Sure. Go ahead and waste time on these boring (and possibly life-saving) duties. Very few people, however, take the time to stop and think about the single most important aspect of the road-trip: The Soundtrack.
For many of us, what you listen to on your journey will be as memorable as what you see along the way. It's not uncommon for some of us to spend a few days prior to the journey in quiet contemplation of what albums will provide the aural backdrop to our motoring experience. If you make the wrong choice things can turn pear-shaped quickly and may lead to dire consequences, such as being reduced to listening to AM radio, sitting in silence, or talking to a loved one....
After many weekend getaways to the South West of WA over the years, amounting to hundreds of hours of quality listening time, there are two albums in particular that I seem to return to time and time again - and they are both by The Doors.
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| Morrison Hotel (1970) |
The first swig of Masters Iced Coffee has already hit the back of my throat as the opening riff of "Roadhouse Blues" starts to crank out of the speakers and I ease the car into gear....
"Keep your eyes on the road, you hand upon the wheel..."
For a band without a bass player, The Doors pack some punch on this album. The straight-ahead rock of the opening track transitions into the slow, meditative verses of "Waiting For The Sun", which is about where I start leaning back into my seat and feeling one with the universe.
Over the course of the next half hour we navigate the honky-tonk blues of "You Make Me Real", the funky, wah-wah infused "Peace Frog", and the dreamy hangover tones of "Blue Sunday" and "Indian Summer" - different moods which work together to mellow the mind and provide a perfect contrast to the vision of terrible WA drivers lurching between lanes on the Forrest Hwy.
It seems like it's over way too quickly. And the only way to follow it up is to proceed immediately to the next logical step - Jim Morrison's swansong with The Doors, L.A Woman (1971).
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| L.A Woman (1971) |
Of course you'll get the stares from drivers in the next lane as they watch you belting out "The Changeling" at the top of your lungs, but these are minor concerns which disappear quicker than a Daewoo Matiz in your rear view mirror the moment you hear the intro to the title track,"L.A Woman". This very well could be the greatest road song ever - Jim's ode to the seedy streets of L.A, propelled along by the rest of the Doors at their musical peak...
"L.A Woman, Sunday afternoon. Drive through your suburbs, into your blues..."
Be sure to crank up the volume when the band emerge from the slow break into Jim's "Mr Mojo Risin'" refrain. For me, this part is on the same level as the operatic bit in Queen's "Bohemian Rhapsody" - it takes the song to a whole new level, whilst at the same time seems to be taunting you with an unheard challenge: "Go on, I dare you NOT to sing along to this!"
"Riders On The Storm" feels like the end of the journey, as it was for Jim and The Doors - and if you've traveled this far you're probably starting to feel some heaviness in your eyelids. The rain-imitating sounds of Ray Manzarek's Fender Rhodes piano provides sweet solace to the weary traveler before Jim brings some paranoia into the mix by introducing the "killer on the road". After some sublime instrumental breaks, the whole thing eases slowly to a close with the delicate sounds of distant thunder & driving rain, and before you know it you find yourself back in the real world, blinking in the sunlight.
It's about that time you casually glance at the temperature gauge and the steam escaping from your bonnet and quietly curse yourself for not doing that vehicle check.
I think you hit it on the head with this one Faux. When your driving, you don't want to skip tracks that make you cringe with familiarity, or top 40 "wank", and also you don't need a set list that you have to "explain to the uninitiated".
ReplyDeleteSo Morrison Hotel is an unassuming album that covers the driver's needs of quality tunes, variety and subtlness that allows the driver to drift in and out of consciousness, and interpretation of the meaning of existence. Although CCR does spring to mind if you want diversity, Pink Floyd's, Animals, Wish You Were here or Dark Side of the Moon gets you through those tough Km's on the road.
I think you have to remember the "post Burger pitstop " needs some familiar tunes that gets " the blood pumping" again. ala Foo Fighters " There is nothing left to loose" usually gets you to ride the fatty burger high and frozen coke freeze low till you hit the last 40 km to go" and all you want to do is get out of the car and lay down.
the last 40 k"s need to be pleasant enough to allow your brain to reconfigure to the local surroundings plus get you to the nearest bakery or rest stop for that "sugar fix" that's needed after a long day on the road. this music has to give you the impression that your in familiar surroundings, a homely environment. Midnight Oil's 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1, fits the bill.
Your correct, the road trip is a personal experience, it has to feel like "home on the road" so choose wisely because if your soundtrack for the road is ill chosen, your left with an earful of Taylor Swift and the twilight soundtrack.
take control of the radio, as well as the wheel.
happy driving.