"Summer Time" is a 2020 song recorded by Canadian

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

group

James Barker Band The James Barker Band is a Canadian country group formed in Woodville, Ontario, in 2015. The band consists of James Barker, Taylor Abram, Connor Stephen, and Bobby Martin. In Canada, they have four number one country singles with "Chills (James Ba ...

. It was co-written by the band's frontman James Barker, with Gavin Slate, Travis Wood, and producer

Todd Clark Pilot Speed (formerly known as Pilate) was a Canadian rock band, who were active in the early 2000s.Gerry Krochak, "Pilate strives for sincerity". ''Regina Leader-Post'', October 23, 2003. Based in Toronto, Ontario, the band consisted of vocalis ...

Background

"Summer Time" was released amidst the

COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identif ...

, following a run of seventy-five consecutive live stream shows online from the band. Frontman James Barker reflected on the importance of summer to Canadians and wanted to spread some optimism in the pandemic summer, saying "we hope ... fans connect with that nostalgic feeling of a more relaxed state of mind".

Critical reception

Katie Colley of ''

ET Canada ''ET Canada'' (previously referred to as ''Entertainment Tonight Canada'') is a Canadian entertainment news television series, using the same format as the American entertainment newsmagazine ''Entertainment Tonight''. ''ET Canada'' is a broadcas ...

'' called the song "catchy", saying it puts you in the "summer spirit". ''93.7 JR Country'' referred to the track as a "summer anthem" and "sunshine for your ears", noting "shimmery guitar riffs and James Barker's warm vocals". Chris Parton of ''Sounds Like Nashville'' said the song is "purpose built for fun in the sun" with "breezy guitars" and "a foot-tapping beat", noting Barker's "bright, carefree vocal".

Commercial performance

"Summer Time" reached a peak of 15 on ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' Canada Country chart, marking the band's eighth Top 20 hit. It also charted at No. 24 on the Hot Canadian Digital Songs chart in the week after its release. The song has been certified Gold by

Music Canada Music Canada (formerly Canadian Recording Industry Association (CRIA)) is a non-profit trade organization that was founded 9 April 1963 to represent the interests of companies that record, manufacture, produce, and distribute music in Canada. It a ...

Live performance

James Barker Band performed "Summer Time" live at the

2020 Canadian Country Music Awards The 2020 Canadian Country Music Awards, honouring achievements in Canadian country music in 2019 and 2020, were presented on September 27, 2020. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic in Canada, the event was presented as an outdoor ceremony from the Burl' ...

, with the band being split into groups of two, performing from both

Oro-Medonte, Ontario Oro-Medonte is a township in south-central Ontario, Canada, on the northwestern shores of Lake Simcoe in Simcoe County. The two neighbouring townships of Oro and Medonte were merged in 1994, under a restructuring of Simcoe County. It is divide ...

and

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. The award show was broadcast live on Global in Canada, as well as on the Global App, and aired on several Corus radio stations in

Alberta Alberta ( ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada. It is part of Western Canada and is one of the three prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to the west, Saskatchewan to the east, the Northwest Ter ...

and

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

. * James Barker – lead vocals, songwriting *

— backing vocals,

production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stati ...

engineering Engineering is the use of scientific method, scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad rang ...

, guitar, keyboard, programming, songwriting * Dave Cohen – keyboard * Matty Green – mixing * Tony Lucido –

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

* Rob McNeeley – guitar * Andrew Mendelson –

master engineering Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans * Grandmaster (chess), National Maste ...

* Justin Ostrander – guitar * Jerry Roe – drums * Justin Schipper –

steel guitar A steel guitar ( haw, kīkākila) is any guitar played while moving a steel bar or similar hard object against plucked strings. The bar itself is called a "steel" and is the source of the name "steel guitar". The instrument differs from a conve ...

* Gavin Slate – backing vocals, guitar, programming, songwriting * Travis Wood – backing vocals, songwriting

Charts

Certifications

References

{{authority control 2020 songs 2020 singles James Barker Band songs Songs written by James Barker (singer) Songs written by Todd Clark Songs written by Gavin Slate Songs written by Travis Wood (songwriter) Song recordings produced by Todd Clark Universal Music Canada singles