One September years ago, I decided to surprise my friends who had September birthdays (including 360°Sound contributor Kelly Kling) with a burned CD mix of “September” songs. Now that we’ve entered that Virgo and Libra time of year, I pulled up the old “September Mix” playlist on my trusty iTunes.
Here are 10 of the best tunes from the playlist in chronological order. It’s got classics everyone knows (EWF’s “September”), standards (“September Song”), and even some deep cuts. [Note: To qualify for inclusion, the song had to have “September” in both the title and lyrics.]
The Tempos – “See You in September”
Songwriters: Sid Wayne and Sherman Edwards
Genre: Pop
Released: June 1959
Will I see you in September/Or lose you to a summer love
Dinah Washington – “September in the Rain”
Songwriters: Harry Warren and Al Dubin
Genre: Vocal jazz
Released: September 1961
Though spring is here/To me it’s still September/That September in the rain
Frank Sinatra – “The September of My Years”
Songwriters: Jimmy Van Heusen and Sammy Cahn
Genre: Traditional pop
Released: September 1965
And I find that I’m sighing softly as I near September/The warm September of my years
Big Star – “September Gurls”
Songwriter: Alex Chilton
Genre: Power pop
Released: August 1974
September girls, I don’t know why/How can I deny what’s inside?
Earth, Wind & Fire – “September”
Songwriters: Maurice White, Al McKay and Allee Willis
Genre: R&B
Released: November 1978
Do you remember, 21st night of September?/Love was changing the mind of pretenders
Willie Nelson – “September Song”
Songwriters: Kurt Weill and Maxwell Anderson
Genre: Country
Released: April 1978
Oh, it’s a long long while/From May to December/But the days grow short/When you reach September
Barry White – “September When I First Met You”
Songwriters: Barry White, Frank Wilson, Paul Politi and Ervin Brown
Genre: Soul
Released: October 1978
September (September)/When I first met you/Remember? (Remember?)
Felt – “September Lady”
Songwriter: Lawrence Hayward
Genre: Jangle pop
Released: September 1986
September lady’s not for me/You can try someone new
Fiona Apple – “Pale September”
Songwriter: Fiona Apple
Genre: Pop/rock
Released: July 1996
Pale September, I wore the time like a dress that year/The autumn days swung soft around me, like cotton on my skin
Green Day – “Wake Me Up When September Ends”
Songwriters: Billie Joe Armstrong, Mike Dirnt and Tré Cool
Genre: Alternative rock
Released: September 2004
Summer has come and passed/The innocent can never last/Wake me up when September ends
Wow, that’s a lot of great songs for one month. And my original playlist had even more. Something about autumn brings out evocative songwriting, I suppose. We’ll be raking leaves soon.
