Dierks Bentley photo courtesy of Capitol Nashville
Rascal Flatts photo courtesy of Lyric Street Records
You've packed your bags, loaded the cooler with snacks, gassed up the tank and marked your route on the map. You've got everything you need to enjoy another great road trip...or do you? If you don't have the perfect batch of tunes along for the ride, you are not ready to leave! Not sure which songs you need to add the perfect country vibe to your trip? Our list of the "50 Ultimate Road Songs" is a great starting place!
1. "On the Road Again" (1980)--Willie Nelson
This may just be the best country music road song ever written. Sit behind the wheel, listen?and smile.
2. "Every Mile a Memory" (2006)--Dierks Bentley
This guy paints such a vivid musical picture of the road that it will take you anywhere.
3. "Life is a Highway" (2006)--Rascal Flatts from the soundtrack of the movie "Cars"
How can we not pick a road song that's in the movie Cars?
4. "Heads Carolina, Tails California" (1996)--Jo Dee Messina
This is the perfect "It doesn't matter where we go, let's just hit the road" song.
5. "King of the Road" (1965)--Roger Miller
Nashville's not writing them like this anymore, and that's a pity. This song is brilliant.
6. "East Bound and Down" (1977)--Jerry Reed
If you don't have a restrictor plate on your car (ask your NASCAR fan buddies what that is), you WILL begin to speed as you listen to this great tune.
7. "Drive" (2002)--Alan Jackson
This tribute to Alan's "Daddy Gene" will make you smile and get misty at the same time. Simply wonderful.
8. "Six Days on the Road" (1963,1997)--Dave Dudley and, more recently, Sawyer Brown
Trucker songs will come and go, but this will always be in the pantheon of tunes celebrating our long-haul buddies.
9. "Break Down Here" (2004)--Julie Roberts and Trace Adkins
Trace has said he loves "a good double entendre" song — and this is one of the best.
10. "Drivin' My Life Away" (1980)--Eddie Rabbitt
This tune perfectly captures the rhythm of the highway in a way no one else has since we lost Eddie.
11. "Ridin' My Thumb to Mexico" (1973)--Johnny Rodriguez
A great take on a road song — letting someone else do the driving!
12. "Houston (Means I'm One Day Closer to You)" (1983)--The Gatlin Brothers
Every touring musician, long-haul trucker or traveling salesman has had this thought about getting back to the one they love.
13. "Where the Blacktop Ends" (2001)--Keith Urban
Great tune about where the road stops and the country fun begins.
14. "Speed" (2003)--Montgomery Gentry
This great tune about wanting a muscle car that can "outrun her memory" sums up a sentiment anyone with a freshly broken heart can understand all too well.
15. "Highway 40 Blues" (1983)--Ricky Skaggs
This tune—Ricky’s 5th consecutive No. 1!—has a driving rhythm that’s perfect for kicking off your road trip!
16. "Ramblin' Man" (1973)--Dicky Betts
This may not have been officially "country" when it was released, but it sure sounds like it now—a true classic!
17. "500 Miles Away From Home" (1963)--Bobby Bare
If you're already depressed about being away from those you love, you may just want to avoid this tune. It'll break your heart.
18. "Red Ragtop" (2002)--Tim McGraw
This tune is more about life's journey than a literal road trip, and its lyrics stirred up some pro and con passions.
19. "Little Red Rodeo" (1997)--Collin Raye
Hey, she left you in a little red rodeo — how hard can it be to catch up? Be a man! Push on the gas!
20. "Nothin' But the Taillights" (1997)--Clint Black
Anyone who's ever been standing on the side of the road watching tail lights--and a relationship--fade into the darkness can relate to this tune.
21. "Hot Rod Lincoln" (1965)--Asleep at the Wheel
A great story song with about 15 verses. Turn this on in Nashville, and it'll be ending as you pull into Memphis.
22. "Uneasy Rider" (1967)--Charlie Daniels
One of the great, light-hearted story songs of all time — written and sung by a master.
23. "Life's Highway" (1986)--Steve Wariner
The perfect metaphor for the highs and lows everyone encounters in life.
24. "Prisoner of the Highway" (1984)--Ronnie Milsap
This is a great song about a trucker who only feels alive when he's on the road, in spite of having a wife who just doesn't understand.
