“Summer in the City” (The Lovin’ Spoonful)

Today’s summer-themed song of the day is “Summer in the City” by the Lovin’ Spoonful. This track, with a harder edge than the group’s previous hits, was released in July of 1966 and hit #1 on both the Billboard Hot 100 and Cash Box Top 100. It was huge hit worldwide, hitting the top ten in Australia, Belgium, Canada (#1), Finland, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden, the UK, and West Germany.

“Summer in the City” was primarily written by the group’s lead singer, John Sebastian. Well, that’s only partly true; he actually adapted the song from one written by his younger brother, Mark, which was titled “It’s a Different World.” Mark Sebastian’s original had a bossa nova-like feel and much different lyrics; big brother John reworked the melody and replaced almost all of the lyrics. The bridge was provided by the band’s bassist, Steve Boone, while they recording the tune.

As noted, most of the Spoonful’s earlier music was lighter and folksier. (They started out on the folk scene, after all.) “Summer in the City” was a grittier tune, made even grittier by the inclusion of city sound effects—the sound of car horns, a heavy drill, and such.

The single’s release coincided with a record heat wave in New York City. That was fortuitous and helped the tune rapidly climb the charts there and across the country.

I like how the lyrics and the music contrast the heat of the day with the coolness of the evening:

Hot town, summer in the city
Back of my neck gettin’ dirty and gritty
Been down, isn’t it a pity?
Doesn’t seem to be a shadow in the city
All around, people lookin’ half dead
Walkin’ on the sidewalk, hotter than a match head

But at night, it’s a different world
Go out and find a girl
Come on, come on, and dance all night
Despite the heat, it’ll be alright
And babe, don’t you know it’s a pity
The days can’t be like the nights
In the summer in the city
In the summer in the city

And here’s your daily bonus video of the day, John Sebastian and the Lovin’ Spoonful lip synching “Summer in the City” on TV back in 1966. Cool.