Singer defends Mungo Jerry's 'Summertime' after woke criticism

THE writer of a song that has been a summer anthem for more than half a century has hit out at woke culture - after the tune was accused of promoting drug-taking and drink driving.

- By James Desborough

In The Summertime by Mungo Jerry, now in its 55th anniversary year, is one of the bestselling UK singles of all time and remains a favourite on the radio and Tik Tok.

The band's lead singer, former electrical engineer Ray Dorset, penned the lyrics in just 10 minutes at his London Timex watch company work desk.

But the upbeat classic has been beset by controversy in recent years - amid claims that it celebrates taking drugs, is offensive to women and promotes driving at high speeds under the influence.

In an exclusive interview Ray, 79, has hit back at the critics, saying he wrote it as a "celebration of life".

He says the lyric "In the summertime when the weather is high/ you can stretch right up and touch the sky" was not meant as an endorsement of psychoactive drug LSD, or cannabis.

He explained: "People are getting wound up about something that I did not explicitly say. I wrote the lyrics. I knew what I wrote.