Top 25 Songs of the Sun

You likely can’t watch television or read anything on the Internet today without hearing about the Eclipse hitting the United States. So while many sites are giving you Eclipse related content like Top 5 Eclipse Songs, we decided instead to go with a deeper list, and instead focus on the Sun. Because the beauty of the eclipse comes from the sun’s rays, and what they do when obstructed by the moon. It’s a once in a lifetime experience, and many of the songs on this list speak to that power of the sun to wash away bad feelings and start anew. So, here we have a list of the top songs ever recorded about the sun. As always, the list is subjective, so feel free to give us your feedback via social media.

25) Why Does the Sun Shine? – TMBG

They Might Be Giants kick off our list with a bit of science…

The sun is hot
It is so hot that everything on it is a gas
Iron, copper, aluminum and many others
The sun is large
If the sun were hollow, a million earths could fit inside
And yet the sun is still only a middle-sized star

24) Away from the Sun – 3 Doors Down

Ever reach a point in your life where you’ve just had enough of everything being the way things are? Ever feel that way? Ever feel like you just want to say, “Okay world, enough already. I have to get out of this rut I’m in and get back on top of the world.” If so, you know what this song is about. It’s time to make a change. It’s time to make the decision to make the changes. And then do it.

It’s down to this
I’ve got to make this life make sense
Can anyone tell what I’ve done
I miss the life
I miss the colours of the world
Can anyone tell where I am

‘Cause now again I’ve found myself
So far down, away from the sun
That shines into the darkest place
I’m so far down, away from the sun again
Away from the sun again…

23) Sun is Shining – Bob Marley

Marley transports us to the islands with every song, and Sun is Shining is no exception.

Sun is shining, weather is sweet
Make you want to move your dancing feet
To the rescue, here I am
Want you to know just if you can
Where I stand
No, no, no, no, where I stand

22) Walkin’ on the Sun – Smash Mouth

What is this song saying, really? It’s pretty much saying, wake up world! Get your head out of your asses and quit being such lemmings! Don’t just follow the fads! The trends! Pull your own bandwagon, don’t just hop on every one that comes along! It needed to be said.

It ain’t no joke I’d like to buy the world a toke
And teach the world to sing in perfect harmony
And teach the world to snuff the fires and the liars
Hey I know it’s just a song
but it’s spice for the recipe…

…But if the offer is shun
You might as well be walkin’ on the sun
You might as well be walkin’ on the sun
You might as well be walkin’ on the sun
You might as well be walkin’ on the sun
You might as well be walkin’ on the sun

21) Soak up the Sun – Sheryl Crow

Here is a song about somebody who gets what life is really about. It’s about not worrying. It’s about just enjoying. Stop looking for things to whine about. Stop looking for things to complain about. Soak up the sun and live in the moment. Life does not need to be nearly as complicated as we tend to make it.

My friend the communist
Holds meetings in his RV
I can’t afford his gas
So I’m stuck here watching TV
I don’t have digital
I don’t have diddly squat
It’s not having what you want
It’s wanting what you’ve got

I’m gonna soak up the sun
Gonna tell everyone
To lighten up (I’m gonna tell ’em that)
I’ve got no one to blame
For every time I feel lame
I’m looking up o I’m gonna soak up the sun…

20) Black Hole Sun – Soundgarden

Hey sun, can you make all the problems of the world disappear?

Black hole sun,
Won’t you come
And wash away the rain?
Black hole sun,
Won’t you come?
Won’t you come?

19) You are my Sunshine – Ray Charles

Written in 1939 by former Louisiana governor and country music great, Jimmie Davis, this song of lost love is one of Louisiana’s official state songs. It has been extensively covered over the years by a wide variety of singers, such as Bill Haley and the Comets, Johnny Cash and Ray Charles

You are my sunshine,
My only sunshine.
You make me happy
When skies are grey.
You’ll never know, dear,
How much I love you.
Please don’t take my sunshine away.

18) Island in the Sun – Harry Belafonte

Here we have a song about a man who truly loves his home. He is in paradise. There is no other place for him to be. How many of us can honestly say that about our homes? Do we sing songs of praise to our where we live? Some of you might, but probably not as honest and heart felt as Harry Belafonte in his praise of his island home.

Oh, island in the sun
Willed to me by my father’s hand
All my days I will sing in praise
Of your forest, waters, your shining sand

I pray the day will never come
When I can’t awake to the sound of drum
Never let me miss carnival
With calypso songs philosophical…

17) People of the Sun – RATM

It is time for an uprising. Kept in bondage too long, it is time to rise up and fight the oppressors. Like the Aztec ruler, Cuahtemoc, these are the People of the Sun. This is their anthem. Fight! Fight! Fight! This is a new age. Time for a new paradigm. The bondage of old no longer applies. Break free.

