There is something undeniably romantic about highways; they symbolize travel for both love and adventure alike. Here are some songs about roads:
“Rockin’ Down the Highway” by The Doobie Brothers captures perfectly the joy of driving along an open highway and is an essential addition to any road trip playlist.
Route 66 by Chuck Berry
Route 66 is an essential classic rock song for any playlist, perfectly capturing the spirit of travel along its famous highway running from Chicago to Los Angeles and highlighting adventure, freedom, and enjoyment found while road-tripping. Numerous artists have covered this song over time, including Rascal Flatts and John Mayer; in fact, both versions can be heard during scenes when townsfolk customize Lightning before his journey and also during the end credits for Cars 2.
Bobby Troup was inspired to write this popular rhythm and blues song in 1946 after taking a road trip along U.S. Route 66, spanning across western two-thirds of America from Illinois to California. The lyrics follow its path as it passes through major cities and towns, including St Louis, Missouri; Joplin, Oklahoma; Oklahoma City; Amarillo, Texas; Gallup, New Mexico; Flagstaff, Arizona; Winona, New Mexico; Kingman, Arizona; Barstow, California and San Bernardino.
If you’re in search of something slower and more reflective for your road trip, George Strait’s country rock classic “I Can See for Miles” should provide the perfect soundtrack. With its memorable melody and lyrics referencing one of Route 66’s iconic attractions – Cadillac Ranch (a public art project in Texas featuring ten half-buried Cadillacs), make sure Cadillac Ranch is on your must-visit stops list along the way!
Highway to Hell by AC/DC
Highway to Hell by AC/DC is an example of how taking an instantly recognizable riff and turning it into something great can work wonders, selling over seven million copies in the US alone. Its simplicity means it has appeared as part of almost every guitar book published – three open positions A chords played with successive downbeats; simple! But this song makes an impactful statement about rock in style! AC/DC created their empire on riff rock music, which they proved with this masterpiece.
Highway to Hell was AC/DC’s seventh studio album and last to feature Bon Scott before his untimely death from alcohol poisoning in February 1980. Yet despite this tragedy, this record remains one of their most beloved. It was recorded outside Australia for the first time and featured young Angus Young wearing a schoolboy uniform and devil horns on its cover art; additionally, it boasted an eye-catching music video, which became one of rock history’s most influential tracks.
Highway to Hell features the soulful vocals of Angus Young, but its true soul lies within Malcolm Young and their powerful riffs – a testament to their talents that no other band has been able to match the Young brothers’ ability to turn essential rock songs into full-blown classics.
This album has been widely hailed as “a sexy, hard-rocking manifesto of rocker lifestyle,” and many consider it one of the most outstanding records ever released. Rolling Stone even listed it at #23 among their 500 Greatest Albums list of All Time, making it Australia’s highest-ranked release ever in that publication’s rankings.
Kings Highway by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
This song serves as the opening track to the album Into the Great Wide Open and tells a tale about a man who dreams of hitting the road with his lover when the time is right – similar to an open road song written by Bruce Springsteen but with more positive overtones.
The lyrics explore how highways symbolize freedom and new beginnings, while its music provides a bluesy groove that’s perfect for driving down an open highway at night. Like other songs from Mike Campbell’s album, this one also boasts a funk-infused guitar solo by way of Mike Campbell himself.
Some have speculated that Petty might have been alluding to an actual highway when writing his song, though it’s impossible to be specific. There are multiple highways named Kings Highway all around the world, and not all have an apostrophe; it could have been that Petty was alluding to California’s Kings Highway, which does have one.
This song showcases the sense of unity Brian Blade and his Fellowship Band strive to foster on their recordings. Though their album might sound more fusion than rock at times, there’s always an underlying sense of solidarity amongst their musicians that they hope listeners can feel, too.
Queen of the Highway by Jim Morrison
Jim Morrison’s “Cosmic Mate,” Pamela Kennealy, has long been considered an iconic symbol of rock’s dark side. First released on The Doors’ 1970 album Morrison Hotel, this track shows their groundbreaking literary sensibility in pop music.
Dylan brought biblical passion and Whitmanesque frenzy, while the Beatles created colorful utopianism rooted in James Joyce and Edward Lear’s nonsense verse; no one got the gravity, stern realism, and psychological pressure of noir music quite like Morrison did. Combining military brat roots with UCLA education on Nietzsche, Rimbaud, Eastern philosophy, Southern Gothic tradition, and Native American tragedy created a potency that revolutionized popular song lyrically, much as Hendrix changed guitar norms.
Morrison’s relationship with Pamela was volatile and complex, often inspiring his poetry. The song “Queen of the Highway” is dedicated to their love affair; some speculate it was written when Morrison thought he might lose her.
Pamela became his wife and companion until her untimely death from a heroin overdose in 1974. Even during Pamela’s darkest moments, Morrison never wavered in his love for her; in his will, he named her as his heir. To this day, fans mourn her departure. On October 9, Morrison Hotel: 50th Anniversary Deluxe Edition will be released – giving fans another opportunity to revisit and honor the Queen of the Highway musical legacy and explore her dark side! This two CD/one LP set contains newly remastered versions of the original album plus unreleased studio outtakes, as well as a 180-gram vinyl copy of the original album with label artwork!
