Road Trip Tunes

[Zzzptm]

This is not a top 10 list or anything like that because we all know the road is ever long... and the road demands tunes!

Imagine driving all day, 6-12 hours, and having spotty or no cell signal for most of the way. I know that all very well, because that's part of the Great American Road Trip, doing thousands of miles over a week or two and coming back with impressions of the vast landscape to go along with the songs that played as those sights were seen. More practically, these need to be songs that help keep the driver awake. Driving beats are good but singalong is better. Variety is best of all - you're gonna pass out and crash in a ditch if you play a whole Iron Maiden record, start to finish! When I started doing big road trips in 1986, I learned quickly that mixtapes were king.

Thanks to digital delivery, mixtapes can now be hours and hours long with no danger of the tape heads eating the cassette! 

So, with the guides of variety, singalong, and fun to drive to, I'm curious what a playlist from the gang here would look like. I'll kick it off with a fave, Drifter from Deep Purple:

Song itself has some nice variety and Bolin's guitar is sweet, especially in that quiet bridge part. That's a great time to match the tune with the view.

Add a song when you can, one a day and let's see where this goes!

[Vyn]

Sing-a-long! Campy, cliche, and catchy!

[Zzzptm]

I clicked the link.

I now have a Michael Bolton song that I like. That *IS* a fun song! It is added to my Road Trip folder for future reference.


My next track on offer is from Taj Mahal:

I first saw it performed on The Rolling Stones Rock and Roll Circus, it was early in the show before everyone was exhausted. The studio track is much cleaner and the guitar comes out nicely in it. Horns make a nice touch for that early 70s heavy blues sound.

[Zzzptm]

Next pick from me is a real banger I've loved since it came out about 6 years ago. Now that I've played a ton of Baldur's Gate 3, I associate it 100% with Karlach and it totally works as her theme, if a bit out of place in a typical fantasy soundtrack...

It's a biker rock tune that hits on all cylinders.

[KiloDeltaCharlie]

Not recommended as driving music!

Apparently you will speedup whilst listening to this tune!

BTW it doesn't change at any point so once you've heard 20 seconds you've heard it all!

[Zzzptm]

Oh that's horrible!

 

[Vyn]

BAM-A-LAM

[KiloDeltaCharlie]

@Zs

The album is a lot better than that track, really not sure what they thinking of with that one.

This might be a better road trip song... maybe!

[Charger]

Black Betty is a jamming tune. But I guess it's banned everywhere now for being all racist and shit...

That Wiseblood tune...HOLY SHIT! That would make me drive into a concrete wall in less than 30 seconds if someone put that on in my car!

[Zzzptm]

Black Betty is actually an old prison work song and the Black Betty in question is a reference to a whiskey bottle. There's an old a capella version by Leadbelly and if you skip the first minute, you get to the Ram Jam part: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SJUSGuNxt-4

I have done road trips with my fave prison work song in the mix, Grizzly Bear: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SYwAHzHKTXg Not everyone's cup of tea, but it keeps me going.

But my song for the day is actually more modern:

Got that great start that gets louder like a good startup road song should have. Big fat chunky metal shards flying everywhere in the original sense of heavy rock that was also metal in character. Sabbathy grooves with road-worn vocals making sure that rubber meets the road in a jammin' way.

[Zzzptm]

This one has everything. It's got that driving beat, singalong chorus, and it's about being on the road. Yeah! 

[Zzzptm]

From the latest Saxon album, it's going on my playlist as soon as I buy the album, which is happening today.

[Charger]

I think I need to get in touch with those guys about copy right issues then....

[Zzzptm]

nonono I bought it, it's all cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool cool

[Charger]

Concerning the name of the track that is...buggers stealing my name ain't cool man!