Bryan Adams doesn't want to talk about 'Summer of '69' in an awkward interview moment

24 March 2022, 12:59

Bryan Adams and Taylor Swift perform ‘Summer of 69’ At Her Concert in Toronto

Bryan Adams is on his 15th studio album, and that's what he wants to talk about.

Bryan Adams is usually pretty happy to talk about his past hits.

He recently spoke to a newspaper about 'Summer of '69' and was happy to answer fan questions about that song and '(Everything I Do) I Do It For You' elsewhere.

• 'Summer of 69' by Bryan Adams: The making of the nostalgic guitar anthem
• Bryan Adams' 15 best songs ever, ranked
• Watch Bryan Adams perform surprise 'Summer of 69' duet with Taylor Swift

But now it seems that Adams is firmly looking forward and wants to focus on his 15th studio album So Happy It Hurts, which was released earlier this month.

Adams was being interviewed on Australian morning TV programme Today Extra when host Belinda Russell asked him about the meaning behind 'Summer of '69'.

"1969 though, it was a pretty big year in history," she said. "The moon landing, Woodstock. But you were just a kid back then so what is the story behind 'Summer of '69'?"

Adams swiftly shot back: "I don't want to talk about that. I want to talk about the new album. That’s why I'm here."

Completely professional, Russell was unfazed and simply replied: "Sure, well let's talk about it."

You could hear her co-host David Campbell mutter in the background: "Wow, okay."

Bryan Adams - Summer Of ’69 (Official Music Video)

Bryan has been pretty candid about the song and its title in the past.

Given that Bryan was just 9 years old during the actual summer of 1969, it seems unlikely that it was a literal slice of autobiography.

"There is a slight misconception it's about a year, but it's not," he told The Early Show in 2008. "'69' has nothing to do about a year, it has to do with a sexual position

"At the end of the song, the lyric says that 'it's me and my baby in a 69'. You’d have to be pretty thick in the ears if you couldn't get that lyric."

Bryan Adams - Summer Of ‘69 (Live Aid 1985)

However, the song's co-writer Jim Vallance piped up and said that the "little naughty bit" at the end of the song was a last-minute throwaway gag they decided to keep in, rather than something the song was about from the beginning.

"I don't pretend to speak for Bryan," he told Songfacts. "Two of us wrote the song.

"Maybe he was thinking about something completely different ... but I was thinking about that amazing summer when I turned 17."

More recently, Bryan Adams told The Independent: "I only ever wrote that title because it made me laugh"