Music Monday · Nostalgia

5 Songs that Remind Me of Summers by the Pool | Becky Mollenkamp

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Ahhhhh, it’s almost summertime (well, at least here in the Northern Hemisphere), and what better way to spend a hot summer day than at the pool! Whether it was a kiddie wading pool, an above-ground backyard pool, a public pool, a , or even just a , most of us remember those relaxing days where the only responsibility you had was to make sure you turned your lounge chair to keep your tan even. 

Maybe you remember spritzing your hair with Sun-In, or slathering on the Hawaiian Tropic Oil.  Maybe you remember standing in line at the pool concession stand to get an ice-cold Coke or maybe candy (Laffy Taffy anyone?).  Maybe you remember being scared to go off the high dive for the first time, but then after that , you couldn’t stay off it for the rest of the day.  Maybe you remember seeing how long you could hold your breath, or seeing if you could swim all the way across the pool underwater.  Maybe you remember shivering under a huge striped beach towel or laying on the hot concrete to warm up.  Maybe you remember how red your eyes would get if you didn’t bring your goggles. 

Diving for pennies… That … “No running!“… Cannonballs off the diving board… so many memories.

One thing that takes us back to summers by the pool is the music, and this week’s Music Monday playlist comes courtesy of our guest contributor, Becky Mollenkamp at Cooking With Vinyl.  She’s cooked up some of her favorite songs that remind her of wonderful fun-filled summers by the pool.  Take a look and a listen, and then let us know: what are your favorite nostalgic summer pool songs?

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5 Songs that Remind Me of Summers by the Pool

As a kid, there was nothing I loved more than spending all day at the public pool. There was always some cool teenager with a boom box playing the Top 40s radio station or jamming to a cool mix cassette tape he created. As I got older, I became that cool teenager (but I played CDs) and eventually I became an adult sitting poolside at a great resort and jamming out to music on my iTunes.

No matter my age, though, there are certain songs that will always remind me of summer. Here are 5 of my favorites.


1.  
Hitting up the neighborhood pool as a little kid, I remember hearing this song on ALL.THE.TIME. It’s the one that exposed me to Duran Duran, which led to me hanging their poster on my wall—the first band poster I ever pinned up. Of course, my favorite DD song is “Hungry Like the Wolf,” but this is the one that gets me in the mood to soak up some chlorine.


2. 
Are you old enough, like me, to remember this pair of young teens who wore their clothes backwards? Yeah, it was as weird as it sounds. Even stranger is other kids started doing the same thing for a little while. This song was silly and fun, and it dominated the summer of 1992. I was in high school and knew every damn word, probably because it was on repeat at every pool party I hit.


3.  
This was THE song of the summer of 1998. It was #1 on the Billboard charts for the entire summer—literally, all of June, July, and August. It still makes me smile when it comes on, and it also makes me want to grab a drink with an umbrella and dip my toes in the water.


4.
Wanna be instantly transported to a warm, sunny day? Listen to The E.N.D. album by The Black Eyed Peas. It’s nothing but hits, including two songs that owned the airwaves from April to October of 2009—this one and “.” If you’re throwing a pool party this summer, these songs need to be on your playlist. I promise it will get everyone dancing and smiling.


5.  
Love it or hate it, this song dominated the summer of 2013. Personally, I’m in the “love it” camp. Sure, it was later discovered to be a bit of a rip off of Marvin Gaye’s “Got to Give it Up,” but it was still a perfect song for rolling down the windows and enjoying the sun—or for dancing in a bikini!


What are your favorite poolside songs? I’d love to know what makes you dreamy for a sunny day by the pool!

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cooking-with-vinyl-beckyBecky Mollenkamp is the creative force behind CookingWithVinyl.com, an awesome blog that pairs recipes with records to make cooking more fun. She has a collection of more than 2,000 vinyl albums, and it just keeps growing. Follow her on her , her , or over on .

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Thank you, Becky!


Want to submit your own song or playlist to be featured on a Music Monday post? We can’t wait to hear your own nostalgia-inducing tunes.

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At The Nostalgia Diaries, our goal is to help you simplify, enhance, and engage your lives by focusing on the most important things: remembering, appreciating, believing, and becoming. It’s all about celebrating the past to create better days today.

