It’s that time of year once more, where the scent in the air signifies either a skunk genocide or the widespread sacrifice of a certain uplifting plant to the fire gods in the name of Gummy Bears and video games. And while there are many claimed origins for the term “420,” an interview in the New York Times with former High Times editor Steven Hager yielded what may be the closest thing to truth along the mythology.
“(4-20) begun in the early 1970s in which a group of Northern California teenagers smoked marijuana every day at 4:20 p.m,” Hager explained. “Word of the ritual spread and expanded to a yearly event in various places. Soon, marijuana aficionados were using ‘420’ as a code for smoking and using it as a sign-off on fliers for concerts where the drug would be plentiful.”
And there you have it. In honor of the sacred holiday known as 4/20, we’ve compiled a playlist of the more memorable stoner songs that pay tribute to that sweet, sticky green. And while you’re listening, freshen up on the difference between cannabis facts and propaganda in this great myths/facts of weed breakdown from Rolling Stone.
Of course, what 4/20 playlist would be complete without this gem:
