Best Songs For Listening To In Your Car While Driving

[FdL]

In the morning, when I go to work, there's certain songs that kick you awake, put some life into your blood and make you happy to be alive and to have a heart and ears.

I always think of it when I listen to a cool song, I say "this would be a really good song for listening in the car".

So, first of all, I have to mention the king of all of them:

"Roadrunner" by the Modern Lovers. That one can't be beat.

Then there's songs that have such a cool intro and such a power that drag you along. Songs like "Little Fury" by The Breeders and "Not Looking Back" by the Lyres have such cool drum intros!!!!

"On The Roof" by The Feelies would be another of my choices.

What about you?

[ElfLad]

"More Than A Feeling" by Boston
"Tangled Up In Blue" by Bob Dylan
"Carry On Wayward Son" by Kansas
"Little Deuce Coupe" by the Beach Boys
"Immigrant Song" by Led Zeppelin

Really, anything I can sing along to with a sufficiently fast tempo.

[Amotis]

I sing in the car. Yeah, I'm one of those people.

So when it's early in the morning and I'm driving to school, I'm singing. Crappily since it's like 7...but I'm singing.

So I like songs with lyrics so I can sing along. So that's basically anything on my ipod. So yeah, I know a lot of lyrics. Though when I'm driving home or to work, I do like listening to classical, really loud, with the windows down.

And depending on who's in the car, Arcade Fire's Wake Up is soooo cool. : D (and strange when people look at you.)

[Dhavaer]

Something to sing along to. Piano Man or American Pie.

[ElfLad]

I sing when there are no passengers.

Oh, I forgot a great one.

Under Pressure - Queen and David Bowie. Although I have to restrain the urge to strangle somebody when I'm driving my sister's friends around and one of them says, "Wait, this isn't Ice Ice Baby!"

[Amotis]

As do I. I just mean when there are others around I sing louder :D

edito - oh also, Wilco's Hotel Yankee Foxtrot album is really really catchy singalong type. A must.

[RMS Oceanic]

I quite like Real Gone by Sheryl Crow. It's fun to listen to while you're at top (legal) speed.

[Khantalas]

I have no idea. I am too young to drive a car.

[Kyrsis]

I've been going through a Children of Bodom phase, or System of a Down. Though I'm not driving anywhere at the moment; it's all walking here in Afghan. I miss my car...

[Timberwolf]

Saltwater by Chicane

Insomnia by Faithless

Doctor ? by Orbital

Problem is all of these make me drive like a loony.

[Deaddude]

Cinnamon Girl by Niel Young

[Reinforcements]

"Radar Love" by Golden Earring
"Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen
"What is Love" by Haddaway

These are clearly the best driving songs - the last two are especially good with friends.

[Dragor]

Leavin' Today by The Answer and When The Levee Breaks by Led Zepellin.

[FdL]

Cinnamon Girl by Niel Young

Sure! Excellent choice!!!

[SDF]

When driving with my friends I usually get my punk on so Bad Religion, Rise Against, old AFI, even some Anti-Flag.

When I'm alone I usually have more time to listen to my Godspeed You! Black Emperor albums or some fun stuff like The Flaming Lips or Death From Above 1979.

[Don Beegles]

I don't drive, but one song I've noticed I like when I'm getting a ride with someone is Animals by Nickelback. ON the whole, I don't listen to Nickelback, and I don't really like the song in general, but not only is it about driving in a car, among other tings, but it sort of gives the feeling of speeding along a road that goes well with driving.

[Wizzardman]

...I'm going to be totally geeky here, and suggest anything written by Dragonforce as the best car music ever.

Mostly because--despite the fact that every song they write sounds exactly the same--its pleasant, exciting, has decent lyrics, and is above all very loud. I need very loud car music. I have to drive six hours straight whenever I want to go home. This music is perfect for that kind of situation.

[Athelgar]

"Never Let You Go" by Third Eye Blind, always warms me up on those long, winter morning drives to school.

