Happy Father’s Day – 16 Great Songs About Fatherhood and Dear Old Dad
Happy Father’s Day!
Today we celebrate Dads in all their forms and functions. Funny, helpful, hard, and loving, just to name a few qualities.
As we have with Mother’s Day, with the help of our readers, we have compiled a playlist of songs dedicated to Dads.
While songs about Mom can be sentimental – and yes, we have some songs in that vein for Dad – this list has a few hard edges. Some of the songs have a brief discussion of why they are on the list, and those without are self-explanatory.
Before we get to the playlist, this is possibly the greatest quote on fatherhood we’ve read, and it comes from Mark Twain:
“When I was a boy of 14, my father was so ignorant I could hardly stand to have the old man around. But when I got to be 21, I was astonished at how much the old man had learned in seven years.”
Thanks to our friends and readers for the pictures in our montage – Dad, you’re looking great!
Tenderness on The Block – Warren Zevon
Relatable for any father who has seen his daughter go on her first date. Read the lyrics here.
Already One – Neil Young
Father to Son – this song was written by Young about his son, who has cerebral palsy.
Dance With My Father – Luther Vandross
My Hometown – Bruce Springsteen
Not a song about fatherhood or Dad per se, but the song starts and ends with verses on fathers and sons in the context of societal changes.
A Love Without End Amen – George Strait
Cats and The Cradle – Harry Chapin
Maybe this song helps explain why Babyboomer fathers and subsequent generations have tried spending a little more time with their kids.
Daughters – NAS
Talk about bein’ real! Pops isn’t exactly happy with his daughter’s choices. NAS has a degree of irony in this song.
Papa Don’t Preach – Madonna
Any teenage girl who has rebelled against Dad can probably identify with this.
Color Him Father – The Winstons
One of our favorite songs about fatherhood in all its forms.
Daddy Could Swear, I Declare – Glady Knight and the Pips
Many fathers will declare guilty to this!
Things Dads Do – Thomas Rhett
Remember being pissed at the old man when he gave you chores? Well, maybe there was a method to his madness.
Papa Was a Rolling Stone – The Temptations
As noted, not all songs about Pop paint him in a great color. A number 1 hit by the Temptations, this song was released at the time Motown artists started taking an edgier approach. Released by Motown before Marvin Gaye’s groundbreaking What’s Going On album.
Believe – Brooks & Dunn
Fatherhood across races, ages, and years – What a message!
Father & Son – Cat Stevens/Yusuf
What’s Going On – Marvin Gaye
This song is not about fatherhood, but given the circumstances of Gaye’s untimely death, the line father, father, we don’t need to escalate, war is not the answer, for only love can conquer hate, cannot be ignored. Some have suggested this song was a plea from Marvin to his father Marvin Gaye Sr.
A Boy Named Sue – Johhny Cash
If you think about it, this could be the consummate Father’s Day song. Dad abandons his baby and mother but wanted to make sure he made it through life, and in the end, they reconcile.
