In which I select five songs from 1976-1985 based on an arbitrary theme. (Not to be confused with this blog's Random Five feature, a different exercise in arbitrariness). Today's theme: Songs that have the word "summer" in their title.
- "Cruel Summer" by Bananarama (1983, London)
Sounds a lot like a Madonna tune of the same time, no? And why are there three of them when they mostly sing in unison? Great synth bass line, but this is not my favorite Bananarama song. However, I can appreciate a song about oppressive heat and loneliness during the long summer months. We've probably all been there. Released in '83, it didn't become popular here in the US until its inclusion in 1984 movie, The Karate Kid.
In 1984, this single spent 11 weeks in the Billboard Top 40, peaking at #9 on September 29 of that year.
- "My Summer Love" by Sergio Mendes (1983, A&M)
The 1983 Sergio Mendes album has long been a favorite of mine. I think it falls between The Dude and Bossa Nova Hotel, but Billboard also chose to compare it to Earth, Wind & Fire, which I'm just not hearing.
Billboard, April 23, 1983, p. 75
I like the album and this deep cut may be my favorite track. Arranged by Michael Sembello and sung by Mendes' wife Gracinha Leporace, this was originally a French cut written by Alain Chamfort and Serge Gainsbourg. The translation is lacking (rhyming "indigo" with "let you go") but the writing and arranging is so catchy, I don't mind the lyrics. - "Suddenly Last Summer" by The Motels (1983, Capitol)
Based on my current mood, I'm calling this my favorite Motels tune. Stuck way back in the mix is a fantastic guitar line and Martha Davis is wonderfully sexy. And that brief descending bridge at about the 2:10 mark gets me every time.
This tune was more of autumn single, peaking at #9 on November 19, 1983 during 13 weeks in the Top 40. - "Summer" by War (1976, United Artists)
A few years back, I made a list of summer songs, one for each year since 1966 and it's a heckuva list if I do say so myself. Anyway, this single was the pick for '76. It peaked at #9 on the charts in September, 1976 and if there's a song that captures the laid-back, carefree summers of my youth, it's this one. "It's summer, my time of year." Indeed.
- "Someone Somewhere in Summertime" by Simple Minds (1982, A&M)
A moody album opener with an in-your-face subtlety (how's that for an oxymoron?). This song, the third single released from the most excellent New Gold Dream (81–82–83–84), didn't even get a whiff of the US charts and barely scrapped the UK charts. But that doesn't have anything to do with the quality of this tune. Kerr's lyrics are typically obtuse, but I'm guessing this one has to do with a person looking through a metaphorical rain in search of a love.
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