The Vinyl Countdown: Classic Rock Summertime

Released in 1963, Brian Wilson of the Beach Boys helped write this song. It was their only #1 hit.

Paul McCartney wrote this song in India, with help from Mike Love of the Beach Boys. It takes the classic Beach Boys style and uses it in terms of a Russian spy.

Initially, Checker released a song called "The Twist" - he capitalized on its' success by then releasing "Let's Twist Again" in 1961 and "Slow Twisting" in '62.

Dee Dee Ramone wrote this song since he was the only reach beach goer. It was written in the style of The Beach Boys.

This was first recorded by The Dukays for Nat Records in 1960. Vee Jay Records bought it and had one of their members, Eugene Dixon, change his name to Gene Chandler and take credit for it.

This song, hot with tension, describes what it's like to be in the crowded city during the heat of summer. It was released in '66 and hit number 1 on the Billboard charts.

This song was scheduled to record on May 20, 1964 - but the Drifters' lead singer was found dead that morning. Once recorded with a new leader, the song charted at #4.

This is the last hit this band released before Gary Lewis was drafted into the Army.

This song is the 1982 highest-charting single from the all-female rock band, The Go-Go's.

This popular 1963 song is a popular instrumental track with the occasional “Wipe Out!”

This song was released in 1960. Paul Vance wrote this song while watching his 2 year old daughter at the beach in her new bikini.

This is supposed to be a simple song about a man coming home from working and hearing the sounds around him.

Ray Dorset, who wrote this song, says, "It's got no chorus; all it's got is a melody that goes over and over again with a set of lyrics that conjure up a celebration of life," he said. "Especially if you're a young person: it's a great day, you've managed to get a car - preferably with the top off - you're cruising around, and if you're a guy you're picking up girls."

The opening lyrics ("Nobody on the roads, nobody on the beach") refer to the California coast as summer turns into fall. It becomes a much quieter place when the weather gets cold.

This song comes from the eponymous debut album Blondie, released in 1976.

Released in 1965, they wrote this song to celebrate the women of California. Mike Love came up with the music while Brian Wilson came up with the lyrics to the song.

This song was released in 1964 but Paul had written this song before he joined the Beatles. The band hesitated on releasing it because it didn’t fit their rock image.

This song was the biggest hit for the group, staying at #1 for six weeks. The Age of Aquarius is when the sun is in the constellation Aquarius during the springtime. The next time this will happen is 2448.

This song was released in 1963 and they wrote it about good surf locations. It was based on Chuck Berry’s “Sweet Little Sixteen” but he was in jail for serving time transporting minors across state lines.

George Harrison wrote this song in Eric Clapton's garden, using one of his acoustic guitars. It's one of the great Harrison contributions to Abbey Road. He wrote the song after attending a round of business meetings, which he hated.