Take the Journey: 17 Songs for a Sunny and Warm Summer Vacation

In July we put together a playlist of bluegrass songs for summer vacation and once the inspiration was flowing, it was difficult to stop! We thought we should return to the theme, but slightly zoomed out, to include songs from across the roots music landscape. With the summer still shining, enjoy these 17 folk, Americana, and country songs perfect for your road trip playlist.

“Ride Out in the Country” – Yola

Yola was a 2020 Best New Artist nominee at the Grammys and she’s just returned with a new, full-length album on Easy Eye Sound, Stand For Myself. The entire project is lush and resplendent, like the glory days of orchestral, big-sound country-pop in the ‘60s and ‘70s. For this playlist, though, we return to her prior release, Walk Through Fire, and the perfectly country track, “Ride Out in the Country.” Take the scenic byways and crank the volume!


“I Like It When You’re Home” – Della Mae

One of the nicest silver linings of vacation is missing home – and that delicious feeling of returning to your own space and your own bed after being away. And your loved one(s), too! Della Mae captures that sentiment in this jammy, rootsy track from their album, Headlight. Take the day off, drive north, sit by a lake.


“A Little Past Little Rock” – Lee Ann Womack

A truly quintessential driving song. A must-add even if your vacation route comes nowhere near Arkansas. The baritone guitar intro, the shout-along-with-the-lyrics chorus, the whimsically late ‘90s production. A banger. A bop.


“Sunny and Warm” – Keb’ Mo’

Keb’ Mo’ is a master of vibes. His single “Sunny and Warm” showcases the acoustic blues musician in a more traditional R&B light – and the impact and result are simply golden. This track will have you craving your happy place, wherever that warm and sunny locale may be.


“Heavy Traffic Ahead” – Bill Monroe

Look, we’re The Bluegrass Situation! We’ve gotta get our bluegrass kicks in somewhere – bluegrass is roots music, after all. Given that we left this classic by the Big Mon himself off our Bluegrass Songs for Summer Vacation we felt it was worth inclusion here. And worth a mention so that you’ll go check out the entirely bluegrass playlist, too!


“Country Radio” – Indigo Girls

Finally a country song about country radio – and cruising around aimlessly listening to it – that is enjoyable and free of the guilt associated with the false nostalgia, conservative politics, authenticity signalling, and post-2000s country. Especially the kind most often played on the radio! This Indigo Girls track is testament to all the folks out there who love country music, even if it doesn’t always love them back. Don’t worry, it will. Eventually! (Read the BGS interview.)


“White Noise, White Lines” – Kelsey Waldon

If you catch yourself daydreaming, in a dissociative or meditative trance as you keep it between the lines, Kentucky-born singer-songwriter Kelsey Waldon has the exact soundtrack for you. “Whie Noise, White Lines,” the title track of her most recent album, speaks to that near-trope-ish phenomenon of losing oneself amid the countless miles traveled while living the life of a traveling musician. Waldon, as in most of her music, accomplishes this motif without stereotypes or clichés, and the result is a song that will be a staple on vacation playlists for decades to come.


“Table For One” – Courtney Marie Andrews

A variation on the same theme, this time from Courtney Marie Andrews, “Table For One” is gauzy and lonesomely trippy. “You don’t wanna be like me / this life ain’t free,” the singer pleads, seeking a sense of reality in a life almost entirely abided within liminal spaces. Find peace in the redwoods, but try to hold on to it. You might lose it twenty miles later.


“Two Roads” – Valerie June

Cosmic and longing, Valerie June distills Kermit the Frog’s “the lovers, the dreamers, and me” into album form with her latest outing, The Moon and Stars: Prescriptions For Dreamers. Whatever bug you’ve been bitten by – rambling, restlessness, cabin fever, listlessness – let this song and this album scratch that itch. And as you let the miles fade behind you, on whichever of the two roads you take, don’t forget to look up… at the moon and stars and beyond.


“Christine” – Lucy Dacus

Whether or not you’ve experienced the beautiful, transcendent, and heart-rending forbidden love of being queer — on the outside looking in on love that society has constructed to which you’ll never have access — Lucy Dacus’ fantastic, alt/indie roots pop universe will give you a crystalline window into this very particular iteration of unrequited love on “Christine.” The song feels almost as though you’ve woken from a warm, sunny, time-halting afternoon nap in the back seat of a car yourself.


