5 Classic Rock Songs Every Boomer's Road Trip Playlist Needs

Boomers may not have invented the beloved road trip, but they certainly perfected it. Loading up the youngsters and setting out on an hours-long voyage to see some of the country's best locales became a quintessential part of that generation's American dream. And a key piece of the road trip puzzle was the soundtrack that played while the highway rolled under their wheels, music that turned the travel experience into a host of indelible memories. Now that playlists make it possible to queue up whatever travel tunes come to mind, boomers have the opportunity to relive some of their finest moments on the road through songs that set the tone.

We suspect boomers would enjoy a mobile revue of the classic rock songs that made their younger years a blast and a half. Our choices for the perfect boomer road trip playlist capture the free-wheeling spirit of having nothing but time, a full tank, and sizzling sounds to make the journey feel like a jukebox on wheels. We're not saying these songs have to be travel-themed. But we think it's cool that there are so many road-worthy boomer tunes that actually celebrate road-tripping, so we zeroed in on several that do, and an opener that sets the tone for great times no matter where your GPS leads you.

A proper boomer playlist for a road trip kicks off with this groovy energy stimulator filled with sunshine harmonies and shifting arrangements, courtesy of Brian Wilson and his talented gang of music makers. There's no better tune for embarking on a long drive through parts unknown than this rollicking surf-adjacent bop that shifts your mood as soon as the opening vocalizations kick in. It's a tuneful tonic that turns back the clock and infuses the voyage with a happy-snappy energy second only to a can of Red Bull.

This is the perfect vehicle for getting your travel buddies to activate their harmonizing abilities. Have everyone pick a part to sing and coordinate a car-bound chorus to get the party started on the right note. Even if your compatriots are hitting all the wrong notes as they go for the gusto, you'll be making new memories that crackle with silly fun while seeing exactly how much talent your pals have been hiding. And if it turns out none of them can sing? Well ... there's always the largely instrumental "Wipeout" that makes a great "Good Vibrations" substitute.

The road anthem created by boomers, for boomers, Steppenwolf's "Born to be Wild" may be aimed directly at the motorcycle set. There are sure to be plenty of boomers revving up their Harleys and heading into the hinterlands with this vintage hit playing on repeat. But even if you have four wheels scraping the asphalt instead of two, you should absolutely have this banger on your playlist ... or your mix CD or cassette, if that's the format you rock in the 21st century. No shade, boomer music-lover.

The big idea being celebrated in this booming boomer-era banger is freedom, the kind that only moving toward whatever awaits in the distance can provide. Sure, maybe you're less "born to be wild" in a Winnebago and more "born to be sleeping in a king-size pop-out with wi-fi and satellite," but the freedom that comes from a well-deserved road trip stirs the soul just the same. It's also a rock song well-known by boomer moms and dads, so it's sure to excite the elders. 

If you have kids or grandkids coming along for the journey, you can show them just how much of a rocker you were back in the day. That's sure to elicit an eye roll or two, but who cares? As Steppenwolf so aptly put it, "Like a true nature's child / We were born, born to be wild," and that includes everyone — especially the boomer piloting the craft.

The Eagles picked up the pace with this jangly finger-snapper of a song, full of images extoling the virtues of not getting caught up in life's tricky traps. Moving along when things get a little too real is the ideal topic for a traveling song. Even if boomers are simply seeing the sights instead of trying to ditch reality altogether, it's fun to fantasize to a California country-rock song that sets the mood and makes you feel like a certified rambler. Sure, you may just be headed to Harrah's for a week of rigged slots and watered-down drinks, but The Eagles don't know that.

Aside from being supremely singable, this classic is chock full of wise tidbits that remind you to slow your roll, even as your road trip shifts into high gear. A gem like "Don't let the sound of your own wheels drive you crazy / Lighten up while you still can" is sound advice for a boomer who's been on the road for hours already and has hours yet to go. Chime in with official Eagles ring leader Glen Frey on vocals, and don't hold back just because the other passengers don't like your voice. By the time you get to the ooo-ooo-ooos at the end, you'll be charged up and ready to make the next leg of the trip. A large cappuccino and a pack of Donette gems from Buc-ees is sure to help.

It may be a cheesy tune to hear as an encore, but even if "Free Bird" has become a Lynyrd Skynyrd concert tradition and feels a bit played out, it becomes a whole new tune when it's a featured track on a boomer's road trip music collection. Picture a moody sunrise as you're pulling out after getting a great night's sleep at a Days Inn, relaxed and ready to keep on trucking. What better backing track could a moment like that call for than one that begins, "If I leave here tomorrow / Will you still remember me? / For I must be traveling on, now / 'Cause there's too many places I've got to see." The band may have meant it as a heartbreaking ode to romantic freedom, but it works just as well to remind you that you're only halfway through your Google Map itinerary. Time to hit the ignition and roll on.

Should this classic rocker-ballad find a place on a travel playlist for the boomer set, it's important to get the timing right. You'll want to be already on the highway — or at least rounding the onramp — by the time the tempo change at the end picks up speed. It makes the perfect high-paced introduction to faster travel, just at the moment when you've shaken off the dreams of the night before in favor of the scenery that surrounds you now. Forget the encore; this time, "Free Bird" is the main event.

So it might be more soft rock or folk-rock than straight-on classic rock. But it's a classic nonetheless, and if your boomer road trip playlist doesn't include a sweet ode to home like this timeless John Denver track, then it's probably not complete. You don't have to be homeward bound to plug into it, either; even if you're just headed for an Airbnb in the mountains or aiming for a coastal crawl, the song celebrates the traveler's spirit and a longing to be where sweetness abounds.

If the boomer road trip you're on does happen to be in the direction of home, the imagery Denver tosses out is bound to make you wistful. Lines like "I hear her voice in the morning hour, she calls me / The radio reminds me of my home far away" are enough to make any road-weary traveler homesick, whether they're headed toward home as a destination or headed back after the adventures have ended. Boomers will need a soother like this to stoke the wistful sparkle of cozy visits and much-awaited returns on both legs of the journey, so be ready to hit "replay" when it's over.