We asked, and wow, did you deliver!
A couple of weeks ago, we put out a call for your all-time favorite RV road trip songs or the ones you play on repeat when you land at the campsite.
We honestly didn’t know what to expect—certainly not as much love as we received. Thanks to Susan in Denver, Travis from the Black Hills of South Dakota, Kylie in Casper, Kendall in Kersey, Cassandra from her latest camping trip, Dione from Sheridan, Thor in Little Rock, Danie and Drew from their world travels, Jenny who’s always looking for the next place to park, Adam from Arizona, and Jessica and her son Eli who share their love of music in the Salt Lake area, and more, we were able to create an eclectic, all-over-the-map (literally and figuratively) mix that just… works. (We know how hard it is to share only one, and we appreciate those of you who didn’t hold back.)
From folk to outlaw country to punk to 80’s synth-pop to blues to hip-hop adjacent pop and a little something from everywhere in-between. We filled in just a couple of gaps ourselves to round things out to an even 50 tracks.
Rather than just dumping them in a pile and hoping they would work, we arranged the mix to mirror an actual day on the road: starting out slow and mellow to go with a hot cup of coffee and a sunrise lighting the way, building through open-highway cruising, picking up energy as the miles rack up to some full-throttle, window’s down favorites until it’s time to pull into your campsite, leaving you with one more for the road.
However you like to drive or camp, there’s a stretch of this playlist for you.
A special note on two of these picks: more than one reader picked songs from Dolly Parton. We just lost this astoundingly beautiful icon this week, and it’s hard to put into words what she means to so many of us. Her music, humor, generosity, and joy transcend every generation and every genre. You didn’t have to love country to love Dolly—and she loved us all right back. We’re grateful her songs found their way onto this list, and even more grateful for everything she shared over six decades. 🧡
Give the playlist a listen in its entirety, or take a look at the complete ordered track list to figure out where you want to drop in. Most of all, enjoy!
Listen on Spotify
The Full Track RV Road Trip Playlist
🌅 Slow Roll—Coffee & Sunrise
- “Here Comes the Sun” – The Beatles
- “Mockingbird” – Carly Simon
- “To the Mountains” – Lizzy McAlpine
- “Daydreamer” – Adele
- “Vagabond” – Caamp
- “Pink + White” – Frank Ocean
- “Two Reverse” – Adrianne Lenker
- “In the Aeroplane Over the Sea” – Neutral Milk Hotel
- “Better Days” – Graham Nash
- “Lonely People” – America
- “Horse with No Name” – America
- “Banana Pancakes” – Jack Johnson
- “Like the Sea” – Wild Horses
- “Mulberry” – Boy Sorority
🛣️ Open Road—Settling into Cruising Speed
- “Wide Open Spaces” – The Chicks
- “Neon Moon” – Brooks & Dunn
- “Jolene” – Dolly Parton (rest easy, Dolly 🧡)
- “9 to 5” – Dolly Parton
- “Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da” – The Beatles
- “Joanne” – Jalan Crossland
- “Big Horn Mountain Blues” – Jalan Crossland
- “Winnebago” – Kenny Chesney
- “American Pie” – Don McLean
- “I’d Love to Change the World” – Ten Years After
- “It’s Called: Freefall” – Rainbow Kitten Surprise
- “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” – The Proclaimers
- “One Piece at a Time” – Johnny Cash
⚡ Picking Up Speed
28. “Walking on Sunshine” – Katrina & the Waves
- “Jessie’s Girl” – Rick Springfield
- “Oh Sherrie” – Steve Perry
- “PYT” – Michael Jackson
- “Rhythm Nation” – Janet Jackson
- “Pink Pony Club” – Chappell Roan
- “Buddy Holly” – Weezer
- “Beverly Hills” – Weezer
- “Clint Eastwood” – Gorillaz
- “Feel Good Inc.” – Gorillaz
- “Love & War in Your Twenties” – Jordy Searcy
- “Can’t Catch Me Now” – Olivia Rodrigo
- “Drivin’ on 9” – The Breeders
- “Wild Horses” – The Rolling Stones
- “Fireball” – Pitbull
🔥 Pedal to the Metal
43. “La Grange” – ZZ Top
- “London Calling” – The Clash
- “Come Out and Play” – The Offspring
- “The Kids Aren’t Alright” – The Offspring
- “Dead Man’s Party” – Oingo Boingo
🏕️ Closing in on the Campsite
- “Bring on the Night” – The Police
- “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” – Simple Minds
🛣️ One for the Road
50.“Ride On” – AC/DC
Got a song that should’ve made the cut (or that you can’t believe we missed)? Drop us a line and help us get started on Volume 2!
