Roadtrip soundtrack

Lynyrd Skynyrd: "The Breeze". Long John Baldry: "Don't Try To Lay No Boogie Woogie On The King Of Rock And Roll". And of course Steppenwolf: "Born To Be Wild".

probably not a "crunchy" suggestion, and I have no idea if you like electronic music, but...
My cousin and I long ago decided that Leftfield's album "Leftism" is the essential driving album - esp if you are speeding. If you buy it it will be instantly familiar - half the record has been licensed and put into movies.

Electronic music in general is great driving music - especially at night - B12's "Time Tourist," Orbital's "Insides," Black Dog's "Spanners" - all good driving discs. I reckon there is probably not a lot of love for electronic music at this site, but it is not all mindless 4/4 techno.

On long trips I also brought Soulfly's first record - sort of a rastafarian death metal band - if I found myself getting sleepy... Emergency! break glass! put in Soulfly!
- sleep, (or coherent thought), became impossible and I arrived safely at my destination

I don't want to sound snobby, but am I allowed to suggest Bach's "Brandenburg Concertos"? (Or "Concerti," which means I'm definitely a snob.) Based on my experience, that music elevates you to a transcendant state of mind, at least until some schmuck cuts you off. It makes you think wherever you are driving is significant. Handel's "Water Music" does the same thing. Listen and pretend you're royalty.

If I had to stick with rock/popular, I vote for the Talking Heads' Stop Making Sense. For something mellow, I pick Simon and Garfunkel.

Yep, "Sweet Home Alabama" is always, always, always on my roadtrip playlists. I never get tired of hearing that. It's a Southern thing.

Okay, Treebeard, I'll see you and raise you: the 1st movement of Dvorak's "New World Symphony."

Smithereens: Girl Like You
The Cult: She Sells Sanctuary
Echo & The Bunnymen: Lips Like Sugar
The Smiths: How Soon is Now
The Alarm: Rain in the Summertime
Chuck Brown & the Soul Searchers: Moody's Mood for Love

As you can probably surmise, it's been an 80's week in my car......

Scott, I'll see you and raise you the whole symphony!
Also, have you ever listened to Dvorak's Eighth? Almost as great as the Ninth.
Okay, I'm getting carried away on this thread. I'll shut up and let other people talk.

Summertime driving is more chill: Sly & the Family Stone, Lovin' Spoonful, anything Motown, and some George Benson.

Nighttime drive: Tom Waits.

But I gotta say it again: Skynyrd is definitive

Mountains: I have a mix of the great fiddler/guitarist Mark O'Connor. Bluegrass fused with classical.

Flatlands, especially hot: Pat Metheney Group mix, with heavy emphasis on some of the longer pieces, such as San Lorenzo (the live track), the First Circle, etc.

I have at least 20 mix CD's and I used them to drive across the country this summer. I usually mix up the styles and try to make them flow to a particular theme, and I mix in an opera song, a sacred hymn or Broadway musical tunes to keep things eclectic.

I find it helpful to look through lists of other's songs in order to jog my memory and come up with songs I'd forgotten, so I offer this rather random (and quite limited) list of songs for that purpose.

Everyone of my generation will be a sucker for Bruce Springsteen’s hits (especially Thunder Road and Born to Run) and things like “Sweet Home Alabama” “Running on Empty” (Jackson Brown).

Here are some others that might take you back (and for you youngsters, perhaps you can try out some songs written before you were born)