Yeah people come up

Yeah, we better turn tha bass up on this one
Check it, since 1516 minds attacked and overseen
Now crawl amidst the ruins of this empty dream
Wit their borders and boots on top of us
Pullin’ knobs on the floor of their toxic metropolis
But how you gonna get what you need ta get?
Tha gut eaters, blood drenched get offensive like Tet
Tha fifth sun sets get back reclaim
Tha spirit of Cuahtemoc alive an untamed
Now face tha funk now blastin’ out ya speaker, on tha one Maya, Mexica
That vulture came ta try and steal ya name
But now you got a gun, yeah this is for the people of the sun

It’s comin’ back around again!
This is for the people of the sun!
It’s comin’ back around again! Uh!

16) Waiting for the Sun – The Doors

Just waiting. Waiting. Waiting. Something is supposed to happen, right? When is it going to happen? It hasn’t happened yet. How long are we supposed to wait? Waiting. Waiting. Waiting. I’m getting bored. What are we supposed to do while we wait? Just keep waiting. *yawn*

Waiting for the sun
Waiting for the sun
Waiting for the sun

15) Good Day Sunshine – The Beatles

This is a song about simply enjoying life, simply. The sun is out. Life is good. It’s that simple. Have a good day.

Good Day Sunshine, Good Day Sunshine, Good Day Sunshine

I need to laugh and when the sun is out
I’ve got something I can laugh about
I feel good in a special way
I’m in love and it’s a sunny day

Good Day Sunshine, Good Day Sunshine, Good Day Sunshine

14) Sunny Days – Sesame Street

You’ve heard this song before. Likely, it’s so ingrained in your psyche that your brain plays it for you every day without you even hearing it. It’s that kind of song, the theme of our inner child’s collective subconscious.

Sunny Day
Sweepin’ the clouds away
On my way to where the air is sweet

Can you tell me how to get,
How to get to Sesame Street

Come and play
Everything’s A-OK
Friendly neighbors there
That’s where we meet

Can you tell me how to get
How to get to Sesame Street…

13) Ain’t No Sunshine – Bill Withers

This guy is way too dependent. Dude, you can’t be falling apart like that every time she’s gone. She’s coming right back. You know that, right? That whole separation anxiety thing you have going on can’t be attractive. Give her a little space, otherwise you’re going to push her away completely and she’ll be away forever. That’s not what you want, is it? A little space — that’s all she needs. It’s all she’s asking for.

Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone.
It’s not warm when she’s away.
Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone
And she’s always gone too long anytime she goes away.

12) I Wish it Would Rain – The Temptations

About the sun indirectly, here we have a song about man who just needs to have a good cry and get the sorrow of losing his woman out of his system. But what is stopping him? The sun. If it were raining, nobody would notice his tears. But it is not raining. His grief can not be hidden. Were he to cry, the world would know. His weakness would be exposed. I wish it would rain. Go away sun. Let the rain fall.

Sunshine, blue skies, please go away.
My girl has found another and gone away.
With her went my future, my life is filled with gloom.
So day after day, I stay locked up in my room.
I know to you it might sound strange.
But I wish it would rain. (Oh how I wish that it would rain)
Oh yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah

‘Cause so badly I wanna go outside. (Such a lovely day)
But everyone knows that a man ain’t supposed to cry, listen.
I gotta cry ‘cause cryin’ eases the pain, oh yeah.
People this hurt I feel inside, words could never explain.
I just wish it would rain (Oh how I wish that it would rain)

11) Seasons in the Sun – Terry Jacks

A Canadian singer adapted a song originally written by a Belgian singer and it became his biggest hit. We know you’ve heard this one, a man singing about folks he’s lost.

We had joy, we had fun
We had seasons in the sun
But the wine and the song
Like the seasons have all gone
We had joy, we had fun
We had seasons in the sun
But the wine and the song
Like the seasons have all gone

10) Island in the Sun – Weezer

Living on an island in the sun where the weather is perfect all the time, except for a little rain once in a while, is like being high on life every minute of every day. It’s true. This song sums all that up. Move to Hawaii if you need further proof.

When you’re on a holiday
You can’t find the words to say
All the things that come to you
And I wanna feel it too

On an island in the sun
We’ll be playing and having fun
And it makes me feel so fine
I can’t control my brain…

9) The Warmth of the Sun – The Beach Boys

The sun-elixir for all ailments. Bad things happen. Relationships end. Pain, suffering, and misery envelope us. But no worries. We have the warmth of the sun to make it all better. Thank you, Sun!

