"
(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66", often rendered simply as "
Route 66", is a popular song and
rhythm and bluesRhythm and blues is the name given to a wide-ranging genre of popular music created by African Americans in the late 1940s and early 1950s...
standardIn music, a standard is any of the most popular and enduring songs from a particular genre or style. See also Jazz standard, Pop standard, and Blues standard....
, composed in 1946 by American songwriter
Bobby TroupRobert William "Bobby" Troup Jr. was an American actor, jazz pianist and songwriter. He is best known for writing the popular standard " Route 66", and for his role as Dr. Joe Early in the 1970s US TV seriesEmergency!.-Life and music:Bobby Troup was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania...
. It was first recorded in the same year by
Nat King ColeNathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat "King" Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz...
, and was subsequently covered by many artists including
Chuck BerryCharles Edward "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter.Chuck Berry is one of the pioneers of rock and roll music...
in 1961 and
The Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in 1962 in London when multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart were joined by vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early lineup...
in 1964. The song's lyrics follow the path of the
U.S. Route 66U.S. Route 66 was a highway in the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66, US Highway 66, was established on November 11, 1926. However, road signs did not go up until the following year...
highway, which used to run a long distance across the U.S., going from
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with more than 2.8 million people, the 3rd largest city in the United States...
,
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
, to
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
.
"
(Get Your Kicks On) Route 66", often rendered simply as "
Route 66", is a popular song and
rhythm and bluesRhythm and blues is the name given to a wide-ranging genre of popular music created by African Americans in the late 1940s and early 1950s...
standardIn music, a standard is any of the most popular and enduring songs from a particular genre or style. See also Jazz standard, Pop standard, and Blues standard....
, composed in 1946 by American songwriter
Bobby TroupRobert William "Bobby" Troup Jr. was an American actor, jazz pianist and songwriter. He is best known for writing the popular standard " Route 66", and for his role as Dr. Joe Early in the 1970s US TV seriesEmergency!.-Life and music:Bobby Troup was born in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania...
. It was first recorded in the same year by
Nat King ColeNathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat "King" Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz...
, and was subsequently covered by many artists including
Chuck BerryCharles Edward "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter.Chuck Berry is one of the pioneers of rock and roll music...
in 1961 and
The Rolling StonesThe Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in 1962 in London when multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart were joined by vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early lineup...
in 1964. The song's lyrics follow the path of the
U.S. Route 66U.S. Route 66 was a highway in the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66, US Highway 66, was established on November 11, 1926. However, road signs did not go up until the following year...
highway, which used to run a long distance across the U.S., going from
ChicagoChicago is the largest city in the U.S. state of Illinois, and with more than 2.8 million people, the 3rd largest city in the United States...
,
IllinoisIllinois , the 21st state admitted to the United States of America, is the most populous and demographically diverse Midwestern state and the fifth most populous state in the nation...
, to
Los AngelesLos Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the municipality of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123.445 inhabitants...
,
CaliforniaCalifornia is the most populous state in the United States, and the third largest by area. California is the second most populous sub-national entity in the Americas, behind only São Paulo, Brazil...
. The title was suggested to Troup by his first wife, Cynthia.
Composition and lyrics
Troup conceived the idea for the song while driving west from
PennsylvaniaThe Commonwealth of Pennsylvania , often colloquially referred to as PA by natives and Northeasterners, is a state located in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic regions of the United States...
to
Los Angeles, CaliforniaLos Angeles is the largest city in the state of California and the second largest in the United States. Often abbreviated as L.A. and nicknamed The City of Angels, Los Angeles has an estimated population of 3.8 million and spans over in Southern California...
, and the lyrics — which include references to the
U.S. highwayU.S. Route 66 was a highway in the U.S. Highway System. One of the original U.S. highways, Route 66, US Highway 66, was established on November 11, 1926. However, road signs did not go up until the following year...
of the title and many of the cities it passes through — celebrate the romance and freedom of
automobileAn automobile, motor car or car is a wheeled motor vehicle used for transporting passengers, which also carries its own engine or motor...
travel. In an interview he once said the tune for the song, as well as the lyric "Get your kicks on Route 66," came to him easily, but the remainder of the lyrics eluded him. More in frustration than anything else he simply filled up the song with the names of towns and cities on the highway.
The lyrics read as a mini-travelogue about the major stops along the route, listing several cities and towns that Route 66 passes through, viz.
