The sun's out, you've managed not to break your new shades yet, and there's an iced latte on its way courtesy of your partner/flatmate/kindest co-worker. All you need now is the perfect feelgood summer song, and you're in luck, because, in partnership with FREE NOW, we’ve packed eight of them into this completely blissful playlist. Enjoy!
These days, it's a stretch to call any ABBA song underrated, but 'Summer Night City' certainly deserves more of our love. A top five hit in 1978, it's a pounding Europop song that perfectly captures the romantic possibilities of a warm summer's evening. 'I know what's waiting there for me,' the iconic Swedes sing on the pre-chorus. 'Tonight I'm loose and fancy-free.' Amen to that!
If any song has cemented Styles' transition from boyband scamp to serious solo star, it's this blissful indie-funk bop. 'Watermelon Sugar' became ubiquitous as soon as it was released in May 2020, and it will still be soundtracking pool parties in May 2040. In all honesty, Styles probably isn't singing about his favourite fruity snack, but the lyrics are ambiguous enough not to offend your prudish great-uncle.
Eleven years after it came out, this catchy pop-rap jam remains a summer staple. Sure, the giddy chorus is kind of bubblegummy, but Minaj's lusty lyrics inject a welcome hint of grit. And who can blame her for eyeing up a guy whose car has 'AC with the cooler system'? Those L.A. summers get properly scorching.
Richie is probably best known for swooning ballads like 'Hello' and 'Easy', but this calypso bop proves he also knows how to fill a dance floor. When he sings 'we're going to party, karamu, fiesta, forever,' you'll want to join him, preferably with flip-flops on your feet and an ice-cool cocktail in your hand.
This '80s fave finds Madonna fantasising about a tropical paradise called San Pedro. 'I don’t know where San Pedro is,' she admitted years later. 'At that point, I wasn’t a person who went on holidays to beautiful islands. I may have been on the way to the studio and seen an exit ramp for San Pedro.' Still, there's a wistful quality to the song that almost makes it feel real (though probably not somewhere that RyanAir would fly to).
When you're after a summer song tinged with melancholy, 'Boys of Summer' is the one. Eagles legend Don Henley has said it's a comment on getting older: the reason he looks back so longingly on a carefree summer love affair is because he knows he'll never have one again. It's touching stuff, but if you want to get your party popping, there's absolutely no shame in playing DJ Sammy's bangin' trance cover.
There's a reason Ryan Reynolds' character in Free Guy has 'Fantasy' as his personal anthem: it's a supremely potent slice of musical serotonin. Carey may be the unofficial 'Queen of Christmas', but she also knows how to craft an enduring summer anthem. 'Always Be My Baby' and her Jay-Z collab 'Heartbreaker' would slot just as easily onto this playlist.
Rising star Kim Petras is behind some of the best pop bangers of recent years, and 'Malibu' is a summer jam that sparkles like a glass of cava next to your sun lounger. When she sings 'and all your kisses taste like Malibu', you'll briefly be transported to the sun-soaked California resort. Even if you're actually stuck in a cramped office in Hammersmith.
