"Summertime, Summertime" | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Single by The Jamies | ||||
B-side | "Searching for You" | |||
Released | July 14, 1958 | |||
Recorded | Roy Nelson Studio, Boston [1] | |||
Genre | Rock and roll | |||
Length | 2:00 | |||
Label | Epic | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
The Jamies singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
Audio | ||||
"Summertime, Summertime" on YouTube |
"Summertime, Summertime" is a 1958 song by American singing group the Jamies. Written by Boston-based student Tom Jameson, the song became popular in the local music scene after the band promoted their demo to deejays in the area. The single became a nationwide hit in 1958 after being released by Epic Records and would again become a hit in 1962 upon re-release.
The song begins with a fugal introduction, which gets repeated in the coda. It begins with the line "It's Summertime, Summertime, Sum, Sum, Summertime".
This song celebrates the ending of an academic year at high school and enjoying the summertime activities, including swimming, dancing, and romancing, telling the other students to join in the summertime fun, as a "free for all".
The song has since seen critical acclaim and has appeared in movies and advertisements. Several artists have covered the song.
"Summertime, Summertime" was the Jamies' first single and first major hit. The band was formed by Boston University student Tom Jameson and his sister Serena, who then recruited friends Jeannie Roy and Arthur Blair to join. [2] The band's first song was "Summertime, Summertime", which Tom had written. Serena recalled the writing process: [1]
I remember being upstairs while my grandmother lay resting on the couch downstairs. Tom was in the living room, where the piano was, as he composed "Summertime Summertime", until every word and every note was exactly as he wanted it. He was a perfectionist. I thought my grandmother had a lot of patience to listen to it over and over, but she never complained. I think she rather enjoyed it. When he was satisfied that he had written the words and music exactly as he wanted them to be, he asked Jeannie and me if we would sing it.
At Tom's insistence, the group practiced incessantly for weeks until he was satisfied that the band had perfected the arrangement. Roy explained: "Tom paid. He had a couple of copies made, and then he and Arthur took them around to several disc jockeys in the Boston area to see if they could interest the disc jockeys in playing them." [1]
The band has reflected positively on the song. Serena stated: "To think it’s lasted all these years is amazing. It’s really upbeat. It just grabs you. It’s still my favorite song." [3]
The song had gotten popular in the band's hometown of Boston, where local deejays began playing the song at record hops in the area. [2] One deejay then shepherded the song to Epic Records, which was a subsidiary of Columbia Records.
"Summertime, Summertime" was released as a single in July 1958. It was credited to Tom Jameson and manager Sherm Feller; though Feller did not contribute to the song's composition, it was common practice for managers of the time to receive writing credits and publishing rights. [4] The single was a commercial success, reaching number 28 on the Billboard Hot 100. Though the band's follow-up, "Snow Train", did not chart, the band saw success again in 1962 with a re-release of "Summertime, Summertime", which reached number 38. [5]
The song saw positive press from music writers of the time; Billboard glowingly described the song as "an exciting blend of medieval polyphonic structure with the modern hormonal sound". [6] Since its release, the song has seen critical acclaim. Andrew Hamilton of AllMusic said of the song: "The Jamies' 'Summertime, Summertime' is one of those songs you only have to hear once for it to live rent-free in your mind forever. The bouncy doo wop novelty ... surely provided inspiration for later novelty groups like the Village People and Sha Na Na to perform songs in the same campy style." [5] Bruce Springsteen said of the song: "It always signaled the beginning of summer for me, in its baroque joy, and I always loved hearing it for the first time, each summer. It meant summer was on!" [7]
The song notably appeared in the 1978 movie Fingers , where Harvey Keitel's character remarks: "Do you believe this? This is the Jamies, man! 'Summertime, Summertime', the most musically inventive song of 1958!" [8] It has also appeared in advertisements for Applebee's and Buick. [5] [4]
"Summertime, Summertime" was covered by the Fortunes shortly after the original's 1962 rerelease. [5] It has since been performed by the Doodletown Pipers, Hobby Horse, Jan & Dean, the Legendary Masked Surfers, and Sha Na Na.
Bruce Frederick Joseph Springsteen is an American singer and songwriter. He has released 21 studio albums during a career spanning six decades, most of which feature his backing band, the E Street Band. He is an originator of heartland rock, a genre combining mainstream rock music with poetic and socially conscious lyrics that tell a narrative about working-class American life. Nicknamed "The Boss", he is known for his lyrics and energetic concerts, with performances that can last more than four hours.
The Wild, the Innocent & the E Street Shuffle is the second studio album by American rock singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen. It was recorded by Springsteen with the E Street Band at 914 Sound Studios, Blauvelt, New York, and released on November 5, 1973, by Columbia Records. It includes the song "Rosalita ", the band's most-used set-closing song through 1985.
Ray Edward Cochran was an American rock and roll musician. Cochran's songs, such as "Twenty Flight Rock", "Summertime Blues", "C'mon Everybody" and "Somethin' Else", captured teenage frustration and desire in the mid-1950s and early 1960s. He experimented with multitrack recording, distortion techniques, and overdubbing even on his earliest singles. He played the guitar, piano, bass, and drums. His image as a sharply dressed and attractive young man with a rebellious attitude epitomized the stance of the 1950s rocker, and in death he achieved iconic status.
