TOP 40 DRIVING SONGS OF ALL TIME PART SEVEN: #9 TO #5-WE PICK 'EM

Number 9 on our Top 40 list is a song about LA roads performed by a famous Texas troubadour named Jerry Jeff Walker.‘LA Freeway’ is about leaving Los Angeles, and the mood is relief.

Except that all roads out of town are probably connected to the infamous LA freeway system.

Actually, we don’t know this to be absolutely true but, as visitors on the So-Cal roads/ circus, it sure looks that way to outsiders.

Sometimes you might move fast on that road system- much less rapidly more often. One thing is always true: You will have lots of company on LA roads. Jerry made note of this fact very well with ’LA Freeway’; a place where the car culture is king. Overcrowded roads are a painful reminder of the situation, and a good reason for Jerry’s hasty departure.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2zE9cot3jY&feature=fvw

Number 8 on our Top 40 list is ‘Cruisin’ by Smokey Robinson. Smoke probably had romance in mind when he sang this song, but he also applied sensuality to the automobile journey.

'Cruisin’ was a song about getting there in style, no hurry necessary. It was all in the hands of a master when Smokey sings, and sometimes slow is the right speed. Perhaps this song should be played as a rush hour relaxant every day. Or perhaps as an aphrodisiac in later non- rush hour journeys.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fwiwEdTZ-7c

Number 7 on our list is ‘It’s a long way to the Top (If you want to rock and roll) by legendary easy listening dinner music band AC/DC. These guys knew a little bit about life on the road, and this song is an anthem to their excesses. The untimely yet not surprising death of original lead singer Bon Scott said a great deal about life in the fast lane for the “Thunder From Down Under”. The power guitar chords from the introduction set a great tone for a driving song that picks up speed when bag pipes battle guitars later in the song. Gas pedal meets heavy metal in one of the most explosive driving songs ever recorded.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_UaJ9UKM7kk

Number 6 on our list is ‘Catch Us If You Can’ by The Dave Clarke Five. The boys were a big part of the British Invasion, but they tapped into the inner hot-rodder found in every kid in mid 60s North America with the keys to their father’s sedan-and a fairly poor game plan for the road. A V8 engine in a large land barge meant that 'Catch Us If You Can’ might be the last motivational song ever heard by a kid in his dad’s Buick just before the crash.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8zGvtBCgKeY

Number 5 on our list is ‘Black Betty’ by Ram Jam. From the one-hit wonder department comes ‘Black Betty’; a song with an intense energy that ruled the roost in clubs when white people decided to hit the dance floor. It has enough energy to double as a driving song, so it makes number 5 on our all-time list.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R044sleOW6I

Next time: We wrap it up, so stay tuned-Don't touch that dial.