Remember jumping into your first car as a teenager and heading off to high school? Remember feeling like the coolest person in town? It’s the kind of thing that most teens experience, regardless of when they’re living their adolescence. And if you were one of many teens in the 1960s who got their very first car that decade, I bet you jammed out to at least a couple of the following songs from 1964 while cruising down the highway. Let’s get a little nostalgic, shall we?
“Love Me Do” by The Beatles from ‘Please Please Me’
The Beatles unsurprisingly make it to our list of songs from 1964 that teens listened to in their first car back in the day. A couple of singles from the Fab Four could have made it to this list. However, I went with the iconic “Love Me Do” from the band’s breakthrough record, Please Please Me. This Merseybeat jam made it all the way to No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart and reached No. 17 on the UK Singles chart.
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“I Get Around” by The Beach Boys from ‘All Summer Long’
The Beach Boys enjoyed quite a fruitful time in the 1960s. And “I Get Around” was just one of many hit songs for the iconic pop outfit. One of many car songs that the group released, “I Get Around” was a smash hit that dropped in May 1969, just in time for summer. If you had a car, regardless of your age that year, you were bumping this doo-wop, surfy classic on repeat. “I Get Around” by The Beach Boys peaked at No. 1 on the Hot 100 chart. The tune did similarly well in Canada.
“We’ll Sing In The Sunshine” by Gale Garnett from ‘My Kind Of Folk Songs’
How about something a bit folkier? “We’ll Sing In The Sunshine” by Gale Garnett was a smash hit on the charts when it dropped in summer 1964. Written by Garnett herself, this folk classic peaked at No. 4 on the Hot 100 chart. It did similarly well as a crossover hit on the country and adult contemporary charts in the US. “We’ll Sing In The Sunshine” has been covered quite a bit through the years by the likes of Sonny & Cher, The New Christy Minstrels, and others.
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The Beach Boys had multiple hit songs in 1966 -
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LONDON – MAY 19: (L-R) English musician, singer, songwriter and guitarist George Harrison (1943-2001), English musician, singer and drummer Ringo Starr, English singer, songwriter and guitarist John Lennon (1940-1980), and English singer, songwriter and bassist Paul McCartney of the Beatles attend a press party at the home of manager Brian Epstein supporting the release of Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band, May 19, 1967 in London, United Kingdom. (Photo by Jeff Hochberg/Getty Images) -
The Beatles rehearse at the ABC Theatre, Blackpool for the group's bill-topping appearance on ABC TV's Blackpool Night Out, 1 August 1965. Left to right: George Harrison, Paul McCartney, John Lennon, and Ringo Starr. (Photo by Daily Mirror/Daily Mirror/Mirrorpix via Getty Images)
