"California" is a song by American

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

band

Phantom Planet Phantom Planet is an American rock band from Los Angeles, formed in 1994. The band consists of Alex Greenwald (vocals, rhythm guitar), Darren Robinson (lead guitar), Sam Farrar (bass guitar) and Jeff Conrad (drums). The band is best known for it ...

. It was released as a single from their second album '' The Guest'' in February 2002. The song was first heard on television on episode 8 of the

television show A television show – or simply TV show – is any content produced for viewing on a television set which can be broadcast via over-the-air, satellite, or cable, excluding breaking news, advertisements, or trailers that are typically placed betw ...

'' Fastlane''. Both the song and the band received major attention when it became the theme song on the

Fox Foxes are small to medium-sized, omnivorous mammals belonging to several genera of the family Canidae. They have a flattened skull, upright, triangular ears, a pointed, slightly upturned snout, and a long bushy tail (or ''brush''). Twelve sp ...

television show ''

The O.C. ''The O.C. '' is an American teen drama television series created by Josh Schwartz that originally aired on the Fox Broadcasting Company, Fox network in the United States from August 5, 2003, to February 22, 2007, running a total of four seaso ...

'' It was also previously in the soundtrack to the film ''

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

'' and featured on the episode "

Milhouse of Sand and Fog "Milhouse of Sand and Fog" is the third episode of the seventeenth season of the American animated television series ''The Simpsons''. It originally aired on Fox network in the United States on September 25, 2005. Plot During Reverend Lovejoy's ...

" of ''

The Simpsons ''The Simpsons'' is an American animated sitcom created by Matt Groening for the Fox Broadcasting Company. The series is a satirical depiction of American life, epitomized by the Simpson family, which consists of Homer, Marge, Bart, Lisa, ...

''. The song is about driving on

U.S. Route 101 U.S. Route 101, or U.S. Highway 101 (US 101), is a north–south United States Numbered Highway that runs through the states of California, Oregon, and Washington, on the West Coast of the United States. It is also known as (The Royal Roa ...

, traveling to see a concert. The song became a top ten hit in

Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical re ...

, the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

, and

Republic of Ireland Ireland ( ga, Éire ), also known as the Republic of Ireland (), is a country in north-western Europe consisting of 26 of the 32 counties of the island of Ireland. The capital and largest city is Dublin, on the eastern side of the island. A ...

, reaching number 3, number 2, number 9, and number 10 in the respective countries.

Song information

The estates of

Al Jolson Al Jolson (born Eizer Yoelson; June 9, 1886 – October 23, 1950) was a Lithuanian-American Jews, Jewish singer, comedian, actor, and vaudevillian. He was one of the United States' most famous and highest-paid stars of the 1920s, and was self-bi ...

and his songwriting team are co-credited for "California", presumably because the title and chorus bear strong resemblances to his own "

California, Here I Come "California, Here I Come" is a song interpolated in the Broadway musical '' Bombo'', starring Al Jolson. The song was written by Bud DeSylva, Joseph Meyer, and Jolson. Jolson recorded the song on January 17, 1924, with Isham Jones' Orchestra, ...

". Some websites refer to the Phantom Planet song as a

cover Cover or covers may refer to: Packaging * Another name for a lid * Cover (philately), generic term for envelope or package * Album cover, the front of the packaging * Book cover or magazine cover ** Book design ** Back cover copy, part of co ...

of the Jolson tune. Some parts of the song, particularly the piano solos at the beginning and end, are similar to the Jolson song, but still contain several differences in melody. It also bears some thematic and melodic resemblance to

Joni Mitchell Roberta Joan "Joni" Mitchell ( Anderson; born November 7, 1943) is a Canadian-American musician, producer, and painter. Among the most influential singer-songwriters to emerge from the 1960s folk music circuit, Mitchell became known for her sta ...

's "California" from her 1971 album ''

Blue Blue is one of the three primary colours in the RYB colour model (traditional colour theory), as well as in the RGB (additive) colour model. It lies between violet and cyan on the spectrum of visible light. The eye perceives blue when obs ...

''. The song was re-recorded in 2005 by Phantom Planet and re-released as "California 2005", a much mellower version of the song than the original. "California 2005" had its debut in the second episode of ''The O.C.s third season, and is featured on '' Music from the OC: MX-5''. Although normally this version of the song runs as the title song for ''The O.C.'', it was switched out for the

Mates of State Mates of State are an American indie pop duo, active since 1997. The group is the husband-and-wife team of Kori Gardner (born June 16, 1974) (vocals, organ, synthesizer, piano, electric piano, and occasional guitar and drums) and Jason Hammel ...

's cover version in a special episode where everything in the show took place in alternate universe, hence a different song for the title sequence. The song is also featured in the 2005 documentary

The Smartest Guys in the Room ''Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room'' is a 2005 American documentary film based on the best-selling 2003 book of the same name by '' Fortune'' reporters Bethany McLean and Peter Elkind, who are credited as writers of the film alongside the d ...

, which detailed the events leading to the collapse of Enron, including energy market manipulation in California.

Track listing

EP Single

Cover versions

The song was covered in 2006 – again for ''The O.C.'', this time being covered by

for the sixth installment of the ''Music from The OC'' series. Canadian rapper

k-os Kevin Brereton (born February 20, 1972), better known by his stage name k-os (; "chaos"), is a Canadian alternative rapper, singer, songwriter and producer. His given name may also be cited as Kheaven, a spelling he later adopted. The alias "k ...

samples the song on a track called "I Wish I Knew Natalie Portman", from his album '' Yes!''

Alvin and the Chipmunks Alvin and the Chipmunks, originally David Seville and the Chipmunks or simply The Chipmunks, are an American animated virtual band and media franchise first created by Ross Bagdasarian for novelty records in 1958. The group consists of three s ...

covered this song for their 2007 video game ''

''. In 2017,

Lisa Mitchell Lisa Helen Mitchell (born 22 March 1990) is an Australian singer-songwriter who grew up in Albury, New South Wales. Mitchell currently lives in Melbourne and is working on her fourth studio album. Mitchell finished sixth in the 2006 season o ...

covered the song for her ''

When They Play That Song ''When They Play That Song'' is the fourth EP by Lisa Mitchell. The EP was announced in August 2017 with Mitchell posting on her Facebook page "So, you know how I recorded a version of ''The O.C.'' theme song "California" by Phantom Planet? Well ...

'' EP.

Charts

Weekly charts

Year-end charts

Certifications

References

{{Authority control 2002 singles The O.C. Songs about California 2002 songs Mark Ronson songs Music videos directed by Roman Coppola Song recordings produced by Mark Ronson Songs written by Al Jolson Song recordings produced by Tchad Blake Song recordings produced by Mitchell Froom Songs with lyrics by Buddy DeSylva Phantom Planet songs Television drama theme songs Epic Records singles