Playlist: In Honor Of “The Summer Of Love,” We Go Outside Our Wheelhouse, Songs From…1967

“Turn on, tune in, drop out” – Timothy Leary, 1967

I don’t why, but lately I’ve been thinking a lot about the 60s. I was but a babe in diapers and missed out on that whole counterculture scene but I like to think I’d have been a hippy, much to my father’s chagrin. I guess the 60s have popped into my mind because I remember history class and as I watch this fractious society we find ourselves in today, it kind of reminds me of the contemporary news footage from those days. Of course in those days the Vietnam War and reactions to it pervaded almost everything. Earlier this year I did a post about psychedelic rock and that started me down a 60s rabbit hole. I’ve been listening to a lot of the Doors lately, especially their last couple of albums with shamanistic lead singer Jim Morrison. All of that sort of led me to the Summer Of Love in 1967. It seems like such an important cultural milestone. We visited some friends of the Rock Chick recently, a very cool couple, and the wife had actually left her home in Michigan when she was in college and ran off to Haight-Ashbury that summer with her boyfriend… which is probably what actually led me to the Summer of Love. Well, that and the fabulous music from that era.

Until now, the 60s were probably one of the most tumultuous times in our history. As mentioned, the Vietnam War hung over everything. Many of the kids turned to psychedelic drugs and many ran off to San Francisco, the epicenter of the counterculture, and into the Summer of Love. Haight-Ashbury was where all the hippies and flower children congregated for what sounds like one hell of a summer. What a scene that must have been, with all the “Human Be-In” stuff! Hell, even Charlie Manson, who had been recently released from prison, was hanging around. I always imagine kids with flowers in their hair in day-glo outfits. MLK and Muhammad Ali denounced the war that year so you have to think revolution was in the air…it cost Ali his title when he declared himself a conscientious objector. In happier news, LBJ established PBS that year. The King, Elvis Presley, married Priscilla. So much was going on: the Civil Rights movement, the Youth movement, Women’s Rights, Free Love and the Anti-War movement, and all of the attendant backlash that those movements caused. And yes, we were still in the throes of the Cold War. In many ways, what side you’re on today depends on how you feel about the advances made in the 60s. History is a thread.

I’ve been doing curated playlists centered on a specific year in music for a while now. I generally focus on the 70s – I’ve done 1971, 1972, 1973, 1974 and 1975 – because that music was what you’d hear on the radio, even in ’78 when I seriously started listening to and collecting music and it’s what I grew up on. As an aside, those 70s playlists were so much fun, I’ve also started doing “40 year lookbacks” to the 80s – I’ve done 1982, 1983, 1984, and 1985. I’ve never gone back to the 60s, because while I’m a huge fan of many of the big bands of the 60s (The Beatles, the Stones, the Who, Hendrix, Dylan), that era just seemed so far away from me and my experience. Because we’re pretty AOR (Album Oriented Rock) centric here,  when I do these “specific-year playlists” I usually choose one song from key albums released in said year. I will also add stray standalone singles but many times the singles chart has tunes that were actually recorded/released the year prior. I want to stay true to the year I’m posting about. And frankly, I don’t think the album, as an art form, really came into it’s own until maybe ’65 or ’66 with the Beatles’ Rubber Soul and then Revolver or Dylan’s Blonde On Blonde, among others. It’s hard to build a playlist from albums when singles ruled the world pre-65. Most of the early 60s LPs were just collections of singles with some filler added. 1967 will probably be as far back as I ever go for a playlist. But man, what a year that was!

Since 1967 is so heavily associated with the Summer of Love and well, psychedelic drugs, I assumed all the music from that year would be trippy, acid rock. A lot of the big bands put out psychedelic albums that year (and some were clearly masterpieces): The Beatles, the Who, even the Stones dipped a toe in that water. New bands like the Hendrix Experience, the Grateful Dead, the Doors and the Syd Barrett-led Pink Floyd debuted that year. But there was so much other great music released that year beyond the psychedelic. Motown, Stax and a ton of great soul music was out that year. Even the blues was sprinkled in. And of course, folk music was still a heavy influence even though Dylan had long since “gone electric.”

While my old pal the Jean Genie’s husband Mike will say that this playlist is too long, I actually cut it in half from where I started, thus was the musical largesse of the musicians that year. Hell, the Doors, Hendrix and the Jefferson Airplane all put out multiple albums that year – as did many other artists. It was difficult to hone this list down, but these were some of my favorites. I was too young back then so if you were a groovy flower child in ’67 and have suggestions on something I should add, please drop it in the comments. I can always add it onto the playlist, seen here. My pithy comments about each song below.

