Origins
In 1995, in Boston, Massachusetts, Rich Cronin met Brian Gillis, known as Brizz. Brizz convinced Rich to start a group with him, so Rich and Brian moved to Orlando and met with Lou Pearlman who asked aspiring model and long-time friend Derek Bugley, a Pilates Instructor in downtown Boston, if he wanted to join the group, to which he agreed.
Their biggest single, "(Sex U Up) The Way You Like It", was produced by Chris Cate better known for all the BSB and 'N Sync hits. They also had another hit called "Can't Have You", which missed the top 10, reaching #11 on the UK charts. In 1999, Brizz was frustrated with the lack of progress that the group had made so he left to pursue a solo career, which lead him to multiple college tours and a job in the music industry with a radio promotion position in Florida with BMG.
After Brizz left, Bugley and Cronin still wanted to continue to pursue their dreams of making it big, so they headed back to the United States and had an open audition. Devin Lima or Dumas, an employee of a hardware store at the time, was chosen in place of Brizz. Dumas decided that the group should discontinue being called Lyte Funkie Ones and use the name LFO exclusively instead. In the UK, however, they were unable to use the abbreviated name of LFO due to an IDM act on the Warp Records label, who had been using the name since 1988.
Still signed with Trans Continental and now with Arista Records, LFO recorded some songs in former New Kids on the Block singer Danny Wood's basement. Wood had been a long-time friend of original member Brian Gillis. Among the songs LFO had recorded in an attempt to make a demo was a song called "Summer Girls". This song would change their lives, and give LFO their path to success. As well as the basement in Boston, the Newport House continued to serve as a recording studio as well as a party haven.
The song was leaked to a friend at a radio station and was so catchy, LFO made it to the Billboard Hot 100. "Summer Girls" made its way to the Top 10. z100, a major Clear Channel radio station located in New York, also helped their popularity.
Their debut album, LFO, sold over 2.5 million copies worldwide, and scored two Top 10 hits on the Billboard Hot 100: "Summer Girls" and "Girl on TV". In 1999, "Summer Girls" was nominated for a Billboard Music Award for Top Selling Single of the Year; the song sold over 1.5 million copies in the U.S. The song itself contained numerous non sequiturs, such as "You're the best girl that I ever did see/the great Larry Bird, jersey 33" and "Fell deep in love, but now we ain't speakin'/Michael J. Fox was Alex P. Keaton. This album featured many vocals from original member Brizz. The label loved the original versions of the records so much that they left all of the vocals from Brizz including leads on "Can't Have You".
The year 2000 was a busy year for LFO, featuring nonstop tours performing at over 230 concerts that year. They also served as opening act for Britney Spears and co-headlined Nickelodeon's All That Music & More summer tour. They also found success in the UK at the same time when "Girl on TV" entered the UK chart at #6. In 2000, the band won the Nickelodeon Kids' Choice Award for Favorite Group of the Year. Play Along Toys made dolls of the group in 2001.
The trio returned to the recording studio in 2001, looking to chart more hits with the release of "Life Is Good", but the album failed to yield another Top 40 hit. Lead single, "Every Other Time", peaked at No. 44 on Billboard's The Hot 100 Singles chart. Second single, "Life Is Good", missed the Hot 100, but peaked at No. 33 on Billboard's Top 40 Mainstream chart.
By the following year, the group had broken up, and a brief reunion in 2009 failed to ignite much interest. Cronin died in September 2010 after a five-year battle with leukemia.
Summer Girls
LFO (Lyte Funkie Ones) Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Stop by in the summer
Do you remember?
Do you remember
When we met, last summer?
