#Remember that night we went for a drive full#

Ignore any article at the beginning such as 'The' or 'A' except for non-English languages.) This List is Alphabetized by the Artist (Band Name or Artist Last Name) The lyrics shown here are all the property of the copyright owners and are provided here only for educational purposes. (Wickipedia also has a much longer List of Songs About California.) I've received lots of great recommendations from site visitors so let me know if there are any good songs missing.

I'll add new songs to the list as I discover them. There's room for everything on this list, but some songs that may have a personal or cultural connection to the state for you may not be included here because they don't specifically mention something about the state in the lyrics or in the title. Some musicians have even written songs about California songs and the bands Local H and My Chemical Romance have written songs complaining that we don't need any more California songs.

Recording a California song seems to be almost a requirement for musicians, including those from other countries, even if it's just to show that they hate California stereotypes or the Hollywood entertainment industry that dominates their art. That place didn't exist either.) Other songs describe the disappointment found after getting to California and discovering that life there is no better than where the singer came from.

#Remember that night we went for a drive full#

(The Spanish named the territory after a mythical island paradise they were searching for because it was supposed to be full of gold and ruled by a queen named Califa. Many songs describe a journey to or a longing to return to a sun-drenched coastal paradise where everyone is eternally young and beautiful and happy - in other words a fictional place that bears little resemblance to the real California. Some songs use California as a metaphor for the American dream, others use it as a metaphor for the American nightmare. The image of California as all palm trees, sunshine, and beaches applies only to a fraction of coastal southern California, but nevertheless it's what the world thinks of when the state is mentioned, and therefore it's common in California songs. All of these lists are works in progress.Ī lot of songs have been written about California. I have made a few lists of songs grouped by places and topics which you can see at the links below. If more than one song by an artist is included on the list, the brief description of the artist will be put only on the first song on the list. Most songs are also available on Spotify and other streaming services. I have censored potentially offensive words (not to protect you, but to protect this site from being censored.) YouTube links to the song are included if I could find them, but they take down songs often there so you might have to search for the song there yourself if I haven't fixed a bad link. The lyrics and comments are as accurate as I can determine but there are probably some mistakes for which I apologize.

This is not meant to be a list of favorites, just some interesting songs. It's better to go the Title List or the Artist List, find the song there, then click on the 'Artist' link which will take you to back here for comments and lyrics.Ĭalifornia is the main subject of some of these songs, but others simply mention something about the state such as a place, a street or highway, the weather, a person, or an attitude or lifestyle the state represents for the singer. This list is much too long to browse easily. Songs That Mention California (With Comments and Lyrics) Songs That Mention California (with lyrics)