1. The Doors, The Doors, “Light My Fire” – From the fabulous debut which came out on January 4th of ’67, the first great album of the year. One could say it set the tone for the entire year. And this track is on my Playlist: Songs About Fire.
2. The Rolling Stones, Between The Buttons, “Let’s Spend The Night Together” – This is from the American version of the album.
3. Jefferson Airplane, Surrealistic Pillow, “Somebody To Love” – Perhaps their greatest song. This album, Hendrix’s debut, Sgt Pepper and the Doors debut were the soundtrack of the Summer Of Love. Or so I’ve read. I love Grace Slick.
4. Eddie Floyd, Knock On Wood, “Knock On Wood” – A soul masterpiece and now a standard. I think even Clapton covered this song on Behind The Sun, one of those albums only I like.
5. The Byrds, Younger Than Yesterday, “My Back Pages” – The Byrds did so many great Dylan covers.
6. The Mamas and the Papas, Deliver, “Creeque Alley” – I’ve been into the Mamas And the Papas for a while but really learned a lot watching Echo In The Canyon.
7. The Youngbloods, The Youngbloods, “Get Together” – A sentiment we could use around here today, “Everybody get together, Try to love one another right now…”
8. The Young Rascals, Collections, “I’ve Been Lonely Too Long” – A track I was unfamiliar with but really dig.
9. Donovan, Mellow Yellow, “Mellow Yellow” – This guy is super trippy.
10. The Beatles, standalone single, “Penny Lane” – The damn record company forced the Beatles to cough up this song (backed w/ “Strawberry Fields”) as a single when they should have left it on Sgt. Pepper’s.
11. The Supremes, The Supremes Sing Holland, Dozier, Holland, “Keep Me Hangin’ On” – This is such a great version of this song. I never realized how much this influenced Rod Stewart’s cover version.
12. Grateful Dead, The Grateful Dead, “The Golden Road” – Great song from their debut album.
13. Pink Floyd, standalone single, “Arnold Layne” – Syd Barrett was such a fragile genius. This song is about a transvestite who stole woman’s underwear from their clotheslines.
14. The Velvet Underground, The Velvet Underground & Nico, – While everybody else was singing about love, we have the VU with Lou Reed writing about S&M and heroin.
15. Al Green, Back Up Train, “Back Up Train” – From the soul giant’s debut album. He just did a stunning cover of R.E.M.’s “Everybody Hurts.” Nice to know he’s still out cookin’.
16. Aretha Franklin, I’ve Never Loved A Man The Way I Love You, “Respect” – Written by Otis Redding, owned by Aretha.
17. Otis Redding & Carla Thomas, King & Queen, “Tramp” – Speaking of Otis…
18. Nina Simone, Nina Simone Sings The Blues, “I Want A Little Sugar In My Bowl” – I’m really starting to get into Nina Simone… better late than never. She was a giant talent.
19. The Turtles, So Happy Together, “So Happy Together” – Hard to argue with the lyric, “It’s only right to think about the girl you love and hold her tight, So happy together…”
20. The Electric Prunes, The Electric Prunes, “I Had Too Much To Dream (Last Night)” – I love this trippy track. I also added it to my Playlist: Songs About the Surreal Realm of Dreams.
21. Tim Hardin, Tim Hardin 2, “If I Were A Carpenter” – This track has been covered a bunch but never as well as Johnny Cash and later Robert Plant.
22. Country Joe & the Fish, Electric Music For The Mind And Body, “Flying High” – These guys sort of epitomize the 60s to me.
23. Jimi Hendrix Experience, Are You Experienced?, “Purple Haze” – The iconic track.
24. The Monkees, Headquarters, “Randy Scouse Git” – Weird title, great song. Hard to believe Hendrix opened for the Monkees on a tour once.
25. The Beatles, Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band, “Lucy In The Sky With Diamonds” – A true masterpiece of a song. Was it code for LSD?
26. The 5th Dimension, Up, Up And Away, “Up, Up And Away” – This is a song I think my parents liked. And believe me, they were not counterculture in the least.
27. The Lovin’ Spoonful, You’re A Big Boy Now, “Darling Be Home Soon” – Another great song I’d never heard before.
28. The Association, Insight Out, “Windy” – I’ve been a fan of this song for years without knowing who sang it.
29. Stone Poneys (featuring Linda Ronstadt), Evergreen, Vol 2, “Different Drum” – Early work from future superstar Linda Rondstadt. What’s not to love?
30. The Hollies, Evolution, “Carrie-Ann” – Graham Nash’s group prior to joining his buddies David Crosby and Stephen Stills.