New Kids On The Block
Had a bunch of hits
Chinese food makes me sick
When girls stop by
For the summer
For the summer
I like girls that
Wear Abercrombie and Fitch
I'd take her if I had one wish
But she's been gone
Since that summer
Since that summer
Hip-hop mama, spic 'n span
Met you one summer
And it all began
You're the best girl
That I ever did see
The great Larry Byrd, jersey thirty-three
When you take a sip
You buzz like a hornet
Billy Shakespeare wrote
A whole bunch of sonnets
Call me when you miss me
'Cause I can't speak baby
Something in your eyes
Really drove me crazy
Now I can't forget you
And it makes me mad
You left one day
And never came back
Stayed all summer
Then went back home
Macualay Culkin wasn't home alone
Fell deep in love but
Now we ain't speaking
Michael J. Fox was Alex P. Keaton
When I met you
I saw my name is Rich
You look like a girl
From Abercrombie and Fitch
New Kids On The Block
Had a bunch of hits
Chinese food makes me sick
And I think it's fly
When girls stop by
For the summer
For the summer
I like girls that
Wear Abercrombie and Fitch
I'd take her if I had one wish
But she's been gone
Since that summer
Since that summer
Cherry pants Coke
Crushed rocks till I boogie
Used to hate school
So I had to play hookie
Always been hip to the b ball style
Known to act wild and
Make a girl smile
Love New Edition and the Candy Girl
Remind me of you
Because you rock my world
You come from Georgia
Where the peaches grow
They drink lemonade
And speak real slow
You love hip-hop
And rock 'n' roll
Dad took off when
You were four years old
There was a good man
Named Paul Revere
I feel much better baby
When you're near
You love Fun Dip and Cherry Coke
I like the way you laugh
When I tell a joke
When I met you
I said my name is Rich
You look like a girl
From Abercrombie and Fitch
New Kids On The Block
Had a bunch of hits
Chinese food makes me sick
And I think it's fly
When girls stop by
For the summer
For the summer
I like girls that
Wear Abercrombie and Fitch
I'd take her if I had one wish
But she's been gone
Since that summer
Since that summer
In the summertime
Girls got it goin' on
Shake and wiggle to
A hip-hop song
Summertime girls
Are the kind I like
I'll steal your honey like
I stole your bike
Bugalute shrimp and pogo sticks
My mind takes me back
There oh-so quick
Let you off the hook
Like my man Mr. Limpit
Think about that summer
And I bug 'cause I miss it
Like the color purple
Macaroni and cheese
Ruby-red slippers
And a bunch of trees
Call you up but what's the use?
I like Kevin Bacon
But I hate Footloose
Came in the door
I said it before
Think I'm over you
But I'm really not sure
When I met you
I said my name is Rich
You look like a girl
From Abercrombie & Fitch
New Kids On The Block
Had a bunch of hits
Chinese food makes me sick
And I think it's fly
When girls stop by
For the summer
For the summer
I like girls that
Wear Abercrombie and Fitch
I'd take her if I had one wish
But she's been gone
Since that summer
Since that summer
In the summer girls come
And summer girls go
Some are worthwhile
And some are so-so
Summer girls come
And summer girls go
Some are worthwhile
And some are so-so
Summertime girls
Got it goin' on
Shake and wiggle
To a hip-hop song
Summertime girls
Are the kind I like
I'll steal your honey
Like I stole your bike
New Kids On The Block
Had a bunch of hits
Chinese food makes me sick
And I think it's fly
When girls stop by
For the summer
For the summer
I like girls that
Wear Abercrombie and Fitch
I'd take her if I had one wish
But she's been gone
Since that summer
Since that summer
The lyrics of LFO's "Summer Girls" revolve around nostalgia for past summers and a romantic interest. The song paints a picture of the perfect summer girl who wears Abercrombie and Fitch and listens to hip-hop, and the singer is reminiscing about a past summer where he met a girl like that but she left and never came back. The lyrics are filled with pop culture references, including New Kids on the Block, Macaulay Culkin, Michael J. Fox, and Kevin Bacon. The chorus repeats the desire for girls to stop by in the summer and the longing for the Abercrombie and Fitch-wearing girl who is now gone.
Line by Line Meaning
Yeah, I like it when the girls
I like the presence of girls
Stop by in the summer
I like girls visiting in the summer
Do you remember?
Do you recall?
Do you remember
Do you recall?
When we met, last summer?
Do you remember our meeting from last summer?
New Kids On The Block
A music group named New Kids On The Block
Had a bunch of hits
They had many popular songs
Chinese food makes me sick
I get unwell eating Chinese food
And I think it's fly
I believe it's cool
When girls stop by
When girls visit
For the summer
During the summer season
I like girls that
I prefer girls who
Wear Abercrombie and Fitch
Girls who wear Abercrombie and Fitch
I'd take her if I had one wish
If given chance, I would choose her
But she's been gone
But she's left
Since that summer
Since last summer
Hip-hop mama, spic 'n span
A clean and fashionable person who likes hip-hop
Met you one summer
I met you in a summer season
And it all began
And everything started
You're the best girl
You're a remarkable girl
That I ever did see
I haven't seen a girl as great as you
The great Larry Byrd, jersey thirty-three
Larry Byrd, who wore the jersey number thirty-three
When you take a sip
When you drink
You buzz like a hornet
It's like you're flying when you drink
Billy Shakespeare wrote
