By Jeff Glucker
Back in college, I’d occasionally have to drive between Rhode Island and my home up near Boston. Towards the end of school, I’d acquired a 1985 Nissan 300ZX. It was the non-turbo version, but it could still just about hit 130 mph. I know this because of one of the times I hit play on the song “Freebird” by Lynyrd Skynyrd. Something about that song causes a reaction in my brain that in turn makes my right foot assert more pressure.
Pedal pressure begets engine speed. Engine speed begets wheel speed. And if you’re not careful, wheel speed begets traffic violations. And it all starts with that dive into the solo section of “Freebird”.
Do you have any songs that do something similar to you? Or do you have a chill-out song that is perfect for a calm cruise? What’s your favorite driving song?
Mine happens to make me drive faster… and lord knows, I can’t change.
The only known recording of my singing is of this song, driving my lifted ’94 Bronco heading toward Colorado from Texas during college.
Eastbound from Texas isn’t very likely to get you to Colorado.
I hope you brought some Coors beer with you from Texas. Or maybe some Shiner.
I wasn’t being geographically pedantic at the time, besides, after suffering a concussion on my last ski run of the trip, I was feeling less enthusiastic on the way back.
The boys were thirsty in Durango, that much was true.
AC/DC – Thunderstruck
GNR – You Could Be Mine
Mötley Crüe – Kickstart my Heart
None are car-related, but the driving beat tends to make me speed.
“Kickstart” was my first thought, and has definite car references (… top fuel funny car’s a drug for me…).
“Kickstart” was my first thought, and has definite car references (… top fuel funny car’s a drug for me…).
“You Could Be Mayan” is about a car.
https://lifeinprogreso.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/10/Mayan-Wheels-Car-Rental-Merida.jpg
Red Barchetta, of course comes to mind as does I’m In Love With My Car. Great Lyrics on both of those and good driving tunes.
Honorable mention to Autobahn from Kraftwerk, not a great song for driving but a great name for a driving song.
Hit the road Jack by Ray Charles,https://youtu.be/Q8Tiz6INF7I
Radar Love, though maybe not this version.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PIATOK532ew
No.
Next question?
“Have you owned a vehicle with a sound system at any point in the past 25 years?”
No.
Next question?
“Is it tricky to rock a rhyme? To rock a rhyme that’s right on time?”
It’s tricky.
Very appropriate then for you to have listed a song where Teller raps silently.
Sometimes I roll the window down and listen to Air Supply.
Provided the exhaust leak is aft of the firewall?
In the Econoline, if it has the flip-out rear glass modification, then the Station Wagon Effect might vortex the exhaust inside, even if there isn’t a leak.
https://www.picclickimg.com/d/l400/pict/222349938707_/Ford-Econoline-E150-Pop-out-Rear-Windows-E250-1992-2014.jpg
Or Rush? ..or is that optimistic on the velocity?
You’ve got me beat. All I can say that nearly all of my vehicles have no sound system, which I must say is a pretty fancy term for an AM radio anyway. I’m nonetheless keeping the MiniDisc player that was in my Maestro when I bought it, on the basis that some day I may own a MiniDisc.
With my sister, whenever I had to drop her in Antwerp during her Erasmus year there, we had to play “Una Storia Importante” by Eros Ramazzoti and sing it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZBNVODLaltQ
I’m not proud of it, but Hybrid’s “If I Survive” is guaranteed to increase both my speed and aggression behind the wheel. Significantly.
As my comment turned more into a playlist than a favorite, I have to conclude that I don’t have a favorite.
…but now I’m compiling a driving playlist, so thanks for the motivation.
Less a favorite song, more a favorite album. And it’s specific to driving at night- if I’m going to be driving for a while at night, this album will be played at some point.
Queens of the Stone Age, Lullabies to Paralyze. All the way through, just great music, and for whatever reason it puts me in a good mood for driving.
Youtu.be/RFRATw9BUeM
Anyone know why I can’t paste something I copied into comment? Disqus won’t seem to let me. I was going to post a link to the album on YouTube…
Edit: I was able to hand type it, but thats still annoying.