St. Louis, MissouriSt. Louis is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. With an estimated population of 354,361 in 2008, it is the principal municipality of Greater St. Louis, population 2,866,517, the largest urban area in Missouri and sixteenth largest in the United States...
;
Joplin, MissouriJoplin is a city in southern Jasper County and northern Newton County in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of Missouri. Joplin is the largest city in Jasper County, though it is not the county seat. In 2008, the population was estimated at 49,775 and the surrounding Metropolitan Statistical...
;
Oklahoma City, OklahomaOklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, the city ranks 31st among United States cities in population. The city's estimated population as of 2008 was 551,789, with an estimated metro-area population of 1,206,142...
;
Amarillo, TexasAmarillo is the 14th-largest city in the U.S. state of Texas, the largest in the Texas Panhandle, and the seat of Potter County. A portion of the city extends into Randall County. The population was 173,627 at the 2000 census. The Amarillo metropolitan area has an estimated population of...
;
Gallup, New MexicoGallup is a city in McKinley County, New Mexico, United States. The population was 20,209 at the 2000 census. It is the county seat of McKinley County....
;
Flagstaff, ArizonaFlagstaff is a city located in northern Arizona, in the southwestern United States. In July 2006, the city's estimated population was 58,213. The population of the Metropolitan Statistical Area was estimated at 127,450 in 2007. It is the county seat of Coconino County...
;
Winona, ArizonaWinona is a small unincorporated community in Coconino County in the northern part of the U.S. state of Arizona.It is located along U.S. Route 66 and was made famous in the song " Route 66"...
;
Kingman, ArizonaKingman is a city in and the county seat of Mohave County, Arizona, United States. According to 2006 Census Bureau estimates, the population of the city is 27,271. The nearby communities of Golden Valley and Butler bring the Kingman area's total population to around 40,000...
;
Barstow, CaliforniaBarstow is a city in San Bernardino County, California, United States. The population was 21,119 at the 2000 census.Barstow is a major regional transportation center. Several major highways including Interstate 15 and Interstate 40 converge in the city. It is the site of a large rail...
; and
San Bernardino, CaliforniaSan Bernardino is a large city located in the Inland Empire Metropolitan Area of Southern California. San Bernardino is also the county seat of San Bernardino County, California, United States. San Bernardino's estimated population, as of 2006, is 205,010. As of 2006, it was the 18th largest city...
. Winona is the only town out of sequence: it was a very small settlement east of Flagstaff, and might indeed have been forgotten if not for the lyric "Don't forget Winona," written to rhyme with "Flagstaff, Arizona." Many artists who have covered the tune over the years have changed the initial lyrics, usually to "It goes to St. Louis, down through Missouri..." then continuing on with Oklahoma City and so on.
Recording history
"Route 66" was first recorded in 1946 by
Nat King ColeNathaniel Adams Coles , known professionally as Nat "King" Cole, was an American musician who first came to prominence as a leading jazz pianist. Although an accomplished pianist, he owes most of his popular musical fame to his soft baritone voice, which he used to perform in big band and jazz...
, whose rendition became a hit on both the U.S. R&B and pop record charts. The version recorded by
Perry ComoPierino "Perry" Como was an Italian-American singer and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century he recorded exclusively for the RCA Victor label after signing with it in 1943. "Mr...
in 1959 is more complete, including the seldom-heard second verse and also the introductory verse.
The song has become a pop standard and has since been
coveredIn popular music, a cover version, or simply cover, is a new rendition of a previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
by numerous other vocal and instrumental artists, including:
- Acoustix
Acoustix is a Texas-based quartet that won the 1990 International Quartet Championship of SPEBSQSA . They have all, at different times, been members of the Dallas-based Vocal Majority chorus....
- Asleep at the Wheel
Asleep at the Wheel, is a multiple Grammy Award-winning Country/Western Swing band formed in Paw Paw, West Virginia, but based in Austin, Texas. Altogether, they have won nine Grammy Awards since their 1970 inception. In their career, they have released more than twenty studio albums, and have...
- Chuck Berry
Charles Edward "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter.Chuck Berry is one of the pioneers of rock and roll music...
- Dead Boys (On the album The Night of the Living Dead Boys)
- The Cheetah Girls
The Cheetah Girls were an American girl group created by The Walt Disney Company, and made famous by the eponymous Disney Channel original film and its sequels, The Cheetah Girls 2 and The Cheetah Girls: One World...
- Natalie Cole
Natalie Cole is an American singer, songwriter and performer. She achieved success in her early career as an R&B star, but smoothly changed her repertoire toward a more pop and jazz oriented musical style in the early 1990s...