31. Bee Gees, The Bee Gees 1st, “To Love Somebody” – Great song from the pre-disco Brothers Gibb.
32. The Temptations, With A Lot Of Soul, “(I Know) I’m Losing You” – Ably covered years later by Rod Stewart. I’m very fond of the original.
33. John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, A Hard Road, “Some Day After A While (You’ll Be Sorry)” – Great blues song featuring Peter Green later of Fleetwood Mac.
34. The Young Rascals, Groovin’, “Groovin'” – “Groovin’ on a Sunday afternoon…”
35. The Grass Roots, Let’s Live For Today, “Let’s Live For Today” – What a great song. This song feels like 1967.
36. Pink Floyd, standalone single, “See Emily Play” – This track feels like it came from outer space.
37. Four Tops, Reach Out, “Reach Out I’ll Be There” – Another brilliant song I now think of as a standard.
38. Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash, Carryin’ On With Johnny Cash And June Carter, “Jackson” – My favorite of their duets. “We got married in a fever…”
39. Aretha Franklin, Aretha Arrives, “Baby, I Love You” – I actually was turned onto this song by Tom Petty on his Buried Treasure show. It’s one of her greatest tunes.
40. Pink Floyd, Piper At The Gates Of Dawn, “Astronomy Domine” – Speaking of outer space…
41. Peter, Paul & Mary, Album 1700, “Leaving On A Jet Plane” – Another song my parents listened to… but then they liked “Puff The Magic Dragon” too.
42. Big Brother & The Holding Company (feat. Janis Joplin), Big Brother & the Holding Company, “Call On Me” – Great track from the debut that was overshadowed by Cheap Thrills.
43. Stevie Wonder, I Was Made To Love Her, “I Was Made To Love Her” – Stevie is such a talented musician. This is one of my all time favorites.
44. Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, Make It Happen, “Tears Of A Clown” – Had to include this classic… also found on our Playlist: Songs About Crying.
45. Marvin Gaye, Tammi Terrell, United, “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough” – Spectacular duet.
46. Albert King, Born Under A Bad Sign, “Born Under A Bad Sign” – One of the greatest blues songs ever. Covered by Cream as well.
47. James Brown, Cold Sweat, “Cold Sweat Pt. 1 and Pt 2” – James Brown laying down a perfect jam.
48. Joan Baez, Joan, “Eleanor Rigby” – The Queen of Folk covering the Beatles… sign me up.
49. John Mayall & the Bluesbreakers, Crusade, “I Can’t Quit You Baby” – This time Mayall had future Stone Mick Taylor on lead guitar… this track later ably done by Led Zeppelin. Written by Willie Dixon.
50. Procol Harum, Procol Harum, “A Whiter Shade Of Pale” – I discovered this song watching The Big Chill.
51. The Kinks, Something Else, “Waterloo Sunset” – A personal favorite from the Kinks.
52. The Doors, Strange Days, “Love Me Two Times” – “Love me one time, Could not speak, Love me one time, Yeah, my knees got weak…” I couldn’t say it better.
53. Van Morrison, Blowin’ Your Mind, “Brown Eyed Girl” – Van’s classic, which also features on our Playlist: Songs About Eyes.
54. Captain Beefheart & His Magic Band, Safe As Milk, “Sure ‘Nuff And Yes I Do” – I don’t know much Captain Beefheart, but this was a great blast of blues.
55. Sam & Dave, Soul Men, “Soul Man” – Another stone cold soul classic. And yes, the Blues Brothers covered it.
56. Buffalo Springfield, Buffalo Springfield Again, “Mr. Soul” – Neil Young’s Stonesy rocker. Recently covered on the Neil Young Tribute LP to benefit the Bridge School.
57. Nico, Chelsea Girl, “These Days” – I think this was the first version of this song, written by Jackson Browne, but also covered by Gregg Allman. It’s hard to pick a favorite version.
58. Nina Simone, Silk & Soul, “I Wish I Knew How It Would Feel To Be Free” – This song should be taught in every Civics class.
59. Sly & The Family Stone, A Whole New Thing, “Underdog” – We just lost Sly, RIP. Great track from their debut. One of the first multi-race bands…with men and women. It was a reflection of society.
60. Judy Collins, Wildflowers, “Both Sides Now” – Stephen Stills’ one time girlfriend (“Suite: Judy Blue Eyes”) doing a track written by Joni Mitchell.
61. Love, Forever Changes, “Alone Again Or” – Such a trippy album. This track almost sounds baroque to me? But that may be the whiskey.
62. The Monkees, Pisces, Aquarius, Capricorn & Jones Ltd., “Pleasant Valley Sunday” – A Monkee’s song I think everyone knows. They paint a rather grim view of suburbia. My father was the poster child for suburbia.
