I was driving to work this morning, it was early, I was grumpy at having to be on the road at 6am. But my mood changed completely when a certain song came on rotation on my iPod … it’s one of my favourite driving songs.
This got me thinking, there are certain songs that we think of as ‘driving songs’. But just because we like them doesn’t mean they’re everyone’s cup of tea! In fact, everybody will have a different idea of what they think works behind the wheel.
For what it’s worth here are my top 5 all-time driving tunes!
Number 5
Metallica – Fuel
Perhaps not to everyone’s taste but few could deny that Metallica have been hugely successful. Their bestselling ‘Black Album’ has sold over 30 million copies worldwide alone. The title alone is a rather unsubtle clue that the song is all about cars and if you happened to miss it the video rams it down your throat. A great song to drive to.
Number 4
Richard Wagner – Ride of the Valkyries
Bet you weren’t expecting that after Metallica! Now bear with me. This is a fantastic driving song that somehow makes you feel as if you are in the midst of your own film. Perhaps this is due to the immortal scene in Apocalypse Now as the helicopters attack the village. When this song comes on, your boring commute to work has transformed into a vital mission to save the world from some evil force.
Number 3
Airbourne – Live it up
Probably not a band a lot of people know. The modern successors to AC/DC, this bunch of Aussie nutcases, play good old fashioned, sing along, rock and roll. To be honest I could have picked any track from their three albums but this one is particularly relevant to driving. It’s a proper feel good song that you can’t help but sing along to.
Number 2
Jimi Hendrix – All Along the Watchtower
The single greatest cover song of all time, even Bob Dylan admits Hendrix’s version is better! Not sure why but I always associate this song with summer and that makes me happy. Traffic jams simply cease to exist when this comes out the stereo.
Number 1
Red Hot Chili Peppers – Scar Tissue
A beautiful song that, even before I saw the video, I thought was the absolute perfect Road Trip song. Good memories abound whenever this song comes on, as it was the only CD me and a couple friends had on a road trip driving from Milan, through the Swiss Alps to Geneva. This song comes on and every other car disappears and the miles turn into a blur, perfection in a driving song.