5 Country Rock Hits That Deserve A Spot On Every Road Trip Playlist

Is there any better genre for road trips than country rock? Road trips are fun, but exhausting, and your CD of "Bach for Breakfast" isn't going to help keep your energy up. Especially if you're driving through the United States, that blend of country and rock, two definitively American genres, is the perfect soundtrack for the open road, fields of gold, spotting the occasional cow, and that miraculous end-of-the-trip sunset.

The songs selected here are a mix of country rock tunes; some lean more rock and some more country. Some capture facets of rugged American lifestyles (like "Poor Old Dirt Farmer"), but others celebrate the irresistibility of wanderlust and the joy of traveling (you know "Wide Open Spaces" has to be on here). This isn't a flying playlist; it's a road trip playlist. Sitting in the car all day with your friends, stopping when you see a funny statue at a dirt road gas station — these tunes invite you to explore, appreciate, and memorialize the joy of a road trip.

A song about running away is always a great fit for a road trip playlist. "Spanish Pipedream," from John Prine's 1971 self-titled album is one of those songs: an escapist fantasy about a soldier running off with an exotic dancer. They're not just running away from home, but from the entire world, with advice like, "Blow up your TV, throw away your paper / Go to the country, build you a home / Plant a little garden, eat a lot of peaches / Try and find Jesus on your own." The dancer is trying to convince the soldier of this the entire song, and by the end the narrator reveals that they did exactly that.

The song's structure lends itself to being interactive, with a narrative element in the verses, but a repetitive, upbeat chorus that demands to be sung. Additionally, the four-on-the-floor bass drum and the peripheral slide guitar poking its nose in between the lyrics gives the track a honky tonk feel which will fit perfectly if you happen to be driving through America's 'no man's land' of West Texas.

John Denver released a cover of the song in 1971, retitling it, "Blow up Your TV (Spanish Pipe Dream). His rendition leans into its singability, adding a call-and-response element to the chorus with the inclusion of a background choir, but the percussion emphasizes the offbeats, which veers away from honky tonk and gives the song more of a ragtime, Appalachian feel. John Denver has a litany of songs that capture the free spirit of a cross-country road trip, but if you're driving anywhere near Texas or the American Southwest, you have to go with Prine.

An anthem to leaving home, hitting the road, and searching for wide open spaces — this song was made for road trips. Written by Susan Gibson, the song is about the inevitable step most young women take of leaving home and striking out on their own in search of their own life and adventure. But no matter how far she gets, her dad's voice echoes in the back of her mind reminding her to "Check the oil."

Whether you're winding up the California coast on the 101, or cruising the never-ending I-70 through the open plains of Kansas, the jangling guitars, playful drums, and rich three-part harmonies of "Wide Open Spaces" are the perfect accompaniment to those long stretches of open fields, grassy plains, and your best road tripping memories.

While some country music fans still hate the Chicks, indie rocker Soccer Mommy exemplifies a newer generation's continued love for the band. "I think 'Wide Open Spaces' is one of those perfect '90s alt-country songs," she said in an interview with NPR. "Plus, it's relatable to any girl who's moved away from home and had to start a new life somewhere." If you need any more evidence that this is a perfect road trip song, the accompanying music video, (which won the Country Music Award for best music video in 1999) features the Chicks on their own road trip, touring the country in a bus.

This song recorded by Levon Helm, formerly of The Band, appears on his 2007 album, "Dirt Farmer," and as you've probably guessed, is about a farmer that can't grow a thing. The only American member of The Band, Helm delved deeper into country music after The Band's farewell in in 1976. He released four solo albums through 1982, but went on hiatus until releasing "Dirt Farmer" in 2007. His last album, "Electric Dirt" was released in 2009 and he died in 2012.

The song immediately grabs you with its opening fiddle passage that gears you up for Helm's opening wail of, "Oh the poor old dirt farmer, he's lost all his corn!" The lyrics and vocal delivery by Helm are undeniably singable; the blues-like dirge for this poor old farmer invites everyone listening to sing along in solidarity. It's not really comparable, but after a long day of driving with the sun beating on you through the windows, it almost feels like you can share the farmer's woes.

There is no call-and-response employed on this song, but the repetitive structure of the verses and the matching rhyme and meter make it easy to follow. Rolling Stone said of the song in 2007, "Helm's drawling howl is heavy with the outrage and sorrow of someone with a deep connection to the land and those who live by it." If you're road tripping through farmland, make sure this one is on your playlist, you'll want to enjoy it as you pass by the farmers driving their tractors, pulling their crops, hoping they grow more than rocks this year.

No matter how long you've been driving, there's nothing like watching the sun go down from a car window with another hundred miles left on the horizon. The uninterrupted time to soak in the beautiful colors painting the dimming sky deserves great music to go with it, such as "Try and Love Again" by the Eagles. Like the setting sun, this song is a reminder that tomorrow is another chance to live, drive, and possibly find love; the opportunities are endless.

The song was released as the penultimate track on the Eagles' 1976 record, "Hotel California," one of the best-selling albums of all time. Although most of the tracks on "Hotel California" were written and sung by Don Henley and Glenn Frey, "Try and Love Again" is the only song on the album written and sung by bassist, backing vocalist, and founding member Randy Meisner. In many ways this song doesn't just mark the near-end of the album, but also Meisner's time with the band. After touring the album for 11 months, Meisner quit the Eagles.

The track's guitars are serene and crispy, the lead vocals are friendly and inviting, and the group vocals are hypnotizing; it's a sunset in a song. While it's undeniably sentimental, it never dives into the realm of sappiness like the following track on the record, "The Last Resort." The consistent pace of the ditty, the joyful attitude, and the moving bass line retain a hopeful atmosphere that belongs on any good road trip playlist.

The title speaks for itself; if you need some encouragement to just get the car started and hit the road, this song should be at the top of your playlist. "See The World" was released in 2006 as the second track on "How We Operate," the fifth album by English alt rock band Gomez. While usually an alternative rock band experimenting with horn lines and the blues, "How We Operate" saw the band delving into country rock with tracks like "Charley Patton Songs," "Chasing Ghosts with Alcohol," and "See The World."

Like all the songs on this playlist, this song has great singability through the chorus and into its bridge. The "Sha-la-las" in the song's back half and the band's carefully crafted harmonies are more than just singable, they're irresistible. The banjo rhythm in tandem with the bluegrass-adjacent guitar weave through each other creating a rich backdrop of country flavor for the rock drums and electric guitar to play on.

Like Gomez exploring country rock, the song lyrics encourage the listener to explore their surroundings: "See the world, find an old-fashioned girl / And when all's been said and done / It's the things that are given, not won / Are the things that you earned." It's as if the song is telling you to get in the car, throw on your playlist, and go see what the world has to offer. Either at the start of your trip or 9 hours in, this song will reignite your passion for the open road and the ceaseless horizon.