Music from Thunder Road
used with permission, written by Jack Schwartz   psyjack@email.msn.com

The biker image literally grew up with the speed and volume of rock and roll. From the moment Brando leaned against his Triumph in the 1953 film The Wild One, there was no turning back. The motorcycle and the spirit of rebellion were forever merged in our brains with rock and roll as the soundtrack. So over a six pack I decided to create the ultimate biker CD. Not the same old worn out standards that fill the Harley Biker 2 CD collection, but a more personal, more soulful collection of road songs that both inspire and lead us onto that endless highway of the American dream.

The key things I aimed for in this selection was an occasional bike reference, (preferably Harley, but some exceptions were made), a biker attitude (a must) and/or a love for the open road. So, with that said, saddle up, crank up the volume and let’s move out.

1) Harley-Davidson Blues: Canned Heat - the title says it all

2) Just Want to Ride My Motor-cycle: Arlo Guthrie - and you thought he only liked VW vans

3) Motorcycle Mama: Neil Young - Neil has seen and lived it all

4) Motorpsycho Nightmare: Bob Dylan - Dylan at his barbed wire peak

5) 57 Vincent Black Lightning: Richard Thompson - part soap opera, part celebration, all about love and motorcycles

6) Highway 49: George Thorogood - the first of many cool biker attitude road songs

7) Highway 51: Bob Dylan - the prototype of all modern rock road songs

8) Get your Kicks on Rt. 66: There are many versions but the Rolling Stones sung  about the “Mother Road” (where your editor will be riding for the month of September) on their first album in 1964

9) Life is a Highway: Tom Cochrane - just plain fun, with a solid sing along hook

10) Kings of the Highway: Chris Isaac - northern California bad boy, chick magnet, knows the Pacific coast road like the back of his hand

11)  King of the Road: Roger Williams - cool, cool, cool in that oh so early 60’s way

12)  Unknown Legend: Neil Young - the man who has seen it all - writes about it all

13)  Too Fast to Live, too Young to Die: Robert Gordon - with actual bike sounds!

14)  Eye of the Hurricane: David Wilcox - a folky with an edge, just a great song

15)  Truckin’: The Grateful Dead - you can’t think of the road without these boys leading the way; Jerry will always be the man

16)  On the Road Again: Canned Heat - the perennial beer guzzling band, who live and breathe the open road, no Atkins diet here

17)  Bat out of Hell: Meatloaf - the first time anyone noticed Meatloaf was in The Rocky Horror Picture Show on a Harley - the biker attitude weaves its way throughout all his music and videos

18)  The Boys are Back in Town: Thin Lizzy - no better song to capture the rough  biker image

19) Black Denim Trousers and Motorcycle Boots: The Cheers - It was # 6 on the “Hit Parade” in ‘55

20) Midnight Rider: Allman Brothers - a standard, I’m sure if I didn’t include this one I would be eating a peach

21) Ballad of Easy Rider: The Byrds - McGuin’s sublime ode to the biker myth