Make Your Own Kind of Music – Mamas and Papas
Desperado - The Eagles
King of the Road – Roger Miller
How’s The World Treating You – Allison Kraus and James Taylor
You’re My Best Friend – Queen
Don’t Stop Me Now – Queen
I Want to Break Free – Queen
Every Little Thing She Does is Magic - Sting
Positively Fourth Street – Bob Dylan
Flowers Never Bend, the Boxer Simon and Garfunkel
Invisible Sun – Sting
Bad – U2 (plus anything from their old albums)
Burning Down the House – Talking Heads
Once in a Lifetime and Take Me to the River – Talking Heads
Rubberband man - The Spinners
Dream a Little Dream of Me – Mamas and Papas
Southern Cross - Crosby Stills Nash Young
Road to Shambala – Three Dog Night
Wildwood Flowers – June Carter Cash
When the Man Comes Around – Johnny Cash
That’s Alright Mama – Elvis
Green Grass of Home – Tom Jones
Memories Are Made of This – Dean Martin
A Few of My Favorite Things – Tony Bennett
Get Happy – Julie Christy
Moondance – Van Morrison
Drift Away – Aaron Neville
Everybody Plays the Fool – Aaron Neville
We Belong – Pat Benatar
Back On the Chain Gang – The Pretenders
Here Comes My Baby – Cat Stevens (plus most of the rest of his songs)
Do You Believe in Magic – Lovin’ Spoonful
And When I Die – Blood Sweat and Tears
Hit the Road Jack – Ray Charles
Everyday – Buddy Holly
Top of the World – The Carpenters
I Will – Paul McCartney
Blue Moon – The Marcels
Can’t Take My Eyes Off of You – Frankie Valli
Aimee – Pure Prarie League
You’re In My Heart – Rod Steward
More Than Wods – Pornograffiti
I Try – Macy Gray
Feelin’ Alright – Joe Cocker (plus “Little Help from my Friends)
I Hear a Symphony – Diana Ross and the Supremes
Right by your Side – The Eurythmics
The Summer Wind – Frank Sinatra
Living for the City – Stevie Wonder`
Killing me Softly – Roberta Flack
LaGrange (pg-13 lyrics – but no one can understand the words anyway)
Taking Care of Business – Bachman Turner Overdrive
I Can See Clearly Now – Johnny Nash
Coal Miner’s Daughter – Loretta Lynn

I'd suggest almost any of The Pretenders' more upbeat numbers, but especially "Back on the Chain Gang," "Show Me," "Brass in Pocket." Also "Precious," but, well, it ain't upbeat. Plus there's one bit where you need to cover your kids' ears.

Tony D., you missed one of the best Pretenders tunes: "Man and Woman."

Great lyrics and licks on that one, plus it makes me wanna actively seek a speeding ticket.

Hey, I was going to add Back on the Chain Gang, too. And Fast Car by Tracy Chapman.

The greatest road song of all time has to be "Radar Love," by Golden Earring:

The radio's playing some forgotten song
Brenda Lee's "Coming on Strong"
The road's got me hypnotized
And I'm speeding into a new sunrise

Sorry Golden Earring fan, but it's a known fact that the greatest road song ever is Tom Petty's "Running Down a Dream."

What is wrong with you people?! Thirty comments and no one picked the greatest two-chord roadtrip song ever written, "Roadrunner" by Jonathan Richman and the Modern Lovers? Yeesh, y'all probably think the Grateful Dead was a good band. (heh!)

Oh, and The Beatles: "Revolution" (the single, not the track off the White Album), Talking Heads: "Life In Wartime", Creedence: "Run Through The Jungle", Steely Dan: anything, anything at all, live, studio, it doesn't matter. Marches by John Phillip Sousa are good, too, if one is weary.

Bonnie Rait and KD Lang played very loud.

Amarillo Highway, Robert Earl Keen version. It is the first song I listen to when driving to West Texas several times a year.

I hate to be a wet blanket, but wouldn't the crunchy thing to do be to actually pay attention to the other human beings in the car??? This addiction to being perpetually entertained is not conducive to healthy human relationships.

I recall some time ago that you had a similar post where you described the music you used to drown out your wife and kids on a similar road trip. I think it's simply awful, Rod, and I wouldn't be the stick-in-the-mud I am if I didn't pipe up and say so.

Lest you should think that I am an absolute prude, I will tell you that we do actually have a dvd player in our van--with 5 kids under the age of 8, we needed some sanity on those long drives (and they were all under 6 when we caved in and bought it). However, we use it very sparingly, and we have invested in a collection of religious-themed dvds specifically for that purpose.

I grew up having only one form of entertainment in the car: looking out the window. It didn't stunt me. It's good to be able to just BE, and it has served me very well in life.

OK, I will now step down off my soapbox. But seriously, Rod, give it some thought.

ratiocination

Sixties and Seventies Stones, Motown, Funk, Led Zepp, Jon Cleary and his Absolute Monster Gentlemen, Tab Beoit and the Smokin' Joe Kubec Band with Bnois King all played loud. Absolutely nothing very sentimental or sad. My long drives are usually between Washington state and Wisconsin or Washington state and Texas -- namely long lonely stretches of the American West. It's just too damn lonely for sad stuff. A lot of classical and jazz can be just too other worldly for those open spaces. It just has to be slap happy butt wiggling music period.

Whoa. Washington state to Texas is a crazy drive. A couple of years ago some friends of mine drove from Texas to Whistler BC. Took them 3 days.