Maybe he was thinking about something completely different…but I was thinking about that amazing summer when I turned 17. Let me qualify this by saying I don’t pretend to speak for Bryan. Nobody seemed to notice, and that was the end of it until a few years ago when Bryan started introducing the song in concert by saying, “This song has nothing to do with the year 1969.” The audience reaction was predictable. When we recorded the demo in my basement, towards the end of the song Bryan sang a little naughty bit: “me and my baby in a ’69.” We had a laugh about it at the time, and Bryan decided to keep it when he did the final recording a month or two later. At some point we realized that “Summer Of ’69” was a better title, so we literally “shoe-horned” that phrase into a few more places in the song.Īt no time do I recall discussing sexual innuendo with Bryan except for one little thing. It took us a week or two to fine-tune the lyric. Oh my ‘ I wish this little “controversy” would just go away.įirst of all, when Bryan and I were writing the song, it was originally called “Best Days Of My Life.” The words “summer of ’69” only appeared once, right after “played it ’til my fingers bled.” That was it! The song really was about the summer of 1969! He added more behind-the-scenes context in, of all places, a Song Facts message board. It wasn’t the title, it was just another line in the song.” This was in January 1984, and according to Vallance, “During the next month or two the song went through a number of musical and lyrical changes.” In his line-by-line lyrical breakdown, Adams’ writing partner claims, “In our first draft of the song, the lyric ‘summer of ’69’ appears only once, never to be repeated. Let’s find out!įirst, a bit of background on the song: Adams co-wrote it with Jim Vallance (who’s also worked with everyone from Aerosmith to Anne Murray) for his eventual-smash album, Reckless. But what about when it ends and the next song is “Summer of ’69” by Bryan Adams - is that acceptable to sing with your parents? You’ve always assumed it’s about … y’know … but you’re not convinced either way. It’s just about love and holding hands and, ugh, none of the sweaty stuff, making it the rare classic rock staple that doesn’t make you feel weird when you’re singing it with your parents in their beat-up Chevy. And I was also always intrigued by the words to a Bing Crosby song that went, ‘Please lend a little ear to my pleas.’ The double use of the word ‘please.’ So it was a combination of Roy Orbison and Bing Crosby.” ( Via) John Lennon: “I remember the day I wrote it, I heard Roy Orbison doing ‘Only the Lonely,’ or something. That’s definitely about oral sex, right? Wrong. Take “Please Please Me” by the Beatles, for instance. Sometimes it’s obvious, like Weezer’s “Tired of Sex” or every track on Love Gun other times, it’s less explicit, such as “Tusk.” Then there are songs you have a hunch are about Doing It, but you’re not entirely sure. At least 84% of every song ever written has been about sex.

Summer 69 bryan adams