- Perry Como
Pierino "Perry" Como was an Italian-American singer and television personality. During a career spanning more than half a century he recorded exclusively for the RCA Victor label after signing with it in 1943. "Mr...
, only version with the complete lyrics
- The Cramps
The Cramps were an American punk band, formed in 1976 and active until 2009 with the death of lead singer Lux Interior. Their line-up rotated much over their existence, with the husband and wife duo of Interior and lead guitarist Poison Ivy the only permanent members...
- Lamont Cranston
- Bing Crosby
Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby was an American popular singer and actor whose career stretched over more than half a century from 1926 until his death....
& The Andrews SistersThe Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group, consisting of sisters LaVerne Sophia Andrews , Maxene Angelyn Andrews , and Patricia Marie Andrews...
- Depeche Mode
Depeche Mode are an English electronic band who formed in 1980, in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andrew Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
(one of only two cover songs ever released by the band)
- Dr. Feelgood
Dr. Feelgood are a British pub rock band formed in mid 1971. The name of the band, Dr. Feelgood, is slang for heroin, or for doctors who are prepared to overprescribe drugs. In 1962 the name was originally adopted by the American blues pianist and singer Willie Perryman who recorded his song "Dr...
- Bob Dylan
Bob Dylan is an American singer-songwriter, musician, poet and painter who has been a major figure in popular music for five decades. Much of his most celebrated work dates from the 1960s when he was, at first, an informal chronicler and then an apparently reluctant figurehead of social unrest...
- Wes Paul
Wester Paul Gerrard is an English guitarist and singer.Wes Paul grew up in Lodge Lane, Liverpool. Between 13 November 2005 and 2 September 2007 he was the stage manager and compère of Sounds of the Sixties Cavern Showcase which ran every Sunday at The Cavern Club, Liverpool...
(The Wes Paul Band)
- Guitar Wolf
Guitar Wolf is a Japanese garage punk power trio founded in Nagasaki, Nagasaki in 1987. The band is known for songs with piercing vocals and an extremely loud style of noise-influenced punk which emphasizes heavy distortion and feedback...
- The Outlaws
- Hot Zex
Hot Zex is shoegazer band from Russia, Novosibirsk. Their first recordings are from year 1995 and they are still active creating music. Band consists of Vladimir Komarov on vocals and guitar, Anton Zenkov playing bass and Konstantin Nikonov on drums. Vladimir seems to be a leader and songwriter of...
- Jason & the Scorchers
Jason & the Scorchers, originally Jason & the Nashville Scorchers, were a Rock / Country rock band formed in 1981 and led by singer/songwriter Jason Ringenberg....
- The Jolt
The Jolt were a Scottish band formed in Glasgow in 1976.They started out playing 1960s covers and then sped up their music, playing a mix of punk rock and power pop. The lineup was Robbie Collins, Jim Doak and Iain Shedden. The band built up its following playing at the Crown Hotel, Wishaw. They...
- The Legendary Tiger Man
- Jerry Lee Lewis
Jerry Lee Lewis is an American rock and roll and country music singer, songwriter, and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and his pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame...
- The Manhattan Transfer
The Manhattan Transfer is an American vocal music group. There have been two manifestations of the group, with Tim Hauser being the only person to be part of both...
- John Mayer
John Clayton Mayer is an American musician. Originally from Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music before moving to Atlanta, Georgia in 1997, where he refined his skills and gained a following. His first two studio albums, Room for Squares and Heavier Things, did well commercially,...
- Brad Paisley
Brad Douglas Paisley is a Grammy Award-winning American country music singer-songwriter and virtuoso country guitarist...
- Pappo
Pappo is the pseudonym of Argentine blues and metal/rock musician Norberto Napolitano ....
- Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
For the New York based band, see The HeartbreakersTom Petty and the Heartbreakers are a Heartland rock band, most of whose members are from the United States of America. They were formed in 1976 by Tom Petty, Mike Campbell, and Benmont Tench, all of whom had been members of Mudcrutch...
(Pack Up the Plantation VHS only)
- John Pizzarelli
John Pizzarelli, Jr. is an American jazz guitarist, vocalist, songwriter and bandleader. He has had a lengthy career as a recording artist, performing for a variety of labels that include Telarc Records, RCA Records and Chesky Records, among others. He has recorded twenty-three albums of his own,...
