The California animal is a bear
Angeleno, but the devil may care
Summer time to talk and swear
Later maybe we could share some air
I'll take you to the movies there
We could walk through Leicester square
What could be wetter than
An English girl, American man

London in the summertime
Call me now, use the satellite
London in the summertime
Cuss me out and it'll feel alright

Hesitate but don't refuse
The choice was yours but you said choose
The look she used was green and sharp
Stabbed that boy all in his heart
Come what may the cosmos will
Take me up and down on Primrose hill
What could be wetter than
An English girl, American man

London in the summertime
Call me now, use the satellite
London in the summertime
Cuss me out and it'll feel alright, yeah

Cuss me out and it'll feel alright
It's alright now
Call me now, use the satellite
It's alright, it's alright
Down and out and it'll sound alright
It's alright now
Down and out and it'll sound alright
It's alright

The California flower is a poppy, child
Felony sends me all the gold in your smile
Drift away from anyone you can
Nothing ever goes according to plan
Though I know that every river bends
Time to say hello to snow on the Thames
What could be wetter than
An English girl, American man

London in the summertime
Call me now, use the satellite
London in the summertime
Cuss me out and it'll feel alright

Hey hey, hey hey hey
Oh oh


Lyrics submitted by The Marine

Emit Remmus Lyrics as written by John Anthony Frusciante Michael Peter Balzary

Lyrics © Hipgnosis Songs Group

Lyrics powered by LyricFind

Emit Remmus song meanings
Add Your Thoughts

52 Comments

sort form View by:
  • +2
    General Comment

    i heard this song was about mel c from the spice girls.

    ThursdaysChildon September 01, 2002   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    Emit Remmus is summer time backwards

    low bearon March 17, 2003   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    all you people saying you how beautiful london is... tss, try seeing the slums.

    Cinnamon__Spideron April 17, 2003   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    I really hate to burst your bubble, i love JF, but it is indeed about Melanie Chisholm. If you're unsure, check the evidence of Anthony Kiedis' book, Scar Tissue, in which he gives an account of his relationship with Mel C. and how Emit Remmus was partly inspired by her. If you need more proof, and do not have the book, feel free to go to RHCP.com, and check out an archived online chat interveiw in which he states about Mel. C. And still, if that's not enough proof, see a little of this line... Felony sends me all the gold in your smile

    It's a well known fact, that during the time Melanie and Anthony met, she did indeed have a gold tooth. She's since gotten rid of it, I do believe.. I also thought it was cute how Anthony,Flea, and John dressed up like the Spice Girls for Clara's birthday.

    Have a nice day.

    californiataxiaon January 17, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    Ok, I think this is pretty obvious. Or at least in my opinion. The song is about and English girl dating and American man, and how different England and California are, and how screwed up thier relationship is. It's basically a metophor to Anthony and Mel C's relationship and Anthony's thoughts on it after it ended.

    Mr_Jinxon March 16, 2006   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    fuck shaun050 why!?!?!

    every song by RHCP is about drugs apperently to you people, they might as well be renamed "heroin"

    just cause they have had drug problems doesnt mean that its all they think about, i mean if you can name every rockstar that has had drug problems i'll pay you cash money

    so its clear what the song is about, found out about the backwords guitar, thank you every1 now leave it there!

    RedHotFleaon April 03, 2007   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    EMIT REMMUS IS SUMMER TIME BACKWARDS SILLY BILLY'S

    Deep_Kickon June 04, 2007   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    This song is about kiedis being good friends with mel c. They met back stage at a gig due to flea's daughter's love for the spice girls. The became very good friends and were virtually inseperable during the summer time they spent together.

    Maygarkon October 16, 2007   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    i love this song im surprised its not more popular with the chili pepper fans and im the only comment to its a great song listen to it youll like it and if u dont u shouldnt be readin the comment on the rhcp song cause this is some of their very good work

    rhcpruleon July 08, 2002   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Oh this song has been a soundtrack to my summer :) i went to London recently and it was so beautiful. It mentions places in London and i was singing along while visiting and it made me so happy. This song is brill-o and a agree with you up there..... rhcprule, more people need to like this song!!!!

    gillie_hendrixon July 18, 2002   Link

Add your thoughts

Log in now to tell us what you think this song means.

