Favorite Songs About Musicians on Tour
"Sound of a player who paid his dues / Put some miles on that Mustang car"
Musicians spend a lot of time on the road, and some of them write songs about it. This was a fun list to do because it includes some personal favorites. Let me know if you have other favorites to recommend or if you are struck my any of my selections.
#1 “Coyote” — Joni Mitchell
We saw a farmhouse burning down
In the middle of nowhere
In the middle of the night
And we rolled right past that tragedy
Till we turned into some road house lights
Where a local band was playing
I first heard this in The Last Waltz, so that’s the video below. It tells the story of falling into a somewhat troubled love affair on the road. The lyrics are dense and masterfully written. I can’t do it justice with a short summary, but the thing that strikes me about the video is her authority as a performer. She’s singing near the end of concert with a number of great performances and from the beginning she absolutely commends attention.
#2: “Me and Paul” — Willie Nelson
Almost busted in Laredo
But for reasons that I'd rather not disclose
But if you're staying in a motel there and leave
Just don't leave nothing in your clothes
And at the airport in Milwaukee
They refused to let us board the plane at all
They said we looked suspicious
But I believe they like to pick on me and Paul
One of my favorite Willie Nelson songs. A tender look at the frustrations of being on the road, and the pleasure of friendship and having someone to share the experience.
#3: “Mose Allison Played Here“ — Greg Brown
The joint is a dump
The owner is broke
At least that's what he said
The p.a.'s a joke
The waitpersons are snotty, the bartender's rude
They want to make sure I know they forgot me
Just great delivery and timing. A catalog of the frustrations of playing at a poor venue, with bad sound and no publicity.
#4: “Homecoming“ — Tom T Hall
Well, dad, I gotta go,
We got a dance to work in cartersville tonight
Let me take your number down,
I'll call you, and I promise you I'll write
I wrote about this as a teaser, because it’s a masterpiece of songwriting craft. The entire song is great.
#5 “Super Trouper” — ABBA
I was sick and tired of everything
When I called you last night from Glasgow
All I do is eat and sleep and sing
Wishing every show was the last show (wishing every show was the last show)
So imagine I was glad to hear you're coming (glad to hear you're coming)
Suddenly I feel all right (and suddenly it's gonna be)
And it's gonna be so different when I'm on the stage tonight
I didn’t really think about the meaning of the song until hearing Teddy Thompson's cover1, but it is about the stress of being on the road. The title, “Super Trouper” is the name of a specific brand of spotlight, and the lyrics are about feeling worn down by the grind but looking forward to knowing that a loved one has come to see this performance.
#6: “Please” Mary Gauthier
Four nights alone in Amsterdam and I missed you every one
I wish this trip was over and it’s only just begun
I don't know when I’ll see you again
I can't think of it, it’s more than I can bear
I know I only kissed you once
But I hold it on my on my lips like a prayer
In contrast to the ABBA song about the comfort of a settled relationship this is about being on tour and navigating a whirlwind crush2. I love Mary Gauthier’s voice on this song, and the lyrics are consistently precise (“I forgot the dream in Aberdeen and panicked / 'Cause it felt like you were gone / I called your number in despair and you laughed at me / Thank God I was wrong”)
#7: “The Load Out” — Jackson Browne
But when that last guitar's been packed away
You know that I still wanna play
So just make sure you got it all set to go
Before you come for my pianoBut the band's on the bus
And they're waiting to go
We gotta drive all night
And do the show in Chicago
A nice tribute to the road crew, and a song about the specific emotions of coming off the excitement of performing and starting to transition to getting back on the road and heading to the next town.
#8: “Bible On The Dash” — Corb Lund (feat Carl Hayes)
It's better than insurance, registration or lyin'
It's better than these fake IDs I keep on buyin'
It's even better than an envelope stuffed with cash
Well, they always said it'd save me, that old Bible on the dash
A humorous song about the risks of getting pulled over while on the road. The video has fun with the national stereotypes — Corb Lund is Canadian and Carl Hayes is American. I’m a big fan of Corb Lunds’ songwriter and this is a crowd-pleaser. Funny, charming, and well-written.
#9 “Every State Line” — Any DiFranco
I'm in the middle of Alabama
They stare at me where ever I go
I don't think they like my haircut
I don't think they like my clothes
I can't wait to get back to new york city
Where at least when I walk down the street
Nobody ever hesitates
To tell me exactly what they think of me
A not at-all humorous song about encounters on the road. I suspect I am not in the core target audience for Ani DiFranco. I often feel, of her songs, that I like elements of them but don’t completely connect to it. There are a handful of her songs that I have no reservations about, and this is one of them. It’s a song full of pissed-off energy but the verses are carefully drawn stories.
#10 “The Next Best Western” — Lucy Wainwright Roche (Richard Shindell)
It's the middle of the night
Near the Indiana line
I'm pulling in a Christian station
The signal's crystal clear
But I cannot really hear
What he says about the Revelation
I am wretched, I am tired
But the preacher is on fire
And I wish I could believe
A song about driving late at night, tired, listening to a preacher on the radio, and just wanting to make it the hotel3. It’s a great song by Richard Shindell (who has a substack), but I think this cover by Lucy Wainwright Roche (daughter of musicians Loudon Wainwright and Suze Roche) makes it slightly easier to follow the lyrics.
Bonus: “Down To London” — Joe Jackson
So if they ask you where I am
I'm in the back of a transit van
In a squat on the earls court road
Gone down to London turning coal into gold
It doesn’t quite fit the theme — it isn’t about touring, but this song inspired by the early days of Jackson’s music career, felt related. He has said, of it, “To me, it's when I was about 17. It's an old story that's retold everyday – people going to the big city to seek excitement, fame or just a job.”
Thanks for listening. If you want more, here is my previous post about songs on a theme — songs named after ships — there was good discussion in comments, so subscribers who only saw my post might want to go back and read them.
You can also see him talk about the song in an interview.
Also the topic of Rodney Crowell’s "Glassgow Girl"
Mike Taylor, who brought the song to my attention, has an amusing story, about disagreeing with Richard Shindell about the subject of the song.
fun selections...but what about Motorhead's We Are The Road Crew?!
Well, there's a whole lot of these types of songs. Some obvious ones:
Journey - "Faithfully"
Credence Clearwater Revival - "Lodi"
Ramones - "Touring"
I feel like every band that has toured has written one. Let me search my memory banks for some more. I know Minutemen and Meat Puppets must have written at least one each.