Good morning friends!
How has the first week of summer been treating you? Remember, with the change of seasons it’s a good time to do things like get a new toothbrush! Check the oil and water in your car! Give thanks to the void from which you have emerged and to which you will return!
(I may be overtired)
Please use the below format to send your answers to thelyricsquiz@gmail.com by 3pm today (NZ time). I’m a bit busy baking today so I may not be the promptest at answering your emails, but I will get to them! Eventually.
Team/name:
1930s: [Opera] [Song]
1970s: [Movie] [Song]
1980s: [Artist] [Song]
1990s: [Artist] [Song]
2010s: [Artist] [Song]
2020s: [Artist] [Song]
Have a good day.
Kirsti.
1930s (opera):
Summertime
And the livin' is easy
Hint: This opera (not a musical! My bad) was first performed in Boston on September 30, 1935, before it moved to Broadway in New York City. It featured a cast of classically trained African-American singers—a daring artistic choice at the time. This song is sung several times throughout the opera, and the most recorded song of all time - in 2017, Guinness World Records counted 67,591 versions. Title is in lyrics quoted.
1970s (movie):
Summer days drifting away
To, uh oh, those summer nights
Hint: This song and it’s movie has come up annoyingly frequently this year, which is why I’m including it now. The movie tells the story of a young Australian girl who has a summer fling with a greaser only to wind up at the same school as him. Hijinks and many catchy songs ensue. Titles is in lyrics quoted.
1980s:
It's a cruel (Cruel), cruel summer
Leaving me here on my own
It's a cruel (It's a cruel), cruel summer
Now you're gone
Hint: This English pop trio took their name, in part, from the Roxy Music song “Pyjamarama”, and got most of their early support from the Sex Pistols’ drummer, Paul Cook. Other songs of theirs you might now are mostly covers, tbh - “Venus” and “Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye”. Title is in the lyrics quoted.
1990s:
Ladies and Gentlemen of the class of '97:
Wear sunscreen. If I could offer you only one tip for the future, sunscreen would be it. The long term benefits of sunscreen have been proved by scientists whereas the rest of my advice has no basis more reliable than my own meandering experience. I will dispense this advice now.
Hint: This spoken-word track from the director behind Strictly Ballromm, The Great Gatsby and Moulin Rouge! was EVERYWHERE in 1997. The lyrics are taken from a hypothetical commencement speech by columnist Mary Schmich called “Advice, like youth, probably just wasted on the young”, originally published in June 1997 in the Chicago Tribune. There is a persistent rumour that the lyrics are from an actual commencement speech given by Kurt Vonnegut at MIT, but no - in 1997 the MIT commencement speaker was Kofi Annan. Title is not in the lyrics quoted.
2010s:
Lightnin' in your eyes, you can't speak
You've fallen from the sky, down to me
I see it in your face, I'm relief
I'm your summer girl
Hint: This trio of sisters performs under their family name, and previously appeared in this quiz in a song helping Taylor Swift get away with murder. Title in lyrics quoted.
2020s:
I hate the winter, can't stand the cold
I tend to cancel all the plans (So sorry, I can't make it)
But when the heat comes, something takes a hold
Can I kick it? Yeah, I can
My cheeks in high colour, overripe peaches
No shirt, no shoes, only my features
Hint: Our very own Royal(e). Title not in lyrics quoted, but is the name of the album this song is off/a method of generating electricity from the sun.
