Sunshine ☀️ | 3 to 5 BOPS

Sunshine ☀️: 3 to 5 BOPS No. 6 (2023), features musical BOPS courtesy of The 5^th Dimension, Bill Withers, Christina Perri, Latto, and Steve Lacy.

Ah, you know what time it is! It’s 3 to 5 BOPS time – WOO! On 3 to 5 BOPS, it’s all about brevity and sweetness… for the most part! There’s a theme/topic, 3, 4, or 5 songs, and a blurb – two paragraphs or less.  3 to 5 BOPS, hence, is a mini playlist that shouldn’t take much time to consume.  In the 6^th edition of 3 to 5 BOPS (2023), we select songs that are associated with SUNSHINE ☀️ in some form or fashion. The BOPS arrive courtesy of 🎙 The 5^th Dimension, 🎙 Bill Withers, 🎙 Christina Perri, 🎙 Latto, and 🎙 Steve Lacy. Okay, let’s get into it!

1. Steve Lacy, “Sunshine” (Ft. Fousheé)

💿 Gemini Rights • 🏷 L-M / RCA• 📅 2022

“Where you are, where you are / But I’m always gonna be where you are.” 🎵 “Sunshine” featuring 🎙 Fousheé (who sings the excerpted lyrics from the chorus) arrives as the ninth and penultimate number on 💿 Gemini Rights. Gemini Rights marks the sophomore album by 🏆 Grammy-nominated musician, 🎙 Steve Lacy, who just happens to be nominated for more Grammys for this particular album (The Musical Hype’s fourth best album of 2022). The record runs nearly five minutes in duration. Even so, duration is unimportant as Lacy maintains the utmost consistency. He appears to be catching feelings for an ex, asserting in the first verse, “Caught me off guard when I saw you last week,” adding, “Still’ll give you dick anytime you need.” Woo! Fousheé sounds fantastic, playing the role of the ex, and nailing the chorus. By the end, the love is back on.  Funny how love works, right?

2. Bill Withers, “Ain’t No Sunshine”

💿 Just As I Am • 🏷 Sony Music Entertainment • 📅 1971 

“Ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone / It’s not warm when she’s away,” 🎙 Bill Withers sings emotionally in the first verse of his beloved classic, 🎵 “Ain’t No Sunshine”. “Ain’t No Sunshine” appears as the second track on the legendary musician’s 1971 album, 💿 Just As I Am.  Withers won his first of three Grammys (Best Rhythm & Blues Song) for “Ain’t No Sunshine.”  As far as the widespread success of the record, “Ain’t No Sunshine” peaked at no. 3 on the Billboard Hot 100, charting for 16 weeks.  Furthermore, it was certified gold by the RIAA.

“Ain’t No Sunshine” doesn’t need extensive analysis.  Thematically, it’s self-explanatory.  Bill Withers is devastated “when she’s gone.” The heartbreak and heartache do a serious number on him.  He asks himself, “Wonder this time where she’s gone / Wonder if she’s gonna stay /… This house just ain’t no home / Anytime she goes away.”  Perhaps even more famous than the verses of this lush, minor key soul gem is the bridge, specifically the phrase, “I know.” Withers famously sings it 26 times.  It has it’s intended effect, particularly when he finishes the thought: “Hey, I oughta leave the young thing alone / but ain’t no sunshine when she’s gone.”  It’s amazing that Withers would top himself a year later with the definitive hit of his career, 🎵 “Lean on Me”.

Appears in 🔻:

• Bill Withers, “Ain’t No Sunshine”: Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 114 (2022)
• 11 Must-Hear, Ain’t Songs
• 15 Must-Hear, Throwback Vibez, Vol. 6

3. Latto, “Sunshine” (Ft. Lil Wayne & Childish Gambino)

💿 777 • 🏷 Streamcut / RCA • 📅 2022 

“Sunshine on me, I just let the sunshine on me.” Ah, when rap meets gospel, it is beautiful thing 🙌.  It’s not necessarily your typical spiritual experience – still not fitting for church, per se (“These niggas Stevie to the come up”) – but it tends to be ear catching. 🏆 Grammy-nominated, 🎵 “Big Energy” rapper, 🎙 Latto merges the two on the lit yet incredibly smooth record, 🎵 “Sunshine” from her 2022 album, 💿 777. Helping to give “Sunshine” a ‘gospel’ sound is the bright, sunny production work courtesy of 🎛 MIKE DEAN, Ant Clemons, Bongo, and Luke Crowder. Furthermore, give Latto credit for sending up prayers: “Pray for my enemies, Lord, I need clarity / They ain’t got empathy for me, they stare at me / They used my couch when they needed the therapy…”

