For some reason, musicians seem to love Sunday. It’s the calm before the storm of the week and a time when many people sink into a tranquil state and take it easy. Countless songwriters have used that connotation to their advantage, co-opting it as a metaphor for healing a heartbreak, finding a strong relationship, and even nursing a hangover.
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We’ve rounded up five of the best songs that mention Sunday. Revisit these gems, below.
1. “Easy (Like Sunday Morning)” (The Commodores)
In “Easy (Like Sunday Morning),” Commodores lead vocalist Lionel Richie conflates the freedom of leaving a bad relationship to the peaceful energy of a Sunday morning. Though many break-up songs tackle the heartbreak that comes along with losing a loved one, this one takes the opposite approach for those who are happier in the aftermath.
You know I’ve done all I can
You see, I begged, stole, and I borrowed, yeah, ooh
… That’s why I’m easy
I’m easy like Sunday morning
That’s why I’m easy
I’m easy like Sunday morning
2. “Another Sunday in the South” (Miranda Lambert)
Miranda Lambert and co-writers Jessi Alexander and Ashley Monroe create the perfect vignette of a warm summer day in “Another Sunday in the South.” The songwriters expertly hide a number of ’90s country song titles in this 2014 track, which gives it a certain measure of nostalgia. Anyone who has grown up in the South will know just the type of day Lambert is detailing here.
There’s church bells ringin’
Down the road and we ain’t goin’
I’m singin’ Hallelujah right here
With the warm wind blowin’
Next to you, sitting next to me
And we’re shaking that sugar tree
Just another Sunday in the South
3. “A Sunday Kind of Love” (Etta James)
Etta James isn’t here for any turmoil in “A Sunday Kind of Love.” Instead, she wants a relationship that is more than love at first sight. She wants to grow old and be comfortable with her partner. While many love songs talk about hot, fiery passion, James delivers an anthem to the quiet life of domestic bliss.
I don’t want a Monday, Tuesday
A Wednesday or Thursday
Friday or Saturday
Oh, nothing but Sunday oh, yeah, yeah
I want a Sunday, Sunday
I want a Sunday kind of love
4. “Sunday Morning Coming Down” (Kris Kristofferson)
Few songs about hangovers sound as sweet as “Sunday Morning Coming Down.” Kris Kristofferson sings the song with a deep, almost meditative drawl. He sounds as sleepy as the lyrics suggest. The experience of waking up on a Sunday with a pounding headache and regretting the night before is so universal that this song has been recorded more than 10 times by different artists.
Well, I woke up Sunday morning
With no way to hold my head that didn’t hurt
And the beer I had for breakfast wasn’t bad
So I had one more for dessert
5. “Sunday Morning” (Maroon Five)
Maroon Five’s “Sunday Morning” feels like sunshine streaming into the window while you’re easing into your day with a coffee in hand. The bright piano riff is tranquility incarnate and Adam Levine’s voice caresses the ear. In the frontman’s own words, “It always kind of gives you that good, positive feeling when you play it.”
That may be all I need
In darkness, she is all I see
Come and rest your bones with me
Driving slow on Sunday morning
And I never want to leave
Photo by Don Paulsen/Michael Ochs Archives/Getty Images
