Kid Rock’s Biggest Solo Song Samples 3 Classic Rock Hits
In recent years, Kid Rock’s commentary has garnered more headlines than his music. However, one Kid Rock song will forever be a weird footnote in the history of classic rock. The song in question samples three classic rock songs from the 1970s that have nothing to do with each other. They don’t even have much to do with Kid Rock.
Kid Rock gave us one of the few hit songs about summer
While popular music is often associated with the summer, very few popular songs are about the summer. There’s Demi Lovato’s “Cool for the Summer,” a couple of hits called “Cruel Summer,” and a handful of Beach Boys songs, but that’s about it. Kid Rock took his stab at a summer jam with the country-rock single “All Summer Long.”
The tune might seem like a typical 2000s predecessor to the “bro-country” subgenre that took over the 2010s, with its upbeat tone, sexual lyrics, and focus on the summer. What makes it odd is that it’s a mashup of three classic rock radio staples: Bob Seger’s “Night Moves,” Warren Zevon’s “Werewolves of London,” and Lynyrd Skynyrd’s “Sweet Home Alabama.” It’s unusual for any song to sample two hits, much less three. For some, messing with any of these classics counts as musical blasphemy.
Only 1 of the 3 classic rock songs is mentioned in ‘All Summer Long’
During a 2008 interview with Reuters, Kid Rock mentioned one of three songs he sampled. “I thought it would work,” he said. “I really believe in the power of ‘Sweet Home Alabama.’ To be able to start with that as a motor to build a car around and give it a beautiful paint job and everything else, it’s a good place to start.”
Why Kid Rock mentioned his love of “Sweet Home Alabama” but not “Night Moves” or “Werewolves of London.” “Sweet Home Alabama” is the only song mentioned by name in “All Summer Long.” The track might’ve been a lot more interesting if Kid Rock worked in some lines about werewolves as an homage to Zevon. That wouldn’t have made it good by any stretch of the imagination, but it would’ve kept “All Summer Long” from becoming just another hit song that came and went.
‘All Summer Long’ was a big hit by Kid Rock’s standards
“All Summer Long” peaked at No. 23 on the Billboard Hot 100, lasting on the chart for 20 weeks. It wasn’t a massive single, but it proved to be Kid Rock’s biggest song as a solo artist. Perhaps the tune’s nostalgic samples and country elements added to its cross-genre appeal. Or maybe the public just has poor taste in music.
“All Summer Long” appeared on Kid Rock’s album Rock n Roll Jesus, which reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200 for a single week. It’s Kid Rock’s only chart-topping album in the United States to date. It lasted on the Billboard 200 for 135 weeks. Rock n Roll Jesus produced several other singles but none of them peaked on the Billboard Hot 100. Kid Rock is one of those musicians who has managed to cultivate a huge fan base even though he was never very prominent on the pop charts.
“All Summer Long” is an oddball that found success — much like Kid Rock himself.