63. Cream, Disreali Gears, “Sunshine Of Your Love” – Perhaps my favorite Cream track. What a riff.
64. The Beach Boys, Smiley Smile, “Good Vibrations” – I generally do not like the Beach Boys, but have always liked this song. Every band has 1 good song (at least). I just heard the news Brian Wilson passed today, RIP.
65. Jefferson Airplane, After Bathing At Baxter’s, “The Ballad Of You, Me & Pooneil” – Who is this Pooneil and why is he in our ballad? I’ve always liked the guitar here.
66. Country Joe & The Fish, I Feel Like I’m Fixin’ To Die, “The Fish Cheer/I-Feel-Like-I’m-Fixin’-To-Die Rag” – This sounds like a news report from the Nightly News. Very “of it’s time,” but it sums up the zeitgeist of the Anti-War movement.
67. Jimi Hendrix Experience, Axis: Bold As Love, “Little Wing” – There is not a version of this oft-covered song that I don’t like… but I absolutely love Hendrix’s original. “Well, she’s walkin’ thru the clouds…”
68. Traffic, Mr. Fantasy, “Dear Mr. Fantasy” – Epic blues rock from Steve Winwood and the lads in Traffic.
69. The Rolling Stones, Their Satanic Majesties Request, “She’s A Rainbow” – This may be the most maligned Stones album… is it time for a reevaluation?
70. The Who, The Who Sell Out, “I Can See For Miles” – A titanic song from the Who.
71. Bob Dylan, John Wesley Harding, “All Along The Watchtower” – Dylan emerges after his motorcycle wreck, the world has gone psychedelic, and he delivers an acoustic, folk-rock masterpiece. Hendrix probably owns this track but man, what a statement.
72. Leonard Cohen, Songs Of Leonard Cohen, “Suzanne” – Brilliant song from his brilliant debut.
73. Paul Butterfield Blues Band, The Resurrection Of Pigboy Crabshaw, “One More Headache” – The first LP after guitar god Michael Bloomfield split to form Electric Flag. More horns but I dig it.
74. Strawberry Alarm Clock, Incense And Peppermints, “Incense And Peppermints” – I absolutely love the band’s name.
75. The Beatles, B-side to “Penny Lane,” “Strawberry Fields Forever” – Speaking of strawberries…
76. The Box Tops, The Letter/Neon Rainbow, “The Letter” – Alex Chilton’s first band…before going on to form Big Star. A true classic. It’s been covered by many including Joe Cocker.
77. Gladys Knight & the Pips, Everybody Needs Love, “I Heard It Through The Grapevine” – Done by Marvin Gaye, CCR and this funky little version by Gladys and her Pips.
78. The Beatles, Magical Mystery Tour, “All You Need Is Love” – I could have filled this list with Beatles songs… Too bad nobody listened to the message here…
79. Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, standalone single, “I Second That Emotion” – Perhaps my favorite track from the legendary voice of Smokey Robinson. Also first heard by me in yes, The Big Chill.
80. Arthur Conley, Sweet Soul Music, “Sweet Soul Music” – I’ve always wondered if Mellencamp’s “R.O.C.K In The U.S.A.” didn’t owe a royalty to this guy. He name checks, well, everybody.
81. Tommy James & The Shondells, I Think We’re Alone Now, “I Think We’re Alone Now” – I’m embarrassed to admit the first verison of this track I ever heard was by that chick who sang in the mall in the 80s. Fortunately, her name escapes me.
82. Scott McKenzie, The Voice Of Scott McKenzie, “San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair)” – Believe it or not, this was my dad’s favorite song at one point in time. I think Robert Plant was also a fan. It was written by Paul Kantner of the Jefferson Airplane. It was like the clarion call for the flower children to head to San Francisco in the summer of ’67.

It was tough to narrow this down to just 82 songs. I had to cut a lot of great music. If there’s a track you’re especially fond of, again, drop it in the comments and if it fits I’ll add it on the dreaded Spotify. If you were around in ’67 – my late aunt eventually ended up in SF in the early 70s, I dedicate this playlist to her memory – I’d love to know your thoughts about this list. If, like me, you were too young to experience the Summer Of Love, maybe this playlist will get you a little closer to the experience. I wish I’d known Ken Kesey and his Merry Pranksters… although I probably wouldn’t have fit in as I tend to avoid psychedelics…

I think summer of 2025 is going to be a long hot summer… tensions are mounting. I think we could all use a taste of the great Summer Of Love about now. Be safe out there, it’s getting dark. But it’s always darkest before the dawn…

Cheers!