[Saithis Bladewing]

"Tonight is Alright For Tonight" by Strong Bad.

[Sundog]

"Radar Love" by Golden Earring (Yay, Reinforcements!)

"Takin' it to the Streets" by the Doobie Brothers.

"Taking Care of Business" by Bachman-Turner Overdrive

"Young Americans" by David Bowie

"Jimmy Dean" by Icehouse.

[Idris]

"Materialist" Bad Religion

"Magdelena" A Perfect Circle

"Karma Police" Radiohead

"Tales of Brave Ulysses" Cream

"When She Comes" Van der Graaf Generator

"Suggestions" System of a Down

LotR soundtracks

[Reinforcements]

"Tonight is Alright For Tonight" by Strong Bad.
Unfortunately, "Today is Alright for Tonight" has the notable disadvantage of being about a minute long. It is good, though.

[Ebon_Drake]

I'll go for the obvious answer: "Cars" by Gary Numan (or the Fear Factory cover, if you insist.)

[Scorpina]

Hmm, well, I can only specify the songs I enjoy listening to while driving. I find it varies depending on the situation.

When Driving Fast, such as on the Motorway (or 'Highway' or Autobahn, if you prefer):
Seven Deadly Sins - Flogging Molly
Screaming at the Wailing Wall - Flogging Molly
Radar Love - Golden Earing
Bonny und Clide - Die Toten Hosen
Paranoid - Black Sabbath
Layla - Derek and the Dominos
Crashing Foreign Cars - Helmet
Immigrant Song - Led Zeppelin
Holy Thunderforce - Rhapsody
Fullmoon - Sonata Arctica
Angel of Death - Slayer
White Room - Cream
Girl Annacronism - The Dresden Dolls
Burning Angel - Arch Enemy
In Pursuit of Vikings - Amon Amarth
Whole Lotta Love - Led Zeppelin
Duel of the Fates - John Williams
Black Metal - Venom
Do The Evolution - Pearl Jam
Rusty Cage - Soundgarden
Whiskey in the Jar - Thin Lizzy

When stuck in traffic (also 'I ****ing, ****ing hate London'):
These Exiled Years - Flogging Molly
Like A Stone - Audioslave
Don't Let Me Die Still Wondering - Flogging Molly
Jeremy - Pearl Jam
Thank You - Led Zeppelin
For My Fallen Angel - My Dying Bride
House of the Rising Sun - The Animals
Old Age of Wonders - Rhapsody of Fire
Wouldn't It Be Nice? - The Beach Boys
Letter to Dana - Sonata Arctica
Jupiter, The Bringer of Jolity - Gustav Holst
Dreams - Fleetwood Mac
Strange Glue - Catatonia
Coin-Opperared Boy - The Dresden Dolls
The Great Beyond - R.E.M.
The Rover - Led Zeppelin
Lady Eleanor - Lindisfarne
Malibu - Hole
Monkey Gone to Heaven - The Pixies
Disarm - The Smashing Pumpkins
Hurt - Nine Inch Nails

It's worth noting that both The Chain - Fleetwood Mac and Stairway to Heaven - Led Zeppelin bridge the gap here, being songs that start out in the 'traffic jam' section and end in the 'driving fast' section. It's a good feeling when the traffic starts moving at the right point in either song.

When driving around, preferably in the countryside, in a relaxed fashion (possibly with one arm out the window and the smell of fresh cut-grass in the air):
Death Valley Queen - Flogging Molly
You Can Call Me Al - Paul Simon
Meet Me on the Corner - Lindisfarne
All Along the Watchtower - Bob Dylan
Vincent - Don McLane
Ramble On - Led Zeppelin
Kelly! Watch the Stars - Air
Whistles the Wind - Flogging Molly
Taste You - Auf der Maur
Steh Auf (When du am Boden Bist) - Die Toten Hosen
Homeward Bound - Simon & Garfunkel
American Pie - Don McLane
Black Hole Sun - Soundgarden
Wicked Witch - Demons & Wizards
Fairy Tale of New York - The Pogues and Kirsty McColl
Planet Caravan - Black Sabbath
All Fall Down - Lindisfarne
Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood - The Animals
Everybody Must Get Stoned - Bob Dylan
I am the Highway - Audioslave
Bright Eyes - Art Garfunkel

