My Crazy Cross-Country Road Trip Songs and Artists

If you’ve never been on a solo cross-country road trip you may wonder how you can fill your time in the hours and hours of driving without getting too distracted from the road. The good news is that there are many options, including exploring fun road trip songs, podcasts, news, comedy, sports, audiobooks and so much more.

By the way, I put together my list of artists on my last road trip. If you want to read more about my crazy cross-country road trip, you can start here.

Remember, on a solo road trip there are no other passengers to chat with. Of course, if your car is equipped with a hands-free method to talk on the phone, you can have hours of conversations catching up with friends and family. A couple of notes of warning though. You may find that your phone reception isn’t great on the open road in some rural areas, and calls breaking up or even dropping out for minutes at a time may not be the most fun for long conversations. Also, if you’re in an area where you know you’re going to need to concentrate on making turns and navigating directions, you’ll want to avoid being on the phone, since you definitely don’t want to miss a turn and end up driving hours out of your way.

No Texting Please

Whenever you’re driving a car the #1 Primary Rule is NO texting. Rule #2 – NO TEXTING. Rule #3 ABSOLUTELY NO TEXTING! You might think it’s ok to sneak in a quick text on the straight-as-an-arrow, wide-open highways, but think again. Most of the major freeways and interstates have a max speed of 70 – 75 MPH (113 to 120 KPH). Even with reduced traffic during the pandemic, you’ll see many huge 18-wheeler semi-trucks on the road. These trucks can squash you like a bug if you get in their way, so looking away from the road for a split second at these speeds could mean life or death.

I had a bit of a scare one day when I was checking something on the map on my phone while I was driving (not the smartest move). After what seemed like a millisecond, when I looked up, my car had drifted halfway into the next lane! Thankfully there wasn’t another vehicle there. If there was, it could have been a disaster.

Now, since we’ve agreed that we’re not going to text, here are a few ways that I pass the time when I’m on a roadtrip:

Sometimes Silence is Golden

First of all, this may not be true for you, but I enjoy my own company. In other words, I really enjoy silence. Our world is so full of noise that quiet is a nice break in the car. It’s great for processing plans and problems, dreaming, brainstorming, and imagining. If you don’t normally spend much time in silence, check out this article about how our brains benefit from just 5 minutes of quiet. I spent many hours of many of the days on my road trip in silence. It’s very refreshing!

When I’m on the road I also love observing the nature and scenery around me in silence. Give it a try and I can guarantee you’ll see things you never noticed before, even in a familiar place. If I’m a passenger I like to take pictures, but if I’m driving that’s not so easy (although I have been known to sneak in a photo on my phone occasionally without looking away from the road). Sometimes they turn out and sometimes they don’t, but it’s always fun to see if I have anything worthwhile at the end of the day.

The Quest for a Good Radio Station

If you’ve done any kind of cross-country road trip you know that finding good radio stations in the middle of nowhere ranges from frustrating to impossible. I’ve spent a half-hour scanning stations before finally finding something a little bit acceptable, only to have the station turn into static as I drive farther and farther away from it. In some parts of the country, good options are almost non-existent.

Sirius XM Radio

Over the last 6 years or so, Terry and I have been spoiled by the option of satellite radio. When I bought my last car it came with a free trial for Sirius XM radio. We very quickly found that it came in handy on our road trips. It does cost money and your radio has to be set up to use it, but there are hundreds of stations to choose from. All kinds of music stations, comedy, news, talk, sports, etc. and you don’t need to be within the physical range of the station.

The cost isn’t too bad, depending on your budget. The main drawback is sometimes reception is spotty. If you’re driving on roads with tall trees close to the side of the road or in the mountains where there’s a steep grade above the side of the road the station may cut out a little or a LOT. In comparison to normal radio reception, it’s still MUCH better. Otherwise, it’s a great resource for road trip songs or catching up on news and sports on those long hours on the road.

Podcasts and Audiobooks

Do you enjoy listening to the spoken word? Or maybe you just never found time to get that latest book read at home. You can find thousands of downloadable audiobooks to listen to on the road. Many classics are available for free. The “Free Audiobooks” app on Google Play has access to over 14,000 free audiobooks that are in the public domain.

Or sign up for a free trial of Audible and get 2 free audiobooks with your trial.

Maybe you’d rather have shorter bits of content. If so, then try downloading a few podcasts to your phone or portable device. There are currently over 850,000 different podcasts covering virtually every topic under the sun with over 30 million episodes, so don’t worry about running out of stuff to listen to. If you’re not sure how to do it or where to find them, just do a search for “best podcasts” or narrow down the search with “best podcasts about …” and insert one of your interests, like history, fashion, music, politics, nature, science or whatever.” Besides entertainment, it’s a wonderful way to learn something new while you’re navigating those miles.

