California has long been heralded as the mecca for all things cultural, cool, and sunshiney—a runoff from manifest destiny that has dominated mainstream pop music since the 1950s. The following decade was no different, featuring a wellspring of songs that made anyone who wasn’t living in California wish that they did.
Here are some of the best.
Videos by American Songwriter
“California Dreamin’” by The Mamas & The Papas
The Mamas & The Papas’ 1965 track, “California Dreamin’”, left everyone wishing that they had somewhere warm and sunny they could go to escape the brown leaves and gray skies elsewhere in the country. For music fans stuck in the moody Midwest winter, “California Dreamin’” offered an irresistible picture of the land of plenty, leaving us wishing for a California home we never really had.
“San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair)” by Scott McKenzie
Written by Mamas & the Papas’ alum John Phillips, “San Francisco (Be Sure To Wear Flowers In Your Hair)”, made famous by Scott McKenzie, practically gave people wistfully dreaming of the West Coast a list of instructions and what to expect when they get there. The 1967 track served as both a soundtrack for an open invitation to the Summer of Love.
“California Girls” by The Beach Boys
For young girls looking for themselves in the lyrics of popular music, “California Girls” by The Beach Boys certainly offered one message loud and clear: California girls are the best girls. Sorry, Midwest farmers’ daughters and Northern girls. Brian Wilson and company wished you were from California. And frankly, everyone else who was listening to the song also wished that about themselves.
“California Soul” by The Fifth Dimension
Part of what made California so appealing to the rest of the country was the spirit that seemed to run through the West Coast state, and songs like “California Soul” embodied that attitude with infectious clarity. Everyone who didn’t already live in California wished they could witness this special kind of soul in person. (We’d be remiss if we didn’t also recommend Marlena Shaw’s version of this track.)
“California Nights” by Lesley Gore
Something about falling in love next to the Pacific Ocean sounds infinitely more romantic than going head over heels in the Rust Belt—at least, that’s what Lesley Gore’s 1967 track, “California Nights”, would suggest. Indeed, this breezy love song made everyone in the other 49 states wish they could stroll hand in hand with their beaus by the ocean.
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