While Latto is the main attraction on “Sunshine,” asserting she’s going to “Got it out the mud, I did it by my lonely / Pop my shit, done being lowkey,” she gets an assist from two talented, Grammy-winning musicians! 🎙 Lil Wayne appears in the second verse, being true to self.  One of his more interesting lyrics is “This Siggy get jiggy with niggas / Don’t make me Will Smith me a nigga.” While Wayne is referencing a past Will Smith rap classic, after the fact, c’mon, you know you picture the slap heard around the world from the 94^th Academy Awards.  Back to “Sunshine,” of course, Childish Gambino also drops a verse, dropping ether like “I’m sweeter at rapping like what the fuck happened? Came back and he’s snapping, came back with a passion,” as well as, “My girl hit the lotto, my sons are mulatto.” Mulatto, of course, references both Latto’s previous moniker as well as the dated, offensive term.  All told, 🎵 “Sunshine” is a terrific rap record, one with plenty to unpack!

Appears in 🔻:

• Latto, “Sunshine”: Rap BNGRZ 🔥 2 (2023) 

4. Christina Perri, “you are my sunshine”

💿 songs for Carmella: lullabies & sing-alongs • 🏷 Elektra • 📅 2019 

Simplicity can go a long way.  Sometimes, the uncomplicated carries more weight than something more complex. For singer/songwriter 🎙 Christina Perri, she’s keeps things incredibly simple on her 2019 album, 💿 songs for Carmella: lullabies & sing-alongs.  The album, primarily comprised of covers, is named after Perri’s first child, Carmella. Songs opens on an incredibly sweet note with the beloved gem, 🎵 “you are my sunshine”.  Perri sings this classic with a radiant tone, singing with incredibly authenticity, as only a mom can toward her child.  You can envision the sincerity – picturing Perri holding her daughter for the first time.  Despite the fact that the record runs less than a minute and a half, it is incredibly potent and most importantly, heartwarming.

5. The 5^th Dimension, “Aquarius / Let The Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures)”

💿 The Age of Aquarius • 🏷 Sony Music Entertainment • 📅 1969

“This is the dawning of the age of Aquarius!” Two-part songs are commonplace in the 2020s, particularly in hip-hop/rap.  They are not brand-new, however.  In 1969, 🏆 Grammy-winning soul collective, 🎙 The 5^th Dimension, impressed with two-parter for the ages: 🎵 “Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In (The Flesh Failures)”.  Neither parts of the song were original to the group; both are covers.  Where do these songs originate? A controversial and explicit 1960s musical called Hair, which was a BIG DEAL.  The 5^th Dimension took these two songs from this musical and turned them into one of the biggest hits of all time.  “Aquarius/Let The Sunshine In” topped the Billboard Hot 100 for six weeks, spending a total of 17 weeks on the chart.  Furthermore, the record won the collective two Grammys: Record of the Year and Best Contemporary Vocal Performance By A Group.  Their album, 💿 The Age of Aquarius, was also nominated for the most highly coveted Grammy, Album of the Year.

“Harmony and understanding

Sympathy and trust abounding

No more falsehoods or derisions

Golden living dreams of visions.”

“Aquarius” arrives first, in all its lush, hippie, and psychedelic glory.  Take one listen and this record is like NOTHING you’ve ever heard (at least, at the time), from a soul collective.  The production and orchestration – horns, strings, and the rhythm section – are stunning.  The voices are picturesque in timbre – electrifying, and playful.  The harmonies are angelic; utterly celestial.  Arguably, “Let The Sunshine In” is the crème de la crème with its repetitive lyrics, and even livelier vibe. “Sunshine” is more driving, energy, and soulful, running slightly longer than “Aquarius.” Even with the repetitive lyrics, “Let The Sunshine In” is a song that you don’t want to end in the least.  Even well into the 2020s, 🎵 “Aquarius / Let The Sunshine In” is a truly refreshing listen.

Appears in 🔻:

• The 5^th Dimension, “Aquarius / Let The Sunshine In”: Throwback Vibez 🕶️🎶 11 (2023)

Sunshine ☀️: 3 to 5 BOPS No. 6 (2023) [📷: Brent Faulkner/The Musical Hype; Elektra; L-M / RCA; Sony Music Entertainment; Streamcut / RCA]