My Favorite Road Trip Songs & Artists

Now for my list of fun road trip songs. We all know that music is a matter of personal taste. Sometimes our preferences come from what we grew up with, or what we discovered as teenagers. Some people are constantly discovering new music throughout their life. I’m not always proactive in searching for new music, but I know when I like something, no matter when it came out. Here are 10 musical artists (in no particular order) that I love to listen to on the road and a few of my favorite songs, song lists and albums from them.

1 – John Legend

As an EGOT winner, and fellow Ohioan how can I resist being a fan of the 2019 Sexiest Man Alive. His new album “Bigger Love” features the song “Wild” (video above) which is a perfect road trip song. There are even shots of John and his wife, Chrissy Teigen hitting the road in a convertible.

2 – Billy Joel – An Innocent Man

Do you like oldies? Billy Joel is one of my favorite musical story-tellers and his songs are always fun. Some of my favorites are: “New York State of Mind”, “Say Goodbye to Hollywood” and “We Didn’t Start the Fire”. You can find some of his awesome music here.

3 – Best of Adele

Oh, that amazing Adele! I just love her passion. Her songs like “Hello” and “Rolling in the Deep” are spectacular.

4 – Hamilton (Original Broadway Cast Recording)

If at least one leg of your road trip is two and a half hours or more, then I highly recommend listening to the Hamilton Musical. I’m a big fan of musical theater and this is my all-time favorite show! The nice thing about it is that the play is almost entirely songs, so you can get the full story with the cast recording. It has a wide variety of musical styles, including hip-hop and rap and is brilliant. I listen to it nearly every time I’m in the car for an extended drive. Some of the lyrics fly by, so you may need to listen a few times before you can catch everything. FYI, your kids will love it too.

5 – Bob Ryan

When we lived in Phoenix, Terry played as a musical duo with our friend, Bob Ryan. Bob is a songwriter, singer, musician, playwright, actor, and much more. One of my favorite road trip songs from Bob and Terry is “Maricopa Blues“.

Bob also has an awesome folk album that’s perfect for a road trip in the west, called “The Spirit of Andy Devine“.

6 – Eagles – Hotel California

What better songs can you find for the adventure of the open road than “Hotel California”, “Life in the Fast Lane” or “Take it Easy”? I love the way this album takes you there.

7 – Alicia Keys

I fell in love with Alicia Keys and her music long ago. She is such a genuine human being. Full of kindness, encouragement, and passion. Her song “Empire State of Mind” is perfect for a road trip to New York, of course. So much of her work is inspirational and thought-provoking that it’s worth a listen on the road when you have time to pay attention.

8 – Mercy Me – Welcome to The New

Here’s another album that I can listen to over and over from beginning to end. Bart Millard and the guys in Mercy Me bring a real and refreshing message of grace in these songs. They offer a wide variety of musical styles with an unfathomable message of hope for all of us. Check it out. You’ll be dancing in your seat.

FYI. You may also remember Bart Millard from the song and movie (based on his life) of the same name, “I Can Only Imagine“.

9 – James Taylor

I’ve seen James Taylor in concert more than any other performer. His concerts feel as though you’re sitting in the living room with a group of friends playing music and sharing stories. He is so down-to-earth and authentic. I can’t imagine he’s much different at home than he is on stage and I love that about him. Even though he’s in his 70’s he still brings that smooth and silky easy-going style to his performances.

JT’s gift for storytelling brings so many great songs for the road. I discovered some of my favorites on this “Greatest Hits” album, like “Copper Line”, “Country Road”, “Carolina on My Mind” and “Shower the People”. His 2015 album “Before This World” even has a song called “Stretch of Highway”.

10 – Queen

The 2018 release of the movie “Bohemian Rhapsody” about the band, Queen, and its leader, Freddie Mercury has brought about a resurgence in fans for this complex group and their music. I’ve been a fan since the first time they were in the spotlight. Their music is the kind that you want to crank up in the car and sing at the top of your lungs. They’re perfect road trip songs to keep you awake at the end of the day.

What are your favorite road trip songs? This is the artist and song list that I put together on my latest trip. What do you listen to on the road? Any other ideas on things to do to keep busy while you’re driving?

Would you like to read more about my cross-country USA road trip?

More About My Cross-Country Road Trip

My Cross-Country Road Trip – Planning

Cross-Country Road Trip – Apps and Tools

My 2020 Road Trip – Day 1 – Charleston, West Virginia

My 2020 Road Trip – Day 2 – Kentucky State Parks

Missouri’s Best Foods, Parks & Road Trip Fun

Road Trip Destination – Manhattan Kansas – Day 3

Eisenhower Presidential Library – Abilene Kansas – Day 4

Americana Street Art in Abilene Kansas – Road Trip – Day 4