Midnight Rambler at 8:44 AM on June 20, 2008

well-a well-a well-a UNH

tell me more tell me more
didja get very far
tell me more tell me more
like does he have a car?
posted by CitizenD at 9:09 AM on June 20, 2008

summertime, and the livin' is easy...

i was actually going to do a flapjax-style link dump with a bunch of different versions of this song in honor of the solstice, but one excellent version in the comments is just as good...

bright blessings, all! rage, rage against the dying of the light!!
posted by CitizenD at 9:16 AM on June 20, 2008

Don't forget Chris Stamey's way-outta-print indie-pop classic The Summer Sun...
posted by Kinbote at 9:25 AM on June 20, 2008

The Kinks - Sunny Afternoon

...which seems to have inspired the video for the Breeders' Saints.
posted by moonlet at 9:44 AM on June 20, 2008

Google has a salute to the solstice.
posted by Cranberry at 9:51 AM on June 20, 2008

CitizenD's Janis clip is just about the best thing ever. Here's Ella.
posted by booth at 11:23 AM on June 20, 2008

Ah, Blue Cheer, bless their hairy acid-addled hearts. Along with Sabbath, they are the birth squalls of that dysfunctional musical child called Metal.

And punk. There's a lot of Dickie Peterson in Johnny Rotten and Jello Biafra's hortatory vocal stylings.

When Rush's Feedback EP came out, I made a mix-CD of the originals and all the previous covers in my record collection (about five each). When I played Blue Cheer's cover of "Summertime Blues" for a young friend (a drummer and Rush fan* born about fifteen years after Vincebus Eruptus) he thought it was about the funniest track he'd ever heard. "He (the drummer) can't even play eight notes!"

It's hard to convey what a record like that meant to folks who weren't there at the time.

*I'm still working on "former"
posted by Herodios at 11:36 AM on June 20, 2008

also -- The Jamies: Summertime summertime sum sum summertime. . .
posted by Herodios at 11:38 AM on June 20, 2008

. . . and if you order before midnight tonight you'll also get this great cover of Tony V and the Four Seasons big hit, Summer.
posted by Herodios at 11:46 AM on June 20, 2008

A little older still: Sumer is Icumen In
posted by Herodios at 11:53 AM on June 20, 2008

Well, now that this has evolved into a full on summer songs thread:

DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince: SUMMERTIME
posted by SmileyChewtrain at 1:02 PM on June 20, 2008

On a hot summer night...
posted by mubba at 5:10 PM on June 20, 2008

Gonna raise a fuss, I'm gonna raise a holler that the Flying Lizards and Joan Jett versions of Summertime Blues weren't mentioned yet!!
posted by kuppajava at 10:27 AM on June 21, 2008