Route 66 (song)

( Get Your Kicks On) Route 66 is the title of an American blues songs, composed in January 1946 by Bobby Troup and first introduced in the same year by Nat King Cole.

History and Text

Composer Robert William Troup Jr. got the idea for this song during a long drive on Highway No. 66, which he reached coming from Pennsylvania to Los Angeles ( California).

It conjures the American myth of the freedom to put easily into his car (street cruiser ) and unloaded a few hundred miles west to travel from the everyday worries on a dead straight road through the countryside. Along the way, already new ideas ( " kicks " ) would result. The chorus contains the enumeration prominent places that are on this stretch of Route 66 and are partially connected to each other by rhyme.

The following stations are mentioned:

The insignificant place Winona in the U.S. state of Arizona, located east of Flagstaff, has no distinctive significance for the route and would probably not have been mentioned. But Troup needed a rhyme for "Arizona" and therefore added a line "Do not forget Winona ".

The version of the Nat King Cole trio of Route 66 was taken on March 15, 1946 for the label CAPITOL 256 and reached after the publication in June 1946, both the U.S. R & B (# 3) - as well as the Pop ( # 11 ) charts. It became the best-known rhythm & blues song of the trio.

Cover versions, selection of the greatest hits

The registered in the U.S. collecting society ASCAP title is listed with 58 cover versions, in reality, there are likely to be at least 133 versions today, which made the song for the most covered song Road. In the U.S. pop singles chart Manhattan Transfer came ( May 1982 rank 78) and Depeche Mode ( December 1987 Rank 61 ).

  • Bing Crosby & Andrews Sisters (June 1946)
  • Perry Como ( November 1959 )
  • Chuck Berry (19 January 1961)
  • Rolling Stones (17 April 1964)
  • Van Morrison with Them, (11 June 1965)
  • The Manhattan Transfer ( May 1982)
  • Depeche Mode (December 28, 1987)
  • Natalie Cole ( June 1991)
  • Ray Charles (live at the Olympics: November 22, 2000)
  • John Mayer, soundtrack to the movie Cars ( U.S. Premiere: March 14, 2006)

Others

  • A U.S. television series titled Route 66 described two young adventurers who travel around with their Corvette in search of the perfect place. The series, which was not filmed on the original Route 66, began on October 7, 1960 and ended on March 13, 1964 after 23 episodes.
  • Parody: Billy Bragg sang the A13 between London and South Essex in A13, Trunk Road to the sea along the lines of Troup.
Joplin (Missouri) Gallup (New Mexico) Flagstaff, Arizona Winona (Arizona) Kingman (Arizona) San Bernardino, California Record chart The Andrews Sisters The Rolling Stones Them (band) Asleep at the Wheel
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