Songs of Summer, Vol. I

That Ol' Bus Smell
Peter Herbolzheimer's Rhythm Combination and Brass
Wide Open
MPS : 1973
[Listen]

Mishaps Happening
Quantic
Mishaps Happening
Ubiquity : 2004
[Listen] [Buy]

Hole in my Life
The Police
Outlandos D'Amour
A&M Records : 1978
[Listen] [Buy]

Papa was a Rolling Stone
The Pioneers
[Listen]

Summer songs are well-worn blog fodder, especially when we get it right and actually post them while the sun is shining and the humidity is intolerable. I have a formula for summer music, which again, I don't think is unique, but hey, the beauty of having your own blog is that you generally get to talk a lot about yourself and the things you like. I reckon you'll like some of them too, and thus, hopefully we're all happy.

This will be a long series. Collect them all as you will be quizzed on the material. All of these tracks have something sunny about them, some combination of instruments, rhythms and chord progressions that beg them to be played when you're sitting on the deck knocking back more beer than was previously thought possible.

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The first track brings to mind the essence of summer: being lazier than you are the rest of the year. Not necessarily lazy in the sense of sitting around doing nothing [although in the stifling heat, it's forgivable], but in the sense of being "unproductive" in the eyes of our square bosses and dreary workaday lives. Screw work, screw important stuff. Instead, run around and be a kid, do fun things, play outdoors, grill a whole lot of food, drink a lot, take the bike out for a spin, play wiffleball, whatever.

This song is like that for me. I drop whatever I'm doing and devote that 6 minutes of run time to shuffling around and dancing like an idiot.

Why?

Because there's just something to be said for those large, outrageous horn arrangements of the 70s, that swinger, Jaguar-driving, wear flared-pants-and-walk-suavely-down-Carnaby-Street sound.

Every funk and soul producer worth his or her salt was running around frantically, trying to figure out where to put more horns. They were the lifeblood of funk, and Peter Herbolzheimer [typical 70s producer] went no-holds barred on his second commercial release, flooding the mix with bright brass flurries as much as the ear could handle [read: three trumpets, three trombones, one saxophone, as best I can tell] and bringing the big band feel to some seriously dirty grooves.

The refrains, the head, the bridge, the solos; not a second of music is safe from the horn mania.

End result: fucking greatness. An orgy of overlapping timbres. It's hard to be productive or focused while this song is on, so relent, give up and surrender to some criminally-underrated jazz-funk.

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This track brings out the second connotation of "summer laziness": I want to touch the stereo as little as possible. The sun is too hot, so give me an assortment of excellent sounds that run longer than you might think but keep the mood up, thus allowing me to remain where I am, drenched in sunshine, overcome with happiness, tranquility and various stages of intoxication.

Quantic, aka Will Holland, rarely fails on this count, because his musical influences and inspirations are perfect for the summertime. Every Quantic release has that bright sound, thanks to the boatloads of calypso, soul, salsa, bossa nova and jazz that he manically digests. This is good for the cooler-than-thou lounge idea you've been throwing around in yr head, or the back porch where conversation flows quickly and the vino flows even quicker.

Great beats, funky little breaks, the momentum changes are groovy and well-timed, and that jazz guitar is spot-on. Give me a 45-minute version of this track and I'll be in heaven.

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Next up, the English ska crusties the Police. I am a little bitter that I couldn't get tickets for their gargantuan reunion tour, but it's no big deal. I'm sure their on-stage chemistry will be worth it. [Hating your bandmates is always a good recipe for cheap pyrotechnics as soon as the first flubbed note makes it through the earpiece monitors]

Do sad lyrics disqualify a song from being perfect for the summer? Definitely not, otherwise where would indie music lovers find their sunshine soundtracks?

This isn't entirely depressing; Copeland's shuffling, herky-jerky rhythm keeps you on notice, as does the gentle bass-guitar interplay of Sting and Summers. Infused with enough reggae soul to satisfy the summer contingent, it's solid lazy day singalong music [if you can manage to sing in Gordon's staggeringly high range].

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The Pioneers also stick to the reggae/summer connection with their gorgeous rendition of the Temptations' classic soul hit. Known for their two big ska hits in the late-60s, "Longshot" and "Longshot [Kick De Bucket]", both about a racehorse, the Pioneers strip the song to its bare bones.

No elaborate arrangement, and no effort to emulate or outdo the epic sound of the original, instead we get something simpler, something more primal and wild. The beat shuffles along, backed with brief flashes of rhythm guitar [classic on-the-2s-and-4s strumming] and tambourine. The vocal harmonies are tight on the choruses and breaks, and the minimal use of keys is perfect.

This is perfect for the late evening, when the candles are almost burned out and the mood is right for this smoky, seductive, lusty interpretation.

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A new batch of tunes tomorrow, but I feel like this should kick off the songs of summer just right. Stay tuned.