Coping Music

Sunshine pop is a retrospective term for a more cheerful or wistful style of Pop which emerged in the mid-1960s as soft pop that became a form of escapism from the turmoil of the times.  Sunshine pop songs are quite pleasing to the ear, but the worries they’re painting over in bright colors give that happiness added depth.  Sunshine pop songs are predominantly upbeat, positive and apolitical, and at first glance, fairly superficial.  Characteristics include lush prominent vocal harmonies, catchy melodies, light arrangements and an appreciation for the beauty of the world mixed with a sense of anxiety that the good ol’ days were gone for good.  It is cheerful and upbeat music made for people to enjoy a sunny vibe.  Sunshine pop helped people in the 60s and 70s to cope with all of the horrifying assassinations, the carnage in Vietnam, destructive riots, racism where the KKK literally got away with murder, threats of nuclear war, the Watergate scandal, horrible conditions in big cities that were undergoing an unparalleled transformation fueled by economic collapse and rampant crime, serial killers like the Charles Manson cult, Ted Bundy and David Berkowitz, soaring inflation, political upheaval and other morale-lowering aspects of life.  The term Sunshine Pop did not exist during the 60s, so it is difficult to pin-point an exact beginning of this music.  This genre was created in Southern California, but it is not just contained to the sun-kissed California region.  It drew from the warm and whimsical sides of psychedelic pop mixed with the catchiness of commercial jingles and this bright wonderful music can be highly addictive.  The feel-good music was aimed at young-adult couples who weren’t connecting with the British invasion, acid rock, folk-rock, or Motown, but favored a gentler, more seductive vocal sound and a sighing, have-a-nice-day theme.

Last week we had Smooth Music where the theme was to find Yacht Rock songs which was suggested by John Holton of The Sound of One Hand Typing.  This week the theme is to find Sunshine Pop songs, and this was also suggested by John Holton.  Take some time to read the posts of other bloggers who respond to this music challenge, and even better, read as many of them as you can as you will probably find many enjoyable songs and it is quite possibly that you will learn a thing or two.  Share your music with others and post a video, try do some research and let everyone know something about the song that you post.  Tell everyone why you like the song, whether it was a hit, or what you think the song is about.  Show the lyrics, let’s all listen to our favorite songs and explore some new music.  Try to find a song that fits the theme, then write your post and create a pingback, or you can just place your link in the comments section.

Suggestions
• Try to use the prompt words or at least conform to a general theme, as you see it.  If the song you select does not meet the criteria, then please explain why you chose this song.
• It would be good if you could post the lyrics to the song of your choice, as this is helpful for the people that want to follow along with the music.
• Please try to include the songwriter(s) – it’s a good idea to give credit where credit is due. It would also be a good idea to give credit to the singer and the band associated with your song.
• Your post can be as long or as short as you want it to be, but please try not to include too many videos as that just makes it take longer to look at all of the other posts.
• Link to the YouTube video, or you can pull it into your post, so others can listen to the song.
• Ping back to this post or place your link in the comments section below.
• Read at least one other person’s blog, so we can all share new and fantastic music and create amazing new blogging friends in the process.
• Feel free to suggest future prompts.
• Have fun and enjoy the music.

This week I will be writing about The Carpenters song ‘Top of the World’, and next week, I will be writing about the song ‘Tracy’ by The Cuff Links.  The upcoming prompts will be:
February 19, 2023 – Bubblegum Pop suggested by John Holton
February 26, 2023 – Swamp Rock
March 5, 2023 – Rockabilly music
March 12, 2023 – Surf Rock