Don’t have an account? Create an account with SongMeanings to post comments, submit lyrics, and more. It’s super easy, we promise!

More Featured Meanings

Album art
The Night We Met
Lord Huron
This is a hauntingly beautiful song about introspection, specifically about looking back at a relationship that started bad and ended so poorly, that the narrator wants to go back to the very beginning and tell himself to not even travel down that road. I believe that the relationship started poorly because of the lines: "Take me back to the night we met:When the night was full of terrors: And your eyes were filled with tears: When you had not touched me yet" So, the first night was not a great start, but the narrator pursued the relationship and eventually both overcame the rough start to fall in love with each other: "I had all and then most of you" Like many relationships that turn sour, it was not a quick decline, but a gradual one where the narrator and their partner fall out of love and gradually grow apart "Some and now none of you" Losing someone who was once everything in your world, who you could confide in, tell your secrets to, share all the most intimate parts of your life, to being strangers with that person is probably one of the most painful experiences a person can go through. So Painful, the narrator wants to go back in time and tell himself to not even pursue the relationship. This was the perfect song for "13 Reasons Why"
Album art
Mental Istid
Ebba Grön
This is one of my favorite songs. https://fnfgo.io
Album art
Mountain Song
Jane's Addiction
Jane's Addiction vocalist Perry Farrell gives Adam Reader some heartfelt insight into Jane’s Addiction's hard rock manifesto "Mountain Song", which was the second single from their revolutionary album Nothing's Shocking. Mountain song was first recorded in 1986 and appeared on the soundtrack to the film Dudes starring Jon Cryer. The version on Nothing's Shocking was re-recorded in 1988. "'Mountain Song' was actually about... I hate to say it but... drugs. Climbing this mountain and getting as high as you can, and then coming down that mountain," reveals Farrell. "What it feels to descend from the mountain top... not easy at all. The ascension is tough but exhilarating. Getting down is... it's a real bummer. Drugs is not for everybody obviously. For me, I wanted to experience the heights, and the lows come along with it." "There's a part - 'Cash in now honey, cash in Miss Smith.' Miss Smith is my Mother; our last name was Smith. Cashing in when she cashed in her life. So... she decided that, to her... at that time, she was desperate. Life wasn't worth it for her, that was her opinion. Some people think, never take your life, and some people find that their life isn't worth living. She was in love with my Dad, and my Dad was not faithful to her, and it broke her heart. She was very desperate and she did something that I know she regrets."
Album art
Gentle Hour
Yo La Tengo
This song was originally written by a guy called Peter Gutteridge. He was one of the founders of the "Dunedin Sound" a musical scene in the south of New Zealand in the early 80s. From there it was covered by "The Clean" one of the early bands of that scene (he had originally been a member of in it's early days, writing a couple of their best early songs). The Dunedin sound, and the Clean became popular on american college radio in the mid to late 80s. I guess Yo La Tengo heard that version. Great version of a great song,
Album art
No Surprises
Radiohead
Same ideas expressed in Fitter, Happier are expressed in this song. We're told to strive for some sort of ideal life, which includes getting a good job, being kind to everyone, finding a partner, getting married, having a couple kids, living in a quiet neighborhood in a nice big house, etc. But in Fitter, Happier the narrator(?) realizes that it's incredibly robotic to live this life. People are being used by those in power "like a pig in a cage on antibiotics"--being pacified with things like new phones and cool gadgets and houses while being sucked dry. On No Surprises, the narrator is realizing how this life is killing him slowly. In the video, his helmet is slowly filling up with water, drowning him. But he's so complacent with it. This is a good summary of the song. This boring, "perfect" life foisted upon us by some higher powers (not spiritual, but political, economic, etc. politicians and businessmen, perhaps) is not the way to live. But there is seemingly no way out but death. He'd rather die peacefully right now than live in this cage. While our lives are often shielded, we're in our own protective bubbles, or protective helmets like the one Thom wears, if we look a little harder we can see all the corruption, lies, manipulation, etc. that is going on in the world, often run by huge yet nearly invisible organizations, corporations, and 'leaders'. It's a very hopeless song because it reflects real life.