Songfacts®:

• Minutemen bassist Mike Watt named this instrumental in honor of Bloomsday (the day the events of James Joyce's novel Ulysses takes place). June 16th also held personal importance for the band, as it was the birthday of D. Boon, the Minutemen's guitarist.
  
  "Ulysses was a big influence on me; James Joyce writing about everything that happened in this one day made me think what a springboard it was to be in a band and rap about stuff with your buddy and go and explore the world," Watt told Mojo magazine. "I wrote June 16th, because Ulysses was set on June the 16th, but also because that was D's birthday."
• Mike Watt reread Ulysses in his 40s. "It seemed much sadder than I remembered," he reflected. "The words hadn't changed, but I had."
• "June 16th" is track 37 on Munutemen's 43-song album Double Nickels on the Dime. The double LP is widely regarded as the band's masterpiece, showcasing their eclectic style and politically charged approach to music.
• Another Double Nickels track, "One Reporter's Opinion," was Mike Watt's "attempt at a song like the section of Ulysses, with all the scientific writing."