William Shakespeare created
A whole bunch of sonnets
Many sonnets
Call me when you miss me
Contact me when you feel my absence
'Cause I can't speak baby
I can't explain it well
Something in your eyes
Your eyes have something
Really drove me crazy
It made me insane
Now I can't forget you
I can't erase your memory
And it makes me mad
It makes me angry
You left one day
One day you left
And never came back
But never returned
Stayed all summer
You were here all summer
Then went back home
Then you left home again
Macaulay Culkin wasn't home alone
A reference to the film Home Alone, saying someone was not alone
Fell deep in love but
I fell deeply in love
Now we ain't speaking
Now we stopped talking
Michael J. Fox was Alex P. Keaton
Michael J. Fox played the role of Alex P. Keaton in the television series Family Ties
When I met you
When I saw you first
I saw my name is Rich
I thought about my name, Rich
You look like a girl
You seem like a girl
From Abercrombie and Fitch
Who wears Abercrombie & Fitch
Cherry pants Coke
A combination of cherries, pants, and Coke
Crushed rocks till I boogie
I dance until the rocks are crushed
Used to hate school
I used to dislike school
So I had to play hookie
I had to play hooky to avoid school
Always been hip to the b ball style
I always knew about basketball style
Known to act wild and
Known for my craziness
Make a girl smile
Make a girl happy
Love New Edition and the Candy Girl
I like New Edition and their song 'Candy Girl'
Remind me of you
They remind me of you
Because you rock my world
Because you're amazing
You come from Georgia
You're from Georgia
Where the peaches grow
Where peaches are cultivated
They drink lemonade
People drink lemonade
And speak real slow
And talk very slowly
You love hip-hop
You like hip-hop music
And rock 'n' roll
And rock songs
Dad took off when
Your father left
You were four years old
When you were only four years old
There was a good man
There was a decent man
Named Paul Revere
Whose name was Paul Revere
I feel much better baby
I feel better because of you
When you're near
When you're around me
You love Fun Dip and Cherry Coke
You enjoy Fun Dip and Cherry Coke
I like the way you laugh
I enjoy your laughter
When I tell a joke
When I say something funny
I said my name is Rich
I told you my name is Rich
In the summertime
During the summer
Girls got it goin' on
Girls are great
Shake and wiggle to
Dance and move to
A hip-hop song
A song of the hip-hop genre
Summertime girls
Girls of summer
Are the kind I like
I prefer this kind of girls
I'll steal your honey like
I'll take your girl
I stole your bike
Like I stole your bike
Bugalute shrimp and pogo sticks
Bugalute shrimp and pogo sticks (lyrical nonsense)
My mind takes me back
My thoughts go back
There oh-so quick
Very quickly
Let you off the hook
Forgave you
Like my man Mr. Limpit
Just like Mr. Limpit (a reference to a character who forgives his enemies)
Think about that summer
Remember that summer
And I bug 'cause I miss it
I feel annoyed because I miss that time
Like the color purple
Like the color purple
Macaroni and cheese
Macaroni and cheese
Ruby-red slippers
Slippers that are colored ruby-red
And a bunch of trees
And many trees
Call you up but what's the use?
There's no use calling you
I like Kevin Bacon
I like Kevin Bacon (an actor)
But I hate Footloose
But I dislike Footloose (a movie featuring Kevin Bacon)
Came in the door
Entered through the door
I said it before
I said this before
Think I'm over you
I think it's all over between us
But I'm really not sure
But I'm not certain
From Abercrombie & Fitch
Wearing Abercrombie & Fitch
In the summer girls come
Girls visit in the summer
And summer girls go
Girls leave in the summer
Some are worthwhile
Some are deserving
And some are so-so
And some are just average
Summer girls come
Girls visit in the summer
Got it goin' on
Are great
Shake and wiggle
Dance and move
To a hip-hop song
To a song of hip-hop genre
I'll steal your honey
I'll take your girl
Like I stole your bike
Like I stole your bike
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG Rights Management
Written by: Bradley Young, Dow Brain, Rich Cronin
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@_katie_
Summer of 1999, I was 8 years old and my Grandma had a Mustang convertible. She took my cousins and I for a ride and blasted this song…every time I hear this it takes me right back to that day. 24 years later and she is still the coolest Grandma ❤
@shawnanderson6227
Grandma had that!
@Kingcarbone
Summer of 99’ was absolutely legendary. A time that will never return. Rest in peace Grandma. 🙏🏻
@joikauffman7192
I was 18🙄
@PokrPro21
@@Kingcarbone It was legendary. Great times. I remember watching Hey Arnold. Nickelodeon was the best in the summer. Disney Channel. MTV still played music videos. I remember watching Real World and Daria. It was also a great year for movies. American Beauty, Three Kings, many more. I remember watching X Games on ESPN. Damn good times! Kids still went outside to play and ride bikes.
@Kingcarbone
@@PokrPro21 I was born in 1990, I think we were the last generation that went out and rode bikes. Life was an adventure. America still felt like things would always be great and free. It’s a time that’s never coming back unfortunately. Great decade. 💕
@ctheripper9630
"Billy Shakespeare wrote a whole bunch of sonnets". As an Englishman... I felt that.
@ks454
🤣🤭🤣
@TrollSmasher-hf6mm
🤣🤣
@rhys_parsons3292
Too true