Alex Chilton (Memphis, Tennessee, December 28, 1950 – New Orleans, Louisian… Read Full Bio ↴Alex Chilton (Memphis, Tennessee, December 28, 1950 – New Orleans, Louisiana, March 17, 2010) was an American songwriter, guitarist, singer, and producer, best known for his work with the pop-music bands The Box Tops and Big Star. Chilton's early commercial sales success in the 1960s as a teen vocalist for The Box Tops was not repeated in later years with Big Star and in his indie music solo career on small labels like Last Call Records, New Rose, Razor and Tie, Bar/None, and others, but he did draw a loyal following in the indie and alternative music fields.

Chilton said in the September 1994 issue of Guitar Player that he considers himself a "musical performer, not a songwriter" and that some of his songs sound only "half-baked" to him. Nonetheless, his compositions have been performed by a number of artists, including Teenage Fanclub, This Mortal Coil, The Bangles, Wilco, Graham Coxon, Garbage, Tom Bradbury, Son Volt, Counting Crows, Elliott Smith, Jeff Buckley, Superdrag, Evan Dando, Cat Power, Yo La Tengo, Placebo, Xiu Xiu, and His Name Is Alive. The Replacements wrote the song Alex Chilton in his honor on their 1987 Pleased to Meet Me album, produced by Jim Dickinson in Memphis.

On March 17, 2010, Alex Chilton died of an apparent heart attack in a hospital in New Orleans. He was 59.

Summertime Blues
Alex Chilton Lyrics

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Capehart-Cochran

I'm gonna raise a fuss
I'm gonna raise a holler
A-but-a workin' all summer
Just-a trying to earn a dollar
Every time I call my baby
And ask her to date

My boss says "Uh duh son
You gotta work late"
Sometimes I wonder
What I'm-a gonna do
But there ain't no cure
For the summertime blues

Well my mama papa told me
"Son, you gotta make some money"
If you wanna use the car
To go ridin' next Sunday
Well, I didn't go to work
So my pa said I was sick
"You can't use the car
'Cuz you didn't work a lick"
Sometimes I wonder what l'm-a gonna do
But there ain't no cure
For the summertime blues

L'm going to take your wish
Gonna have a fine vacation
L'm gonna take my problem
Through the United Nations
Well I called my congressman
And he said to woe
"l'd like to help you son
But you're too young to vote"
Sometimes I wonder what l'm-a gonna do

But there ain't no cure
For the summertime blues

Overall Meaning

The song Summertime Blues by Alex Chilton is a classic rock song with a lot of social commentary. The singer is describing the difficulties of being a young person during the summer months when all they want to do is have fun, but they are stuck working to make ends meet. The singer's boss won't let him off work to go on a date with his girl, and his parents won't let him use the car to go on a ride since he didn't work hard enough. The frustration of being young and not having any control over one's life is the central theme of the song.

The lyrics also touch on the issue of the lack of representation that young people have in government. When the singer calls his congressman to ask for help, he is told that he is too young to vote and therefore, his voice does not matter. This can be seen as a commentary on the lack of political representation that young people have in society, even if they are affected by political decisions.

Overall, Summertime Blues is a song that speaks to the frustration and helplessness that young people often feel in society. It highlights the lack of control they have over their own lives and the barriers they face in trying to have fun and enjoy their youth.

Line by Line Meaning

I'm gonna raise a fuss
I'm going to complain

I'm gonna raise a holler
I'm going to make a big noise

A-but-a workin' all summer
But I have been working all summer

Just-a trying to earn a dollar
Just trying to make some money

Every time I call my baby
Every time I call my girlfriend

And ask her to date
And ask her to go out

My boss says "Uh duh son
My boss says, "You have to work late

You gotta work late"
You have to work late"

Sometimes I wonder
Sometimes I think

What I'm-a gonna do
What I am going to do

But there ain't no cure
But there is nothing I can do