- The Replacements
- Rockfour
Rockfour is a Psychedelic Rock band, formed in 1988 in Holon, Israel. Most of their catalog is in English, and they regularly tour the United States.-Early years:...
- The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band formed in 1962 in London when multi-instrumentalist Brian Jones and pianist Ian Stewart were joined by vocalist Mick Jagger and guitarist Keith Richards. Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early lineup...
- Scatman John
John Paul Larkin , better known by his stage name Scatman John , was an American jazz musician and poet who created a fusion of scat singing and dance music, best known for his 1994 hit "Scatman "...
- Brian Setzer Orchestra
- Skrewdriver
Skrewdriver was a punk rock — then later white power skinhead — band formed in Poulton-le-Fylde, England in 1976 by Ian Stuart Donaldson.They became one of the first neo-Nazi rock bands, playing a leading role in the far-right Rock Against Communism movement.-Career:Ian Stuart Donaldson, formerly...
- Téléphone
Téléphone was a French rock band formed in 1976 by Jean-Louis Aubert , Louis Bertignac , Corine Marienneau and Richard Kolinka ....
- Them featuring Van Morrison
Them was a Northern Irish band formed in Belfast in April 1964, most prominently known for the garage rock standard "Gloria" and launching singer Van Morrison's musical career...
- Mel Tormé
Melvin Howard Tormé , nicknamed The Velvet Fog, was an American musician, known for his jazz singing. He was also a jazz composer and arranger, a drummer, an actor in radio, film, and television, and the author of five books...
- Buckwheat Zydeco
Buckwheat Zydeco is an American accordionist and zydeco performer. He is one of the few to achieve mainstream success....
- The Count Bishops
- Hans Teeuwen
Hans Eduard Marie Teeuwen is a Dutch comedian, actor and an occasional singer and director. His work can be described as absurdist, apolitical and confrontational.- Theater :...
- UK Subs
The U.K. Subs are an English punk rock band, the mainstay of which is vocalist Charlie Harper, originally a singer in Britain's R&B scene.-Career:...
Re-worked version
EssexEssex is a county in the East of England region of the United Kingdom. The county town of Essex is Chelmsford.-History:In pre-Roman Britain the territories of Suffolk and Essex were home to the Trinovantes tribe, which had grown wealthy through intensive trade with the Roman Empire, contemporary...
-born
EnglishEngland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west and the North Sea to the east, with the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
singer-songwriterA singer–songwriter is a musician who writes, composes and sings their own material including lyrics and melodies. They often provide the sole accompaniment to an entire composition or song, typically using a guitar or piano...
Billy BraggStephen William Bragg , better known as Billy Bragg, is an English alternative rock musician who blends elements of folk music, punk rock and protest songs. His lyrics mostly deal with political or romantic themes...
also recorded an "anglicised" version of the song called "A13 (Trunk Road to the Sea)" for a
John PeelJohn Robert Parker Ravenscroft, OBE , known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey, radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004. He was known for his eclectic taste in music and...
session. In the song — strummed and sung to the same tune as the original — the landmark cities are replaced with English ones along the route of the A13, with Bragg inviting listeners to "Go motoring, on the A-thirteen".
Appearances in Other Media
The producers of television show
Route 66Route 66 is an American TV series in which two young men traveled across America. The show ran weekly on CBS from 1960 to 1964. It starred Martin Milner as Tod Stiles and, for two and a half seasons, George Maharis as Buz Murdock. Maharis was ill for much of the third season, during which time Tod...
commissioned a new theme song because they wanted to avoid making royalty payments for Troup's song.
The song was performed by
Ray EllingtonRay Ellington was a popular English singer, drummer and bandleader. He is best known for his appearances on The Goon Show from 1951 to 1960...
and his Quartet on
The Goon ShowThe Goon Show was a British radio comedy programme, originally produced and broadcast by the BBC Home Service from 1951 to 1960, with occasional repeats on the BBC Light Programme...
'King Solomon's Mines', first broadcast by the
BBCThe British Broadcasting Corporation, usually referred to by its abbreviation as the "BBC", is the longest established and largest broadcaster in the world...
on December 2, 1957.
The 1981
Burt ReynoldsBurton Leon "Burt" Reynolds, Jr. is an American actor. Some of his memorable roles include Lewis Medlock in Deliverance, Paul "Wrecking" Crewe in The Longest Yard, Coach Nate Scarborough in the 2005 remake of The Longest Yard, Bo 'Bandit' Darville in Smokey and the Bandit, J.J...
