THIS. IS. IT. Mack to the Future's patented Summer Jam countdown

Take a deep breath, things are about to get real. This is the post for which this blog (and our band Body Language, and possibly our entire friendship) was created. (Editor's note: for proof please see: the title of this blog) In honor of the sweltering heat in our respective coastal towns, we present the to you THE SUMMER JAM POST. After much g-chatting, soul-searching, and dehydrated drunk summer dancing, we've compiled what we believe to be a foolproof list of the greatest Summer Jams of all time. No. Big. Deal. As we've discussed previously, we firmly believe Summer Jam to be both the greatest genre of music and the greatest state of mind. Perhaps more than any other jam, Summer Jams will instantly take you back to the place, person, and buzz level you were at when you first jammed to it, a feeling that is part Proust, part Party in the U.S.A.

Now, before we launch into the list, some clarifications: to be a summer jam a song doesn't have to be about summer. It doesn't have to have been released in the summer. All it has to do is evoke the summer. This, of course, means different things to different people, so for some this list may not be comprehensive. We fully admit to a huge gap in the 1980s, made up for in our opinion by a tight focus on the '90s and early 2000s, clearly the golden era of the Summer Jam (as ushered in by Will Smith and Jazzy Jeff). In the name of full disclosure, we refer to other good treatments of the Summer Jam subject: MTV recently put up a great rundown, and Vulture tackles it with a brilliant category system every summer.

So, with much love, here, in chronological order (because order of importance would be far too painful), are THE MACK TO THE FUTURE JAMS OF SUMMER. Do us (and your friends) a favor and bring some of these sweet tracks to your next roof party. Do us ANOTHER favor and tell us your favorite jams that we may have missed!

ARTIST	SONG	YEAR
BEACH BOYS	All Summer Long	1964
THE MAMAS AND THE PAPAS	California Dreamin'	1965
DONOVAN	Sunshine Superman	1966
THE 5TH DIMENSION	California Soul	1968
MUNGO JERRY	In the Summertime	1970
CHEAP TRICK	Southern Girls	1977
GREASE	Summer Nights	1978
EARTH, WIND & FIRE	September	1978
BLONDIE	Heart of Glass	1979
MICHAEL JACKSON	Rock With You	1979
ADAM & THE ANTS	Los Rancheros	1980
DON HENLEY	Boys of Summer	1984
FRESH PRINCE	Summertime	1991
INNER CIRCLE	Sweat (A La La La La Long)	1992
MONTELL JORDAN	This is How We Do It	1995
MARK MORRISON	Return of the Mack	1996
TUPAC & DR. DRE	California Love	1996
WEEZER	El Scorcho	1996
OMC	How Bizarre	1996
NOTORIOUS B.I.G.	Mo Money Mo Problems	1997
MA$E	Feel So Good	1997
SUBLIME	Doin' Time	1997
SNOOP DOGG	We Just Wanna Party	1997
WILL SMITH	Gettin' Jiggy With It	1998
ACE OF BASE	Cruel Summer	1998
JANET JACKSON	Together Again	1998
MARIAH CAREY	Heartbreaker	1999
LFO	Summergirls	1999
LEN	Steal My Sunshine	1999
SISQO	The Thong Song	1999
TLC	No Scrubs	1999
CHRISTINA AGUILERA	Genie in a Bottle	1999
JESSICA SIMPSON	I Think I'm in Love With You	1999
JENNIFER LOPEZ	Waiting for Tonight	1999
SHAGGY	It Wasn't Me	2001
BLU CANTRELL	Hit 'Em Up Style	2001
NSYNC	Pop	2001
EVE FT. GWEN STEFANI	Blow Ya Mind	2001
KYLIE MINOGUE	Love at First Sight/Can't Get You Out of My Head	2001
CAM'RON	Hey Ma	2002
R KELLY	Ignition (remix)	2003
CIARA	Goodies	2004
PARIS HILTON	Stars are Blind	2006
AKON/ GWEN STEFANI	Sweet Escape	2006
RIHANNA	S.O.S.	2006
SEAN KINGSTON	Beautiful Girls	2007
CUPID	Cupid Shuffle	2007
LIL MAMA	Lip Gloss	2007
NELLY FT. ASHANTI	Body on Me	2008
KID SISTER	Family Reunion	2008
KANYE WEST FT. ESTELLE	American Boy	2008
MISSY ELLIOTT	Ching-A-Ling	2008
R KELLY FT. SNOOP	Happy Summertime	2008
GET 'EM MAMIS	Cold Summer	2008
MILEY CYRUS	Party in the USA	2009
JESSE McCARTNEY	Body Language	2009
JEREMIH	Birthday Sex	2009
YOUNG MONEY	Bedrock	2010

(Ed Note: because there are so many dearly beloved songs here, we'll spotlight individual jams separately in the future, to give each one the love and attention it deserves.)