The love of my life
She left me one day
I cried when she said
“I don’t feel the same way”

Still I have the warmth of the sun
(Warmth of the sun)
Within me tonight
(Within me tonight)…

8) Here Comes the Sun – The Beatles

The light at the end of the tunnel. It’s been a long time coming, a long and lonely wait. But it’s nearly over. Out of the darkness and into the light. It’s been a long time to wait, but the wait has not been for nothing. It has not been in vain. Here comes the sun. From coldness we emerge into warmth. Here comes the sun.

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
And I say it’s all right

Little darling, it’s been a long cold lonely winter
Little darling, it feels like years since it’s been here

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
And I say it’s all right

Little darling, the smiles returning to the faces
Little darling, it seems like years since it’s been here

Here comes the sun, here comes the sun
And I say it’s all right

7) Sunshine of Your Love – Cream

It’s getting near dawn,
When lights close their tired eyes.
I’ll soon be with you my love,
To give you my dawn surprise.
I’ll be with you darling soon,
I’ll be with you when the stars start falling.

I’ve been waiting so long
To be where I’m going
In the sunshine of your love.

I’m with you my love,
The light’s shining through on you.
Yes, I’m with you my love,
It’s the morning and just we two.
I’ll stay with you darling now,
I’ll stay with you till my seas are dried up.

I’ve been waiting so long
I’ve been waiting so long
I’ve been waiting so long
To be where I’m going
In the sunshine of your love.

6) Walking in the Sunshine – Roger Miller

Seriously, we want to know. What could possibly be wrong when you are walking in the sunshine? As long as the sun is shining, what worries are there? This has been the theme of more than one song on this list for a reason. Because it’s real! You could be walking through the snow. So what? The sun is out now. You could be trudging through the mud. Big deal! The sun is out now. The sun makes everything okay.

Walking In The Sunshine, singing a little sunshine song,
Put a smile on your face as if there’s nothing wrong.

Think about a good time had a long time ago,
Think about forgetting about your worries and your woes,

Walking In The Sunshine, singing a little sunshine song.
La la la la la dee oh, Whether the weather be rain or snow…

5) It’s a Sunshine Day – The Brady Bunch

What are you doing inside all day? Haven’t you heard? It’s a sunshine day! Get out there and enjoy it! Campy as hell, we know.

I think I’ll go for a walk outside now
the summer sun’s callin my name
(I hear ya now)
I just can’t stay inside all day
I gotta get out get me some of those rays
everybody’s smilin
sunshine day
everybody’s laughin
sunshine day
everybody seems so happy today
it’s a sunshine day…

4) I Can See Clearly Now – Johnny Nash

This one never fails to put us in a good mood.

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone,
I can see all obstacles in my way
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind
It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)
Sun-Shiny day.

I think I can make it now, the pain is gone
All of the bad feelings have disappeared
Here is the rainbow I’ve been praying for
It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)
Sun-Shiny day.

Look all around, there’s nothing but blue skies
Look straight ahead, nothing but blue skies

I can see clearly now, the rain is gone,
I can see all obstacles in my way
Gone are the dark clouds that had me blind
It’s gonna be a bright (bright), bright (bright)
Sun-Shiny day.

3) Sunshine of My Life – Stevie Wonder

Now this is what love is really all about:

You are the sunshine of my life
That’s why I’ll always be around,
You are the apple of my eye,
Forever you’ll stay in my heart

I feel like this is the beginning,
Though I’ve loved you for a million years,
And if I thought our love was ending,
I’d find myself drowning in my own tears …

2) Walking on Sunshine – Katrina & Waves

Certainty is a good thing, especially when it comes to love. You don’t want to be all like,” He loves me (or she loves me) he (or she) loves me not…” and be picking the petals off a flower as if that flower is some kind of fortune teller psychic tarot card reader or whatever telling you of your fate. Seriously. Come on. Flowers don’t know. Maybe you don’t know either. But if you do know for sure, that’s a good thing. It can make you feel like you are walking on sunshine, like Katrina here.

I used to think maybe you loved me now baby I’m sure
And I just cant wait till the day when you knock on my door
Now every time I go for the mailbox , gotta hold myself down
Cos I just wait till you write me your coming around

I’m walking on sunshine , wooah
I’m walking on sunshine, woooah
I’m walking on sunshine, woooah
and don’t it feel good!!

Hey alright now
and don’t it feel good!!

1) Let the Sunshine In – 5th Dimension

There is no argument here. This really is the greatest song about the sun ever, and quite possibly the greatest song ever recorded, period. What they are singing about in this song from 1969 is the dawning of a new age, the new age we live in now — an age of equality and oneness. It is supposedly an age where people begin to wake up to the truth about our existence on the Earth and begin to see ourselves as spiritual beings having a human experience. Supposedly, that is what this age is all about, and for the most part — yeah.