I think Disqus gets behind on its payments to contract coders and they introduce annoying bugs into the system until the check clears.
You have no idea how much of a struggle it was to become logged into Disqus properly so that I could upvote and reply to your comment, or, more to the point, perhaps you know exactly how much of a struggle this can be at times.
It tends to do that to me after I have used my phone to check notifications and then go from the notifications back to Hooniverse. Now I keep a notifications tab open separately from the ‘verse tab, and that tends to work a little more frequently.
Different album, but “Go With the Flow” is on my list of good driving songs.
Songs For The Deaf also works as a driving album in general with the little radio interstitials. Apparently it’s a very loose concept album, they sort of envisioned a night drive out to the desert.
Plus, the liner notes have a picture of the dash from a Fiat 124 Spider, and that’s just a rad choice.
Big Log by Robert Plant. A nice ’55 in the video, too.
Came here to say the same.
But then again…
For summer evening boulevard cruising, Scritti Politti’s Cupid & Psych 85 is the perfect windows- (or top-) down soundtrack.
“Kickstart my Heart” was my first thought, but William already noted it. I’d add the Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage” to the list, too.
Oh, and the Cardigans’ “My Favourite Game”, because hours upon hours of GT2.
It’s all fun and games until Elvis C. sabotages the song.
Bow River by Cold Chisel, which is about getting away from the city rat race.
It used to be Frank Zappa’s “Grand Wazoo” and “Hot Rats”, before I practically stopped listening to music. Nowadays it’s mostly either calm stuff like Sharon van Etten or some Synthwave compilation downloaded from YouTube.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RGQxI0G6mKk&app=desktop
For summer evening boulevard cruising, Scritti Politti’s Cupid & Psych 85 is the perfect windows- (or top-) down soundtrack.
From Dee-troit Motor City:
A close second:
It’s rare I’m ever by myself in the car anywhere the roads are even halfway decent, so most enjoyable driving is gentler road tripping. It’s maybe a little obvious, but this hits the right pacing for me.
Not Dead Yet
By The Bad Examples
night time in an older, but not too old, luxury car:
windows up, drive real slow, and contemplate.
Of course there is always Radar Love and things like that but I’ve been partial to this little known Queen song for quite awhile.
I aim for silence.
Listening to Mozart’s Requiem while driving on B-roads in snowfall is something I love doing for ~thirty years though.
Else, it’s audio books for long distance drives by myself, podcasts for short distances, and whatever a 6yo considers essential listening when I’m with a 6yo.
Classical is great for long scenic drives. Wagner’s Ring without Words or Strauss’ Alpine Symphony are both is an hour plus of massive orchestra at full chat plus some nice quiet moments breaking it up.
Ze Germans know how to accompany nice scenery.
I went back to an old road trip band last week:
Huey Lewis And The News
Their hits were released 10 years closer to Chuck Berry than to the present day.
And it sounds like it, but holds up.
https://img.cinemablend.com/filter:scale/quill/5/e/9/9/e/0/5e99e0b4f1de1cb5e348234c1934c2a67f614aa8.jpg
I think I want a new drug.
Sister Havana and the rest of Saturation by Urge Overkill are on a road trip rotation for sure.
Road music is situational for me. For driving in the rain Brian Ferry’s Can’t Let Go or Sinead O’Connor Nothing Compares 2 U because I first heard it on the BBC driving up the M1 in the rain. For straight up driving I like the Gin Blossoms and Robert Earl Keen, because the road goes on forever and the party never ends 😉
https://youtu.be/nTbKEIECp9g
Driving beat, good instrumentation. What’s not to like?
https://youtu.be/pgrj_IXuEGY
The morning after hours of traffic in Kentucky saw us needing to stop at a hotel on our way back up to the Chicagoland suburbs, this came on shuffle. We didn’t any significant traffic the entire length of Illinois up thrI-59. Call me superstitious, but on a drive of any length, I still like to start off the day with it.
Ministry’s “Jesus Built My Hotrod” has gotten me in trouble a few times! Maybe because it’s played at 125 BPM, and that tends to affect my “foot pressure” -thing