In case you haven’t been outside in a few days, it’s hot! Some of the CincyMusic.com Contributors came up with a few of our favorite Summer Jams. We all have those songs we turn up in the car or play over and over again at home during the warmer months. What are some of your go-to Summer Jams? Post in the comments below!
Moose Gronholm:
DJ Jazzy Jeff & Will Smith, “Summertime.” This was one of the first cassette's I ever bought. We went out to Boston to visit my Aunts and rocked this out!
Wilco, “Misunderstood.” This song changed my musical perspective. Much of who I am now I owe to this song, as well as my older and younger brother. Something clicked when I heard this. I was by myself in my mother's attic had a cassette tape of this and cranked it! And just sat and listened for hours.
Ryan Schatzman:
Beck, "Debra." This song wasn't new at the time, but it was new to me. I had just moved into Stratford Heights with one of my best friends, and it felt amazing to be out on our own, pretending to be adults. We discovered the album that this song is on, "Midnight Vultures," and I gravitated to this song because of 1.) How different it was from all the other songs on the album, and 2.) How utterly ridiculous the context of it was. But being 17, I'm not sure I directly noticed either of those at the time, because all I did was turn up the volume on our stereo as loud as possible, blare this song, and prop our door into the hallway in the hopes that it would act like a babe magnet and all the ladies would come running. They didn't.
Radiohead, "15 Step." It was my first trip to Bonnaroo, and I had only heard of Radiohead – but never listened to them. They were headlining that year, so I went to check it out. I had never seen a crowd of people that big, let alone gathered together in jubilation for the same exact reason. I couldn't get very far into the crowd, but got far enough to see the stage, and the masses of people that piled back as far as we could see. People were more happy than I had ever seen people before, and I remember watching glow sticks skip-hop from the back of the crowd to the pit in a never-ending barrage of neon streaks in the sky. I didn't understand till after that show, the following year, why people were so elated: Radiohead was playing the entirety of "In Rainbows," their upcoming album release no one had ever heard before. I was standing there in awe, with tears rolling down my face, as everyone in the front that had been bombarded by glow sticks for the first part of the concert began throwing them straight up into the air, over and over again, as Radiohead jammed away in a shower of beautiful expression. It was the first time I truly felt the meaning of "Church" rejoicing with all the beautiful people standing around me. I've still never seen anything like it.
Briana Henry:
Toadies, "Possum Kingdom." I thought about "Summertime" by Will Smith, or "Beat Down" by Steve Aoki ft. Iggy Azalea, or Leggy's latest entire album, Nice Try but kept coming back to this classic. Although the lyrics are incredibly shady, (seriously, look them up) it remains at the top of my playlist and is always a crowd pleaser.
Courtney Phenicie:
Dave Matthews Band, “Two Step.” There is something about warm weather and Dave Matthews that goes hand in hand. I first saw DMB at Riverbend back in the late 90’s. I knew little of the band at that time and didn’t expect much. They started playing this song and it was as if my breath was taken away. Everyone around me dissolved and it was all I could do to not burst into tears.
Ani DiFranco, “Shameless.” Ani is a staple artist for me. Although I had been a fan and seen her many times before then, I first heard this song live at Bonnaroo in 2004. It was so hot no one wanted to move. Once she started the first chords everyone was up on their feet and dancing.
