Top 10 summer songs (the Gen-X version)

Dann Miller | Statesman Journal

Today is the first day of summer and it's supposed to be sunny and warm which is a bonus in Oregon.

In honor of June 21 and all things great about the season, here is a list of the Top 10 songs about summer.

Mind you that I am a Gen-Xer and this list is highly influenced by that fact.

10) Alice Cooper: School's Out -- Summer might officially start on June 21, but growing up, it started the day school ended. This was one of the greatest days of the year and was commemorated with this anthem.

9) Kid Rock: All Summer Long -- I didn't grow up in Northern Michigan, but I did grow up in the Northeast and this song might as well have described life in Upstate New York.

8) The Lovin' Spoonful: Summer in the City -- While we are mostly humidity free in Oregon, life is not as pleasant in the east. When I thought hot as a kid, this song that came into my head. Now, it's Nelly's Hot In Here, but that's a different list.

7) Beach Boys: Kokomo -- This was an ultimate summer song -- but not THE ultimate summer song.Plus, once you listen to it, it sticks with you. You are welcome.

6) LFO: Summer Girls -- This song is horrible in every possible way including how catchy it is and how many times it plays every summer.

5) Tupac: California Love -- A staple of summer radio in the late 90s and for those of us on the other coast, this song was a calling card to go west. Kind of like I assume Will Smith's Miami was for those out here to go east.

4) Shaggy: In the Summertime -- I dare you to try and listen to this song without getting in a good mood. Try it. It's impossible.

3) Tom Cochrane: Life is a Highway -- Not the Rascal Flatts version -- the better version. This was the song we listened to hundreds of time during the summer after we graduated high school. Couldn't get enough of it then and get enough now.

2) Don Henley: Boys of Summer -- I was a boy and it was summer. That made me a boy of summer and this song was about me. Thank's, Don.

1) DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince: Summertime -- You could pick any number of Will Smith songs that fit the summer mood. But when the calendar hits June 21, the first song I play is this one. (A close secnod is Miami.)

What's your favorite summer song?