As a teen, I was queen of the mix tape. When it came to our college sorority parties, I was in charge of the music. Then music made the jump to digital and the playlist was born. So is it any wonder that I have playlists for every occasion? My summer road trip playlist made the miles go by faster on our recent 24 hour drive from Rhode Island to Florida.

But yeah, you can tell I’m a child of the 70s and 80s by my choices. Although I’ve yet to meet a Gen Z that didn’t also love to sing along to “Don’t Stop Believin’.” If you are also a proud member of Generation X, you will find yourself singing along for hours to this playlist. Don’t worry, there are enough popular songs to keep multi-generations entertained and deep cuts to satisfy the music lovers.

I hope you enjoy using this on your next road trip. It should get you through 7 hours of singing and driving. And tell me, what did I miss? Any must-add songs I should include? Leave a message in the comments below.

Summer Road Trip Playlist

You can play the summer road trip playlist on Spotify here, or you can recreate it on Apple Music or Google Music or the music app of your choice:

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6yM8VKYwCARQcaDkf589yV

1. Radar Love, Golden Earring
2. American Girl, Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
3. Life is a Highway, Tom Cochrane
4. Rockin’ Down the Highway, The Doobie Brothers
5. Life in the Fast Lane, Eagles
6. Thunder Road, Bruce Springsteen
7. Sweet Home Alabama, Lynyrd Skynyrd
8. Don’t Stop Believin’, Journey
9. Danger Zone, Kenny Loggins
10. Let it Ride, Bachman-Turner Overdrive
11. Ramblin’ Man, The Allman Brothers Band
12. Free Fallin’, Tom Petty
13. Drivin and Cryin, From Good Homes
14. Take it Easy, Eagles
15. Take Me Home, Country Roads, John Denver
16. Africa, TOTO
17. American Pie, Don McLean
18. Against the Wind, Bob Seger
19. On the Road Again, Willie Nelson
20. The Boys of Summer, Don Henley
21. Peaceful Easy Feeling, Eagles
22. Into the Mystic, Van Morrison
23. Carolina in My Mind, James Taylor
24. December, 1963 (Oh What a Night), Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons
25. Three Little Birds, Bob Marley & The Wailers
26. Margaritaville, Jimmy Buffet
27. All I Wanna Do, Sheryl Crow
28. Centerfield, John Fogerty
29. Summer of ’69, Bryan Adams
30. Cheeseburger in Paradise, Jimmy Buffet
31. Hooked on a Feeling, Blue Swede
32. Melissa, The Allman Brothers Band
33. And it Stoned Me, Van Morrison
34. Tequila Sunrise, Eagles
35. Fire and Rain, James Taylor
36. Suspicious Minds, Elvis Presley
37. Jamming, Bob Marley & The Wailers
38. Escape (The Pina Colada Song), Rupert Holmes
39. Sugar Magnolia, Grateful Dead
40. Brown Eyed Girl, Van Morrison
41. Bamboleo, Gipsy Kings
42. Under the Boardwalk, The Drifters
43. I Still Haven’t Found What I’m Looking For, U2
44. Box of Rain, Grateful Dead
45. Soak up the Sun, Sheryl Crow
46. Heart of Glass, Blondie
47. Dancing Queen, ABBA
48. Only Wanna Be with You, Hootie & The Blowfish
49. Baila Me, Gipsy Kings
50. Ballroom Blitz, Sweet
51. Smooth, Santana & Rob Thomas
52. Hard Sun, Eddie Vedder
53. Only Time Will Tell, Asia
54. All Summer Long, Kid Rock
55. Born in the U.S.A., Bruce Springsteen
56. Heat of the Moment, Asia
57. Down Under, Men at Work
58. Last Night, Traveling Wilburys
59. Eye of the Tiger, Survivor
60. Have you Ever Seen the Rain, Creedence Clearwater Revival
61. Cold as Ice, Foreigner
62. Africa, TOTO
63. Closer to Fine, Indigo Girls
64. Like the Way I Do, Melissa Etheridge
65. Spirit in the Sky, Norman Greenbaum
66. Rosanna, TOTO
67. Lady, Little River Band
68. Don’t Bring me Down, Electric Light Orchestra
69. Drift Away, Uncle Kracker
70. End of the Line, The Traveling Wilburys
71. Carry on Wayward Son, Kansas
72. Rock N’ Roll Fantasy, Bad Company
73. Mustang Sally, The Commitments
74. I Wanna be Sedated, The Ramones
75. Money for Nothing, Dire Straits
76. Friend of the Devil, Grateful Dead
77. Skating Away (On the Thin Ice of a New Day), Jethro Tull
78. Another Brick in the Wall, Pt. 1, Pink Floyd
79. The Devil Went Down to Georgia, The Charlie Daniels Band
80. Immigrant Song, Led Zeppelin
81. Bohemian Rhapsody, Queen
82. Fast Car, Tracy Chapman
83. Running to Stand Still, U2
84. Under Pressure, Queen
85. Pride (In the Name of Love), U2
86. Southern Cross, Crosby, Stills & Nash
87. Sweet Child O’Mine, Guns N’ Roses
88. Love Shack, The B-52s
89. Believe it or Not (Theme from the “Greatest American Hero”), Joey Scarbury
90. Little Red Corvette, Prince
91. Jolene, Dolly Parton
92. Come on Eileen, Dexys Midnight Runners
93. Crazy in Love, Beyoncé
94. Pour Some Sugar on Me, Def Leppard
95. Livin’ on a Prayer, Bon Jovi
96. Son of a Preacher Man, Dusty Springfield
97. Jessie’s Girl, Rick Springfield
98. I Want You to Want Me, Cheap Trick
99. Ring of Fire, Johnny Cash
100. Born to Run, Bruce Springsteen
101. Jack & Diane, John Mellencamp
102. Fortunate Son, Creedence Clearwater Revival
103. Running on Empty, Jackson Browne
104. Runnin’ Down a Dream, Tom Petty
105. Uncle John’s Band, Grateful Dead
106. Reelin’ in the Years, Steely Dan
107. Truckin’, Grateful Dead
108. Heart of Gold, Neil Young
109. China Grove, The Doobie Brothers
110. Bad Moon Rising, Creedence Clearwater Revival
111. Life’s Been Good, Joe Walsh
112. Ramble On, Led Zeppelin
113. Fly Like an Eagle, Steve Miller Band
114. Silver Thunderbird, Marc Cohn
115. Me and Bobby McGee, Janis Joplin
116. Brandy (You’re a Fine Girl), Looking Glass
117. If the Wind Blows, From Good Homes
118. Sympathy for the Devil, Rolling Stones
119. Going to California, Led Zeppelin
120. Crazy Train, Ozzy Osbourne
121. Fade to Black, Metallica
122. Wish you Were Here, Pink Floyd
123. Cecilia, Simon & Garfunkel
124. Walking in Memphis, Marc Cohn
125. Graceland, Paul Simon
126. Comin’ on Home, From Good Homes

So what songs are your favorites?

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