60s

The song was a collaboration between John Sebastian, The Lovin Spoonful's bassist Steve Boone, and the frontman's brother (and non-group member) Mark Sebastian. John Sebastian recalled to Uncut magazine June 2014: "That song that came from an idea my brother Mike had. He had this great chorus, and the release was so big. I had to create some kind of tension at the front end to make it even bigger. That's where that jagged piano part comes from." "Steve contributed the middle eight, which I thought sounded like Gershwin, so we hired a radio sound effects engineer to come in with records of horns and traffic, a real New York City thing." (source) The Lovin' Spoonful: "Summer In The City" Hot town, summer in the city Back of my neck gettin' dirt-'n'-gritty Bend down, isn't it a pity Doesn't seem to be a shadow in the city All around people lookin' half dead Walking on the sidewalk, hotter than a match-head {Refrain} But at night it's a different world Go out and find a girl Come on, come on and dance all night Just bide the heat, it'll be all right And babe, don't you know it's a pity The days can't be like the nights In the summer in the city, in the summer in the city Cool town, evening in the city Dressed so fine and looking so pretty Cool cat, looking for a kitty Gonna look in every corner of the city 'Til I'm wheezing like a bus stop Runnin' upstairs, gonna meet you on the roof top The Lovin' Spoonful in 2014! RELATED: Folk Song, “Michael Row The Boat Ashore”