Summer of 69 was written by Bryan Adams and Jim Vallance. It is often interpreted as a nostalgic look back at the 1960s, but Vallance has revealed that 69 in the title refers more to a sexual position than to the year. Adams, on the other hand, has mentioned in interviews that the song does indeed refer to the summer of 1969, a significant time in his life.
Key: D
Introduction:D
D I got my first real six-string A Bought it at the five-and-dime D Played it 'til my fingers bled A It was the summer of '69
D Me and some guys from school A Had a band and we tried real hard D Jimmy quit, Jody got married A I shoulda known we'd never get far
BmA Oh, when I look back now DG That summer seemed to last forever BmA And if I had the choice DG Yeah, I'd always wanna be there BmAD Those were the best days of my life
(D) A
D Ain't no use in complainin' A When you got a job to do D Spent my evenin's down at the drive in A And that's when I met you, yeah
BmA Standin' on your mama's porch DG You told me that you'd wait forever BmA Oh, and when you held my hand DG I knew that it was now or never BmAD Those were the best days of my life (D) ADA Oh yeah Back in the summer of '69 Ohhh
FBb Man, we were killin' time C We were young and restless Bb/D We needed to unwind FBbC I guess nothin' can last forever, forever no
DA
D And now the times are changin' A Look at everything that's come and gone D Sometimes when I play that old six-string A I think about you, wonder what went wrong
BmA Standin' on your mama's porch DG You told me that it'd last forever BmA Oh, and when you held my hand DG I knew that it was now or never BmAD Those were the best days of my life
(D) ADA Oh yeah Back in the summer of '69 Uh-huh DA It was the summer of '69. Oh yeah DA Me and my baby in '69. Ohhhhh, oh DAD It was the summer, summer, summer of '69 ADADA Yeah (Fade out)