[Telonius]

Runnin' Down a Dream, by Tom Petty.
Convoy, by CW McCall.
Bohemian Rhapsody, by Queen.
EDIT: Man, forgot a classic one ... Drift Away, the original Dobie Gray version.

[smellie_hippie]

Driving while angry... Wish by Nine Inch Nails
Driving to work... Down by the River by Neil Young
Driving with my kids in the car... Anything that keeps them guessing :smallamused:
Just plain cruising... Comfortably Numb (Pulse live) by Pink Floyd

Other notable mention....

Contact by Phish
The tires are the things on your car that make contact with the road,
The tires are the things on your car that make contact with the road.
The tires are the things on your car that make contact with the road,
Bummed is what you are when you go out to your car and it's been towed!

:smallsmile: Smile... people will wonder what you are up to...

[ElfLad]

Homeward Bound - Simon & Garfunkel

[Sewer_Bandito]

I'll Second More Than a Feeling by Boston

And to add to the list, any ska. Fun very upbeat music with catchy but pretty much meaningless lyrics. Not to mention it's a mixture of big band, reggae, rock, and some jazz. Awesome music to keep you focused on the road :smalltongue:

[Amotis]

I was just driving home from school to TV on the Radio's latest album. That was pretty fun :D

[twerk_face]

Now I don't drive, and this pretty much contradicts and goes against all my other view on music, but I always loved listening to Eminem's slim shady songs, like Slim Shady, Without Me, and those kinds. They're fun to rap along : P. And they wake me up.

[Ted_Stryker]

Highway Star - Deep Purple
La Grange - ZZ Top
Jesus Built My Hotrod - Ministry

I'm sure there are lots of others I'm forgetting...

[Jack Squat]

Eye of the Tiger and Blind before I stop.

On second thought, if you tend to be an agressive driver, don't listen to these :wink:

The best songs to listen to are ones that you know well enough you don't have to focus on what's being said. This being said, I often backtrack a tune to double check the lyrics :tongue:

[Jerthanis]

Man, all my favorites are already listed, Runnin' Down a Dream, More than a Feeling and Eye of the Tiger. I also really like Boys of Summer by Don Henley, Don't Fear the Reaper by the Blue Oyster Cult and Pretty Fly for a White guy, but those are immediately disqualified because of a girl.

[TinSoldier]

A lot of good ones have already been mentioned.

I'll have to add my vote to "Radar Love", probably one of the best driving songs ever.

I'm surprised no one has mentioned "Born to be Wild" by Steppenwolf.

The soundtrack to the movie Heavy Metal, especially:
Heavy Metal by Sammy Hagar
Heavy Metal (Takin' A Ride) - Don Felder
Radar Rider by Riggs

[amielee]

Whatever your choice of music is, when you drive you should be careful with the songs you pick for your play list...Studies show that drivers tend to match the beat of the music they are listening too, so loud, fast and aggressive music can increase erratic driving, the study found. You should know the songs to stay away from when you are driving..Learn more from MUSIC WHILE YOU DRIVE (http://www.cardealexpert.com/news-information/fyi/music-affects-driving/)..

[Weezer]

Holy nostalgia, Batman! Quite a few big names here I haven't seen in a while...