25. "Callin' Baton Rouge" (1989, 1993)--New Grass Revival and Garth Brooks
Here's a refreshing take on the stereotypical guy who tells a woman after a night of passion, "I'll call you"?and then doesn't. This pre-cell-phone guy is gonna keep callin' on pay phones till he's out of money!
26. "Long Black Train" (2004)--Josh Turner
Rank this one right up there with "Lost Highway"(see No. 45)?this is not a train you want to be on!
27. "By the Time I Get to Phoenix" (1967)--Glen Campbell
Time and time again, he tried to tell her so?she just didn't know he would really go?until he did. Great song.
28. "What Was I Thinkin'" (2003)--Dierks Bentley
Tank top lovers everywhere thank Dierks for writing and recording this great tune.
29. "Long Trip Alone" (2007)--Dierks Bentley
This could be called the "anti-tank top" in terms of mood and subject matter. Truly powerful, truly wonderful.
30. "The Wrong Side of Memphis" (1992)--Trisha Yearwood
She's headin' to Nashville with a full tank of gas and a 1969 Tempest?what's not to love?
31. "18 Wheels and a Dozen Roses" (1988)--Kathy Mattea
Hands down, the most romantic trucker song of all time.
32. "Passenger Seat" (2004)--SHeDAISY
Hop in, grab a piece of jerky and crank it up. This is the perfect summer road song.
33. "Wherever You Are" (2005)--Jack Ingram
This is a man who'll do whatever it takes, go as far as he must to be with the one he loves?as it should be, correct ladies?
34. "Amarillo By Mornin'" (1983)--George Strait
He's lost everything but what he's got on, but this rodeo cowboy can't give up the freedom of doing what he loves.
35. "I've Been Everywhere" (1962)—Hank Snow and, later, by a bunch of others!
Very likely THE most-used tune by grade-school geography teachers in the history of recorded music!
36. "Riding with Private Malone" (2001)--David Ball
Great, great story that'll leave you misty-eyed and proud.
37. "On a Bus to St. Cloud" (1995)--Trisha Yearwood
Simply gorgeous. Any man would ride a bus to anywhere with the owner of that wondrous voice.
38. "A Little Past Little Rock" (1998)--Lee Ann Womack
"A little past Little Rock?a long way from over you?" Great lyrics, great song.
39. "Oklahoma Borderline" (1985)--Vince Gill
It doesn't matter if he's gotta thumb rides to get there — getting back home will still be so, so sweet.
40. "Leaving Louisiana in the Broad Daylight" (1979)--Oak Ridge Boys
"It's just an ordinary story 'bout the way things go"?down in Cajun country?written by a great writer, Rodney Crowell.
41. "Mercury Blues" (1993)--Alan Jackson
You just gotta love a guy who, if he had money, would go downtown and buy a Mercury?or two!
42. "Redneck Yacht Club" (2005)--Craig Morgan
This is the perfect road party song?if your road's on the water.
43. "Red Dirt Road" (2003)--Brooks & Dunn
A lot of memories were made on this road?from drinkin' a first beer to findin' Jesus.
44. "Movin' On" (1975)--Merle Haggard
Merle name checks Kix and Ronnie and sings about hot coffee, jammin' gears and the rhythm of the highway. Does a truckin' song get much better?
45. "Lost Highway" (1949)--Hank Williams
This highway is country's version of the "House of the Risin' Sun"?a home for lost souls. Powerful?and sad.
46. "A Little Gasoline" (2000)--Terri Clark
The throwing pictures and the shouting are over. It's time to leave the past behind and hit the road toward a fresh start.
47. "Small Town Saturday Night" (1991)--Hal Ketchum
This song's on the list just because of the great line?"the world must be flat, 'cause when people leave town, they never come back."
48. "I Drove All Night" (1992)--Roy Orbison
This is a hugely romantic tune sung by one of the great voices in all of American music.
49. "Mud on the Tires" (2004)--Brad Paisley
Nothin' like a little off-roadin' to get the romantic sparks flyin'.
50. "Luckenbach Texas (Back to the Basics of Love)" (1977)--Waylon Jennings
This song probably did more for this Texas town's tourism than anything the Chamber of Commerce ever dreamed of.
RSS Feeds