Best Road Trip Songs

Feet on the dashboard, a strip of the open window letting the wind play haphazardly with your hair while you squint in the sun and tap your hands on your legs to the beat of the song.

A road trip without music would be a sad, sad thing.

Road trips emulate travel and music, two of my favourite things. Creating a CD (or two, or maybe six) for your trip is really fun. One that with every single song that comes on, you smile and wish you had more air in your lungs left to sing along to (or, in my case, wish you were brave enough to sing infront of another person).

Your ideal music may be completely different, but here are some of my choices for a classic road trip, and I hope it gives you some ideas!

UPBEAT

Baba O’Riley – The Who

Pretty much one of my favourite road trip songs.

Used to Get High For A Living – John Butler Trio

I Bet That You Look Good on the Dancefloor – Arctic Monkeys

This is my air guitar/air drum all over the shop road trip song. Also, look how sweet Alex Turner was back then!

Learn to Fly – Foo Fighters

Because Foo Fighters. And the video is brilliant. And Dave Grohl. Ok, fangirling over (it’s never over).

You’ve Got the Love – Florence and the Machine

She’s Electric – Oasis

Send Me on My Way – Rusted Root

I couldn’t figure out why this was so familiar, but it was in Roald Dahl’s Matilda (film, obviously) :)

Funky Tonight – John Butler Trio

It’s a Beautiful Day – U2

Eight Days a Week – Beatles

One of the only songs to make my heart turn completely into some bouncy soppy mush.

Unbelievers – Vampire Weekend

You Go Down Smooth – Lake Street Dive

CHILL

Ocean – John Butler Trio

No words, just instrumental, and incredibly beautiful. This song means a lot to me.

Clocks – Coldplay

Whenever this song starts, I close my eyes (unless I’m doing something where I need them open) and just sort of, feel free. The piano intro is somehow liberating. I don’t know. But it’s the kind of song where I want a breeze on my face and enjoy the outside.

Home – Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeroes

Walking on a Pretty Day – Kurt Vile

Mykonos (Alternate Version) – Fleet Foxes

No one seems to share my love for the alternate version of this song, but really, it’s great. Promise.

Beachcomber – Real Estate

The Cave – Mumford and Sons

Mountain Sound – Of Monsters and Men

No Rain – Blind Melon

It’s Real – Real Estate

Take a Walk on the Wild Side – Lou Reed

The Weight – The Band

POWERFUL/CLASSIC/MISC

Tiny Dancer – Elthon John

I mean, you’ve all seen the film Almost Famous, right??

The Chain – Fleetwood Mac

Hotel California – Eagles

Heroes – David Bowie

For anyone who’s familiar with Perks of Being a Wallflower, I’m sorry, but “The Tunnel Song”? Come on guys, you should have known about Bowie!

Chicago – Sufjan Stevens

Where the Streets Have No Name – U2

SILLY/CHEESY

I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles) – The Proclaimers

Anyone who’s watched How I Met Your Mother will understand.

The Circle of Life – Lion King/Elthon John

I’m not even sorry. Lion King was always one of my favourite films growing up, and I still love it. The soundtrack is fucking awesome. Plus, the story’s based on Shakespeare’s Hamlet, so I feel like I can get away with it as an English Lit grad? No? Well, worth a try.

P.s. I know this isn’t the Elton John version, but I just had to post the film version.

Three Little Birds – Bob Marley

I Don’t Wanna Miss A Thing – Aerosmith

Senorita – Justin Timberlake

Uh, yeah. To me it’s just the ultimate summer song, and I remember listening to it when I was on holiday with my family in France (I think I was about 11) and my sister had the Justified album on in the car. She kept getting the lyrics to this song wrong and I used the word “sexy” for the first time in my life. Good times.

Free Fallin’ – Tom Petty

I mean, I kind of hate myself for the cheese of this one. But believe me, in the right mood with the right company, this is hilarious/entertaining.

What would you add?