' film
Sharky's MachineSharky's Machine is a 1981 motion picture directed by Burt Reynolds, who stars in the title role. The movie is an adaptation of William Diehl's first novel Sharky's Machine , with a screenplay by Gerald Di Pego....
featured a version performed by the
The Manhattan TransferThe Manhattan Transfer is an American vocal music group. There have been two manifestations of the group, with Tim Hauser being the only person to be part of both...
.
The 2006 Disney/
PixarPixar Animation Studios is a CGI animation production company based in Emeryville, California, United States. To date, the studio has earned twenty-two Academy Awards, four Golden Globes, and three Grammys, among many other awards, acknowledgments and achievements. It is one of the most critically...
film
CarsCars is a American animated feature film produced by Pixar and directed by both John Lasseter and Joe Ranft. It is the seventh Disney/Pixar feature film, and the final film by Pixar before it was bought by Disney...
portrays the legendary road, Route 66 as a spectacle of the United States. In doing so, the
film's soundtrackCars is the original soundtrack album of the animated Pixar feature film of the same name. Nine songs from the soundtrack are from popular and contemporary artists. The styles of these songs vary between pop, blues, country and rock...
includes the popular
Chuck BerryCharles Edward "Chuck" Berry is an American guitarist, singer, and songwriter.Chuck Berry is one of the pioneers of rock and roll music...
version and the Grammy nominated "update version" by modern blues rock artist
John MayerJohn Clayton Mayer is an American musician. Originally from Connecticut, he attended Berklee College of Music before moving to Atlanta, Georgia in 1997, where he refined his skills and gained a following. His first two studio albums, Room for Squares and Heavier Things, did well commercially,...
.
The 2006 film
RVRV or Runaway Vacation is a 2006 comedy film starring Robin Williams, Cheryl Hines, Jeff Daniels, JoJo, Kristin Chenoweth, and Josh Hutcherson. The movie began filming in the Vancouver area and southern Alberta on May 25, 2005 and finished filming in December 2005. It was released on April 28,...
features the song, sung by the cast (
Robin WilliamsRobin McLaurin Williams is an American actor and comedian.Rising to fame with his role as the alien Mork in the TV series Mork and Mindy, and later stand up comedy work, Williams has performed in many feature films since 1980. He won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor for his performance...
,
Cheryl HinesCheryl Hines is an American actress, best known for her role as Larry David's wife on HBO's Curb Your Enthusiasm. In 2009 she made her directorial debut at the Tribeca Film Festival with Serious Moonlight.-Early life:...
, JoJo,
Josh HutchersonJoshua Ryan "Josh" Hutcherson is an American film and television actor.He began performing in the early 2000s, appearing in several minor film and television roles...
,
Jeff DanielsJeffrey Warren "Jeff" Daniels is an American actor, musician and playwright. He founded a non-profit theatre company, the Purple Rose Theatre Company, in his home state of Michigan. He has performed in a number of stage productions, both on and off-Broadway...
,
Kristin ChenowethKristin Chenoweth is an American singer, musical theatre, film, and television actress, and author. Some of her best-known roles have included her role as Sally Brown in Broadway's You're a Good Man, Charlie Brown, her role as Glinda in Broadway's Wicked, and her role as Annabeth Schott in...
,
Hunter ParrishHunter Parrish is an American actor. He is known for playing Silas Botwin in Showtime's television series Weeds, as well as for appearing in several Hollywood films.-Life and career:...
, Chloe Sonnenfeld,
Alex FerrisAlexander "Alex" Ferris is a Canadian child actor. He currently stars on jPod as Connor Lefkowitz, and appeared in The Time Traveller's Wife as Young Henry DeTamble.Ferris was born in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada...
) as the closing credits are scroll up the screen.
The 2008 video-game
Burnout ParadiseBurnout Paradise by Criterion Games is the seventh game in the Burnout video game series. It was released in January 2008 for PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360 and on February 5, 2009 on Microsoft Windows. It was also released on the PlayStation Store in September 2008 and via Xbox Live Marketplace's...
(
Xbox 360The Xbox 360 is the second video game console produced by Microsoft, and the successor to the Xbox. The Xbox 360 competes with Sony's PlayStation 3 and Nintendo's Wii as part of the seventh generation of video game consoles....
/PS3) features the song, performed by
Depeche ModeDepeche Mode are an English electronic band who formed in 1980, in Basildon, Essex. The group's original line-up consisted of Dave Gahan , Martin Gore , Andrew Fletcher and Vince Clarke...
.
External links