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P.S. Don’t forget to follow our colorful, creative spaces on , and . We’re fun and happy and whimsical and nostalgic over there, too. Pinky swear.

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75 thoughts on “5 Songs that Remind Me of Summers by the Pool | Becky Mollenkamp

  1. This is such a cool playlist! DD reminds me of my 20 year old friend who basically lives in the 80’s with his music taste, Kriss Kross seems to be the epitome of early 90’s (a time I wish I was a part of) and Blurred Lines and B.E.P like you said were dominant in summers gone by. Great list.

    Reply
  2. Love the playlist! Any song that reminds me of warm weather is definitely a song that I’m interested in!!

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      1. Yes!! It’s currently a mix of weathers where I am, so I’m am just wanting to put out my sun chair and relax in the sun, rather than relaxing in the damp and cold rain.

  3. Jump by Kris Kross takes me WAY back! What a fun play list! Now I need to have a dance party. Ha 🙂

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  4. Lol! I forgot about Blurred Lines, but that one reminds me of summer too! The first to come to mind for me was Wish You Were Here by incubus.

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  5. How odd is it that I don’t do music? And even less frequently visit pools? I probably think of “Cruise” by Florida Georgia line when I think of summer songs.

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    1. Hmmm, you should add music and pools to your list of things to do this summer! Cruise is a fun summer song — the remix fo Cruise with Nelly is really good too!

      Reply
  6. This post makes me wanna find my old iPod!!! Such a good playlist!

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  7. What a throw back memories of summers to bring back to me !! I love them all

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  8. So great pool music! I am really digging Bruno right now and can’t wait to play it at my pool this summer.

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    1. Break out the old CD’s or iPod playlists and find some of your favorite throwback songs! Happy Summer! (Of course, the weatherman says we are supposed to get snow on Friday here…)

      Reply
    1. Right? Except it’s been snowing here all day today! The pool will have to wait for a little bit!

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  9. These bring back memories! The Boy is Mine always takes me right back to the TRL summers. I totally forgot about that song!

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    1. I love summer songs and the nostalgic memories they spark!

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  10. I love your choices! I remember driving with my convertible top down to all of them during one summer or another. Admittedly, I still use sun-in. It’s the best stuff for my hair and I always have a bottle on hand ! lol

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    1. That’s awesome you still use Sun-In! Such a nostalgic product!

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    1. It is a fun list! We’ve added them to our summer pool playlist!

      Reply
    1. We love to bring back the memories here at The Nostalgia Diaries!

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  11. Well, hadn’t heard any of these tracks before however since you had listed them gave it a try and must say, loved them glad you shared dear 😀

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  12. Bahaha, “The Boy is Mine!” Totally remember that summer! Did you see the SNL skit last week about it?

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  13. Wow Corey, thanks for the walk down boombox lane here.

    One can never get enough of “jump jump” right into the swimming pool. Ugh, why is it not hot enough here for pool days. *tear*

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  14. I didn’t grow up going to the pool in the summer since I lived in Colorado, but here in Texas my kids are sure going to have fond memories of the pool. We practically live there on summer vacation. Great play list!

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  15. How do you compete with this list! CrissCross!! Yes. I guess I am not sure I even have a pool song so I may adopt a few of yours!

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  16. I love the 90s music! I totally know all the words to “The Boy Is Mine”….in fact I know all of Brandy’s songs lol. I could see this song as a pool side song, kinda laid back.

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  17. Ohh i love blurred lines, gives me such a holiday feeling always!

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  18. Wow! These brought back memories! Thanks for the laugh. 😉

    The How-to Guru

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  19. Ah, it takes me back. Graduated in the 80’s and loved those lazy summers. Nothing like great 80’s music!!

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  20. LOVE THESE! You should make a pool playlist on spotify!

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  21. This is awesome! My summer playlists are usually obnoxious songs I listened to in college and classic rock thanks to my dad. I do remember the summer after my senior year of high school I listened to that song, “I’m on a boat” more times that I should admit..

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  22. Such a fun playlist – I will take a few when our pool parties begin at my house. Thanks!

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  23. Love these picks! Jump is a classic and such a good pick. Pretty much anything by Biggie or Ja Rule, J Lo… all of the 90’s and early 2000s are my pool jams:)

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  24. I’m not certain WHAT these songs remind me of, but I LOVE them!

    Reply
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