[Gettles]

Here are a few of my choices:

"Ride the Comet" by Ayreon (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fS1OryN8UHk)
"Kill Devil Hill" by Bruce Dickinson (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKYEPdCEYYM)
"Hyperdrive" by Devin Townsend (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H5BqyluKkk0)
"Slow Me Down" by Devin Townsend (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AC-FTbJthzU)
"Blue Water, Blue Sky" from the Guilty Gear soundtrack (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qhpisRcYuZw)
"Tiger, Tiger" by Slough Feg (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gv6bw10es2c)

[Karoht]

"Don't Stop me now" by Queen. When traffic is flowin' and everyone's a goin.
"The Little Things" by Danny Elfman. For when traffic isn't flowing, people are being jerks, and you're stuck behind that one car we all know and hate, which you just instantly label the douche-mobile. You know the one.

Indiana Jones theme when you're on mountain roads or off-roading.
Back to the Future theme when you're on a straight piece of road and moving fast. Or when passing a line of slow cars.

Ra-Ra-Rasputin. Contrary to popular belief it wasn't by Abba, but was from a German euro-disco group called Boney M.

"It's My Turn to Fly" from the Titan AE soundtrack. Please, keep to legal speeds when listening to this song. It's... rather easy to forget yourself.
"Staring at the Sun" by The Offspring. See above for obligatory warning. It's a fast song, and I've always imagined hearing this while on a motorcycle or something.

Just about anything from OC Remix's work on the Sonic the Hedgehog series.
But nothing gets me quite like "Live and Learn" from Sonic Adventure 2.

[JoshL]

Nice call with the Danny Elfman song. He really needs to put out a new rock album (even if he never plays live again).

Erasure is one of my favorite driving/sing-along bands, and I've got a few good darkpsy mixes I've made for instrumental stuff.

But for pure driving insanity, Nurse With Wound, Two Shaves And A Shine. Every time.

Oh, and "Helpless" by Boingo is a song I should never drive to again, because I'll get into an accident, swaying with the music.

[Kindablue]

I don't know why, but slowly all of the CDs in my car have become The Temptations and Little Anthony and the Imperials, usually a Stevie Wonder album or two. It was a very unintentional process. I've never really given it thought before, but I guess it happened because they're relaxing without being boring. I'd say that's the ideal; even if it's a totally different genre, it's good driving music if it does that.

[Turat1961]

these all songs are good but i like to hear Bollywood songs more.

[TeChameleon]

My musical tastes are all over the map and then some (It's easier to list the genres I don't like- most Country and the majority of the Rap I've heard- than the ones I do :smalltongue:), but there's a few bits that I just automatically think 'driving music' when I hear; pretty much anything by the famous 'gypsy Jazz' guitarist Django Reinhardt (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szNJ6DqrqoA), and the Blues Brothers version of She Caught the Katy (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVOdrL5_B_0) (the latter one most likely because it's the background music for the sequence that introduces the Bluesmobile, heh...)

[KillingAScarab]

From the Harmony of a Hunter ablum on Shinesparkers (http://www.shinesparkers.net/)
"Metroid Medley" by Derris-Kharlan

From the Balance and Ruin (http://ff6.ocremix.org/) album on OverClocked ReMix
"Gobble, Snarf, Snap" by XPRTNovice
"Train Suplex" by Danny Baranowsky
"There's Nothing Like Flying" by DDRKirby(ISQ)
"A Glimmer of Hope" by Joshua Morse, Jeff Ball and Laura Intravia

From Act II: The Father of Death by The Protomen
"Keep Quiet"

Say it with me?
This city
She's been dead
For years now
For years now

[lailahussain889]

Smack that by Akon is not bad at all during the drive.

[The Fury]

Maybe the kind of car you have might affect the choice of driving music. Like if your car is old, clapped-out and makes a lot of noise, maybe you should listen to this (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8rfPZeUmlc). Really makes driving down the interstate feel like you're fleeing from pursuing Warboys. Not that I've actually done this-- my car has no radio.

[Razade]

Maybe we should add "Look at the date of a few posts" to the list of songs people should listen to?

[anotherthumb]

İ like listenin' soderbergh movie osts while driving. ocean's series, haywire etc.