Summer Songs Quiz

Estimated Completion Time
2 min
Summer Songs Quiz
Image: Grant Squibb/Cultura/Getty Images

About This Quiz

Are you ready for hot fun in the summertime because school's out and it's time for a surfin' safari? Then take our lazy-hazy-crazy days of summer quiz to test your knowledge of the aforementioned summer songs and more.
How many times do the Beach Boys appear on Billboard Magazine's list of Top 30 Summer Songs?
one
four
six
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Based on performance on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, The Beach Boys made the Top 30 Summer Songs list four times with No. 30 ("Surfin' Safari"), No. 23 ("Surfer Girl"), No. 16 ("California Girls") and No. 8 ("Surfin' USA").

Which summer song remix featured the Beach Boys singing with another group of boys?
"Wipe Out"
"Summer Love"
"The Boys of Summer"
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The 1989 version of "Wipe Out" (sometimes written as "Wipeout") is credited to the Fat Boys and the Beach Boys and features a crazy summertime mix of rap, hip-hop and surf guitar, plus a totally insane video where both bands take a trip to the beach.

Who created the original version of "Wipe Out"?
Jan and Dean
Mungo Jerry
The Surfaris
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

The Surfaris sang the No. 3 song on Billboard's Top 30 Summer Songs list. Most summer anthems earn their day in the sun for their sing-a-long factor, but "Wipe Out" won its claim to fame for a nearly 3-minute guitar instrumental that everyone could surf-a-long to.

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Name the '80s girl band that sang about the cruelest summer breakup ever.
The Go-Go's
The Bangles
Bananarama
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Bananarama crooned about a "Cruel Summer" in 1983, and reminded everyone how painful summer can be when you're lonely. They should have taken some tips from the Go-Go's 1982 hit "Vacation" and found a summer fling!

Who wrote the summer hit that features "no more pencils, no more books, no more teachers' dirty looks” in its lyrics?
Alice Cooper
Nat King Cole
Sly and the Family Stone
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Alice Cooper rocked every kid's summer with the huge hit "School's Out" which debuted in 1972. Apparently, Cooper was trying to capture the excitement you feel during those 3 minutes when you are waiting for the final school bell to ring before summer vacation starts. Once the bell rings, school's out forever!

Which one of Billboard's Top 30 Summer Songs was featured in the movie "Caddyshack"?
"Summer Girls"
"Summertime Blues"
"Summertime"
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Summertime Blues" made it on the soundtrack of the 1980 film "Caddyshack." But the song was already a hit back in 1958, as an ode to how crummy it is to have to work during the summer when all you want to do is hang out with your friends. Those are some serious summertime blues.

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Name the 1960s duo that was responsible for the summer hit "A Summer Song."
Chad and Jeremy
Jan and Dean
Seals and Croft
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Chad and Jeremy were the folk-rock duo who recorded "A Summer Song" in 1964 and sang about saying goodbye to their summer loves. Sniff, sniff.

Originally composed for the opera "Porgy and Bess," this tune became a popular summer song in 1966.
"Summertime"
"I Got Plenty o' Nuttin'"
"Oh, I Can't Sit Down"
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Summertime" is one of the most covered songs in music history and it became a summertime hit in 1966 when Billy Stewart sang his version featuring his unique scat-singing style.

In the Beach Boys' "Surfin' Safari" lyrics, what are they talking about when they refer to loading up their woodie?
their surfboard
their cooler
their station wagon
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

A woodie is a nickname for a station wagon with wood paneling on the side. It's the perfect vehicle for loading up your surfboard and cooler and heading to the beach with your friends.

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What unusual instrument was used as one of the backing instruments of Seals and Crofts' hit "Summer Breeze"?
kazoo
toy piano
slide whistle
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

This 1972 hit featured a child's toy piano on the recording. This whimsy was quite appropriate as this song reminded listeners of simple pleasures during the difficult time of the Vietnam war.

Which summer song was also the name of a Tennessee Williams play?
"Suddenly, Last Summer"
"Summer and Smoke"
"Clothes for a Summer Hotel"
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Suddenly Last Summer" was a Tennessee Williams play and a hit summer song for The Motels in 1983. Eerily, Tennessee Williams died in February of 1983 during the same month that The Motels returned to the studio to record their album Little Robbers, which features their summertime hit.

Who sang about "those days of soda and pretzels and beer”?
Nat King Cole
Katy Perry
Mungo Jerry
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Nat King Cole's upbeat pop hit "Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer" was a fun romp about beach picnics and girls in bikinis. Though it had an old-fashioned feel, it still made to Billboard's Top 30 Summer Songs chart at No. 20.

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Which musical artist brought sexy back to summer with his hot dance hit "Summer Love"?
Usher
Justin Timberlake
Enrique Inglesias
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Justin Timberlake put a modern spin on summer romance with his chart-topper "Summer Love" which peaked at No. 6 on the Billboard chart on June 9, 2007.

What summertime holiday is mentioned in Chicago's "Saturday in the Park"?
Memorial Day
July 4th
Labor Day
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Saturday in the park, I think it was the 4th of July” is a snippet from the well-known "Saturday in the Park" lyrics. This summer song was part of many Saturday picnics when it was released in 1972.

"California Girls" by the Beach Boys was a huge hit in the summer of 1965. Which musician launched a new summer song of the same name in 2010?
Katy Perry
Justin Timberlake
DJ Jazzy Jeff and The Fresh Prince
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Katy Perry released "California Gurls" (yes, with a "u”) in 2010, with a little help from Snoop Dog on vocals. Her bouncy tune that boasts about the beauties of California was a No. 1 hit in May 2010, and is the No. 1 song on Billboard's Top 30 Summer Songs list.

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What year did Bryan Adams think was the best summer of his life?
1950
1959
1969
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Bryan Adams' "Summer of '69" is a classic anthem about playing music with your buddies and meeting girls at the drive-in. The song is featured at No. 13 on the Billboard Top 30 Summer Songs chart. Who said they'd never get far?

Which reggae artist covered Mungo Jerry's summer song "In the Summertime"?
Ziggy Marley
Shaggy
Shabba Ranks
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

In 1995, Shaggy brightened up the radio waves with his reggae take on "In the Summertime." Mungo Jerry's funky tropical hit debuted in 1970, and was the U.K. group's only major U.S. hit.

What couple reminisced about their "Summer Nights" in this duet from the movie "Grease"?
Sandy and Danny
Rizzo and Kenickie
Jan and Putzie
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Summer Nights" sings the praises of the summer fling, which brought Sandy and Danny together. After a few ups and downs, they kept their relationship going. Apparently black, skin-tight leggings will do that for you.

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Which band's summer hit entered the Billboard Hot 100 the same month they played at Woodstock?
Santana
Sly and the Family Stone
Jefferson Airplane
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

Sly and the Family Stone had a hit summer song on the charts, "Hot Fun in the Summertime," when they played Woodstock in 1969. Oddly enough, they didn't even play that song at the concert.

What No. 2 song on Billboard's Top 30 Summer Songs list contrasts the brutal heat of summer days with lively evenings and all-night dancing?
"Summer in the City"
"Hot Child in the City"
"Endless Summer Nights"
Correct Answer
Wrong Answer

"Summer in the City" by The Lovin' Spoonful captured the gritty essence of the daytime city heat and the playful vibe of evening adventures. It's a pity that the days can't be like the nights, in the summer, in the city.

You Got:
/20
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