Car CDs
For years the CDs I played in my car were the soundtrack to every drive.
For the last six years I’ve driven a 2004 Chevy Astro van.
Driving a 21 year old van had its perks - plenty of room for any type of activity from weekend trips to lugging my drums to gigs, and no digital touchscreens or tech of any kind. Just a simple CD player.
I’ve been an avid music lover my whole life. I own a bunch of records, CDs, cassettes and an endless music library on my phone thanks to Apple Music. I’m not an audiophile. I’m not concerned with the optimal sound quality or technology. I just want to listen to music. Music relaxes me especially on long drives.
When I started driving the van I found I could listen to the CDs I bought back in high school. I even started buying more CDs. I kept a CD wallet in the center console stacked with about 20 CDs sometimes swapping them out now and then. They became the soundtrack to every trip I took.
I’m taking ownership of a new-to-me 2021 Toyota Corolla this week. It’s got a digital panel, bluetooth, a port to plug in my phone and other gadgets. No more CD player. I’ll miss that old van and the CDs I listened to while driving.
There’s a reason I kept those CDs in my car for so long instead of installing a bluetooth receiver for my phone. The CDs suited driving, cruising, roadtripping, trips to the beach, and any other activity I’d drive to. Some of these CDs I’ve been listening to in my car since high school or college, moving from one car’s glove compartment to the next.
So I made a playlist with all the CDs I kept in the van so I can keep listening to those albums in my new car. Some of the CDs aren’t even available in a digital format so I added some similar albums.
Here’s my car CD playlist:
Bob Marley and The Wailers, One Love.
Another CD I’ve had forever. I think this was from a batch of CDs I bought in high school when I was starting to listen to more than just radio rock music. I’ve probably listened to his album hundreds of times. An essential good-vibes album for any roadtrip, but especially for trips to the beach.
Guns N’ Roses, Appetite for Destruction.
This CD’s been in my car since college. Say what you want about Guns N’ Roses but they were a solid rock band. Top to bottom, this album is a rock n roll masterclass from an era when rock was diluted with costumes, hair-spray, and reverb. (Check out John Jeremiah Sullivan’s essay on The Final Comeback of Axl Rose).
Grateful Dead Cornell 5/8/77.
My introduction to the Dead came from listening to the band’s Sirius XM channel in rented cars on long trips across the western United States. The extended jams, dynamics, and of course the cowboy tunes paired well with those roadtrips. When I really got into the band a few years later, this was the first album I picked up. Thanks to the Betty Cantor-Jackson, this release sounds like it was recorded yesterday and the band’s playing really well - some say it’s their best show ever.
Soulive, Break Out & No Place Like Soul.
Of course I’ve got two albums by one of my favorite bands but actually these both belong to my brother Eric! Break Out was released in 2005, just before we had a chance to see the band for the first time in 2006, so this was the album we bought after our minds were blown. In 2007 the band collaborated with singer Toussaint on this Stax record release for more of a typical ‘song’ album than most Soulive records, though there’s a few instrumentals the band still play. Eric got this copy signed by the band at a record release party at the old Virgin Megastore in Union Square.
Queens of the Stone Age, Songs for the Deaf.
Might this be the greatest roadtrip rock album ever made? It starts with the sounds of a key in the ignition, an engine starting, a door slamming, and radio advertisements. The album is meant to sound like you’re driving from Los Angeles to Josh Homme’s studio basecamp out near Joshua Tree. The first song just jumps out of the stereo and the album doesn’t let up, from Dave Grohl’s pounding drums, to the riff-heavy No One Knows to the catchy Go With The Flow. This is one of my favorite rock records of the 2000s. I’ll have to do an album review of this someday.
The Band, Greatest Hits.
This was a ‘recent’ addition to my collection which came from an uncle’s garage sale and it became one of my go-to’s for longer trips. You can’t go wrong with any of these hits from The Band. If you love American music, whether it’s rock, folk, or country, The Band’s got it all.
Led Zeppelin, Early Days and Latter Days.
I got this two-disc greatest hits album way before I owned any Zeppelin albums and I can remember listening to this record on family camping trips when I was a kid so it’s been travelling with me for a long time. Early Days covers tracks from 1968 to 1971 while Latter Days covers 1973 to 1979. Since Zeppelin didn’t release singles this isn’t a typical ‘greatest hits’ record. It’s a wide assortment of tracks from Zeppelin I to IV, Houses of the Holy, Physical Graffiti, Presence and In Through The Out Door.
Living Colour, Vivid.
I think I got this disc in middle school because I can remember listening to it at my brother Eric’s little league baseball games. When I was a kid I can remember my dad showing me their 1989 SNL performance and I’ve been hooked ever since. I don’t think this band gets the credit they deserve. Their signature blend of hard rock, blues, jazz and funk plus Vernon Reid’s virtuosic guitar-playing and Corey Glover’s socially conscious lyrics elevate Living Colour beyond most of their peers from the ‘90s rock era.
Johnny Cash, At Folsom Prison.
Cash’s classic live concert at the California prison is a roadtrip essential. I remember listening to this one while driving to visit my grandpa in upstate New York. Cash is at his finest, the band is tight, and even June Carter makes an appearance. The album also has a raw intensity from the excited and animated inmates.
Muddy Waters, At Newport 1960.
Released on Chess Records, this is one of the the first live blues album. Waters plays all his hits including Hoochie Coochie Man to I Got My Brand On You. It’s a fun, lively record and some excellent thinking from Leonard Chess to record and release this set as it captures more energy from Waters and his band than some of the more sterile-sounding studio recordings. Fun fact: Waters played John Lee Hooker’s guitar, pictured on the album cover.
Willie Watson, Folksinger Vol. 1 & 2.
Old Crow Medicine Show alum Willie Watson demonstrates he can cover the folk standards canon from Lead Belly to Woody Guthrie and more. Watson plays solo, accompanying his high-pitched holler with a guitar, banjo or harmonica and the records were recorded live in a single take with little compression. In these two albums, Watson brings songs from a bygone era back to life again.
Since music plays such an important role in my life I can recall some of the exact times spent listening to these records in the van and my other cars over the years. I have to write a post about travelling and music in general as the two pair so well together. Some of my favorite travel memories are highlighted by the music I was listening to at the time: Soundgarden while driving across Morocco, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard while on a plane to California, Grateful Dead on long roadtrips.
Since I stuck to mostly albums and several greatest his records in the CD I wonder if I’ll stick to that format or opt for more playlists since my new car is equipped with the very modern convenience of bluetooth. Also I notice that though I have lots of jazz CDs, they didn’t particularly sound good in the car which could be due to the van’s sound system.
I’m glad to be moving on but it’s still the end of my car CD era (I’ve still got a CD player at home though!) At the same time I wonder what new albums I’ll find to complement my future roadtrips.