Dean Brody's 2020 hit 'Canadian Summer' is a toe-tapping ode to the season, name-dropping The Tragically Hip, Blue Rodeo, an Iced Capp, Muskoka pines, a loon, and a lakeside camp party on July 1. The song followed his 2012 'Canadian Girl,' which featured a character who watched Hockey Night in Canada and Degrassi and knew how to put on skates.
Lazy Summer Vibes in CanCon
While some might call it lazy to include 'Summer of '69' and 'Canadian Summer' among the best summer songs, laziness is standard from spring to fall. The James Barker Band captured this in 2017's 'Lawn Chair Lazy,' singing about watching ice disappear with a beer in hand.
With summer just 72 hours away, it's time to dive into the most seasonal Canadian content available.
Dean Brody's Canadian Summer
Brody ran down the lawn in his bare feet for the 2020 song, invoking iconic Canadian symbols. The track was a follow-up to 'Canadian Girl,' which also celebrated Canadian culture.
Kim Mitchell and the Patio Lanterns
Every Canadian knows nervous girls and boys at coming-of-age parties drink lemonade, as immortalized in Kim Mitchell's 'Patio Lanterns.' No Canadian party is complete without Mitchell's sounds, synonymous with Caesars, s'mores, and sitting under the stars.
The Tragically Hip's Summer's Killing Us
In 2004, The Tragically Hip released 'Summer's Killing Us' on 'In Between Evolution,' an upbeat yet morose track about touring. The lyrics speak to summer's fleeting nature: 'Summer exists in a doorway/Summer exists at the fair/Summer is forever changes/Summer's taken me unaware.'
Madeline Merlo's Motel Flamingo
Madeline Merlo of Maple Ridge, B.C., sang about 'Motel Flamingo' in 2017, a listy twanger about a $49.99 room with a lime green pool and a radio blasting The Hip. The song brings you and nine friends along for a stay at a Canadian staple on its way into antiquity.
Brian Adams and Summer of '69
When CBC set out to find Canada's ultimate summer song in 2019, they used a March Madness-inspired bracket. Brian Adams' 'Summer of '69,' which turned 41 about a month ago, rose to the top, leaving hits like 'Steal My Sunshine' by Len and Justin Bieber's 'Sorry' in the dust.
But the song isn't about summer or the dawn of the 1970s. 'It's a very simple song about looking back on the summertime and making love,' Adams said according to American Songwriter. 'For me, the ’69 was a metaphor for making love, not about the year. I had someone in Spain ask me once why I wrote the first line “I had my first real sex dream …” I had to laugh.'