Dropkick Murphys are an American Celtic punk band formed in Quincy, Massachusetts in 1996. Singer and bassist Ken Casey has been the band's only constant member. Other current members include drummer Matt Kelly, singer Al Barr, guitarist James Lynch, multi-instrumentalist Tim Brennan and multi-instrumentalist Jeff DaRosa.
"Born to Run" is a song by American singer-songwriter Bruce Springsteen, and the title song of his album Born to Run. Upon its release, music critic Robert Christgau took note of its wall of sound influence and called it "the fulfillment of everything 'Be My Baby' was about and lots more".
"Summertime Blues" is a song co-written and recorded by American rock artist Eddie Cochran. It was written by Cochran and his manager Jerry Capehart. Originally a single B-side, it was released in August 1958 and peaked at number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 on September 29, 1958, and number 18 on the UK Singles Chart. It has been covered by many artists, including being a number-one hit for country music artist Alan Jackson, and scoring notable hits in versions by Blue Cheer, The Who, and Brian Setzer, the last of whom recorded his version for the 1987 film La Bamba, in which he portrayed Cochran. Jimi Hendrix performed it in concert. T. Rex recorded their own rendition of the song for their self-titled debut album T. Rex in 1970 and performed it live.
Winterland Ballroom was an ice skating rink and music venue in San Francisco, California. The arena was located at the corner of Post Street and Steiner Street. It was converted for exclusive use as a music venue in 1971 by concert promoter Bill Graham and became a common performance site for many famous rock artists. Graham later formed a merchandising company called Winterland Productions which sold concert shirts, memorabilia, and official sports team merchandise.
Sha Na Na was an American rock and roll doo-wop cover group. Formed in 1969, but performing a song-and-dance repertoire based on 1950s hit songs, it simultaneously revived and parodied the music and the New York street culture of the 1950s. After gaining initial fame for their performance at Woodstock, made possible with the help of their friend Jimi Hendrix, the group hosted Sha Na Na, a syndicated variety series that ran from 1977 to 1981.
"Blinded by the Light" is a song written and recorded by Bruce Springsteen, which first appeared on his 1973 debut album Greetings from Asbury Park, N.J. A cover by British rock band Manfred Mann's Earth Band reached number one on the Billboard Hot 100 in the United States in February 1977 and was also a top ten hit in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, and Canada.
The E Street Band is an American rock band, and has been musician Bruce Springsteen's primary backing band since 1972. The band was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2014. For the bulk of Springsteen's recording and performing career, the band consisted of: guitarists Steven Van Zandt, Nils Lofgren, and Patti Scialfa, keyboardists Danny Federici and Roy Bittan, bassist Garry Tallent, drummer Max Weinberg, and saxophonist Clarence Clemons.
"The Ghost of Tom Joad" is a folk rock song written by Bruce Springsteen. It is the title track to his eleventh studio album, released in 1995. The character Tom Joad, from John Steinbeck's classic 1939 novel The Grapes of Wrath, is mentioned in the title and narrative.
"Streets of Philadelphia" is a song written and performed by American rock musician Bruce Springsteen for the 1993 film Philadelphia, starring Tom Hanks, an early mainstream film dealing with HIV/AIDS. Released as a single in 1994, the song was a hit in many countries, including Austria, Canada, France, Germany, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, and Norway, where it topped the singles charts. In the United States, the single peaked at number nine on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Springsteen's 12th and final top-10 hit.
"Jersey Girl" is a song composed and originally sung by American singer-songwriter Tom Waits from his 1980 album Heartattack and Vine.
"At the Hop" is a 1950s pop song written by Artie Singer, John Medora, and David White and originally released by Danny & the Juniors. The song was released in the fall of 1957 and reached number one on the US charts on January 6, 1958, becoming one of the top-selling singles of 1958. "At the Hop" also hit number one on the R&B Best Sellers list. Somewhat more surprisingly, the record reached #3 on the Music Vendor country charts. It was also a big hit elsewhere, which included a number 3 placing on the UK charts.
"Glory Days" is a song written and performed by American rock singer Bruce Springsteen. In 1985, it became the fifth single released from his 1984 album Born in the U.S.A.
Sherman Feller was an American musical composer and radio personality. He was the public address announcer for the Boston Red Sox at Fenway Park for 26 years.
The Jamies were an American singing group, led by siblings Tom and Serena Jameson, based in Boston. They are best known for the song "Summertime, Summertime."
"High School Confidential" is a 1958 song written by Jerry Lee Lewis and Ron Hargrave as the title song of the MGM movie of the same name directed by Jack Arnold.
"Brilliant Disguise" is a song by Bruce Springsteen from his 1987 album Tunnel of Love. It was released as the first single from the album, reaching the No. 5 position on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and No. 1 on the Mainstream Rock chart in the United States. The follow-up single, "Tunnel of Love", also reached No. 1 on the Mainstream Rock Tracks chart, giving Springsteen two consecutive No. 1's. The single reached the top 10 in four additional countries including Canada and Ireland and the top 20 in Australia, Netherlands and the United Kingdom. "Brilliant Disguise" was nominated for Best Male Pop Vocal Performance at the 1988 Grammy Awards.
"The Power of Prayer" is a 2020 song by Bruce Springsteen from his album Letter to You. It was only released as a radio single, and a promotional video was released on November 23, a month after the release of the album.