“It’s a Great Day to Be Alive” – Darrell Scott

Darrell Scott goes two for two, landing on both our bluegrass summer vacation round-up and our rootsy list, too! “It’s a Great Day to Be Alive” is THE song for the moment you realize you’re out of the office, away from your chores, without a care in the world — whether you have rice cooking in your microwave or not.


“Hometown” – Lula Wiles

For those summers when all you can muster is a trip home. Lula Wiles don’t just trade in nostalgia and hometown praise, though, they take on the subject with a genuine, measured perspective that picks up paradoxes, turns them over, and places them back down for listeners. It’s a subtly charming earworm, too.


“Heavenly Day” – Patty Griffin

“Oh heavenly day / All the clouds blew away / Got no trouble today…” The exact intention to be channeling during vacation! Don’t let your summer getaway be one of those vacations from which you end up needing a vacation. Leave your troubles behind, have a heavenly day.


“Midnight in Harlem” – Tedeschi Trucks Band

Your travels may not bring you even within the same state as Harlem, but this song had still better be on your road trip playlist. There’s almost no song better to put on at midnight, wherever you may be roaming, than Tedeschi Trucks’ “Midnight in Harlem.”


“Outbound Plane” – Suzy Bogguss

Every time I step into an airport my anxiety seems to sing, “I don’t want to be standing here with this ticket for an outbound plane.” It’s always true. This writer has not yet returned to the jetways post-COVID, so we’ll see how that goes. At least there will be the security and comfort of this jam (composed by Nanci Griffith and Tom Russell) from Suzy Bogguss’ heyday.


“455 Rocket” – Kathy Mattea

There are plenty of modern versions of muscle cars available and on the road today, but not a single one is an Oldsmobile 455 Rocket! Kathy Mattea represents the rockabilly/Americana tradition of paeans to automobiles and gearhead culture with this loping tribute to a 455 Rocket, an early cut for Gillian Welch and David Rawlings. If you happen to take your country drives in a muscle car, regardless of brand, this track is for you.


“Take the Journey” – Molly Tuttle

What better way to conclude our playlist than with this always-timely reminder from Molly Tuttle? It might be a cliché, though it really is true: It’s about the journey, not the destination. So take the journey! Enjoy its twists, turns, and be in the moment. And take some clawhammer guitar along with you.


WATCH: Yola, “Starlight”

Artist: Yola
Hometown: Brighton, England
Song: “Starlight”
Album: Stand for Myself
Release Date: July 30, 2021
Label: Easy Eye Sound

In Their Words: “I wanted to put something into the world that showed people what my dating life is like now. I’m currently single, yes, but I’m not neglected or some soulless sex robot. The volume of media dedicated to showing dark skinned Black women having a nice normal time in romantic situations, be it true love or just dating, is still lacking in my opinion. ‘Starlight’ is a song about looking for positive physical, sexual and human connections at every level of your journey towards love.

“The world seems to attach a negative trope of cold heartlessness to the concept of any sexual connection that isn’t marriage; this song looks through a lens of warmth specifically when it comes to sex positivity. Understanding the necessity of every stage of connection and that it is possible for every stage of your journey in love, sex and connection to be nurturing. Temporary or transitory doesn’t have to be meaningless or miserable. In the right situations every connection can teach us something valuable about who we are, what we want and what is healthy.” — Yola


Photo credit: Ford Fairchild

MIXTAPE: The Wandering Hearts & The Golden Tonic

Inspired by the reaction we received from our fans to our new single, “Gold,” The Golden Tonic is a selection of songs that have helped us through tough situations, inspired us, or take us back to a specific moment in time. The past year has been heavy and we hope The Golden Tonic works its magic on you. — The Wandering Hearts (Chess, Tara, and AJ)

Editor’s Note: See the video premiere of “Gold” below.

The Tallest Man on Earth – “The Gardener”

This song lifted my spirits at a very low point of my life. I’d just lost my cousin who I lived with and it made me feel like he was everywhere I went and with me in nature and in all of the beautiful things. I have no idea what the song was actually written about, but that’s what is so powerful about music — it will mean very different things to different people. – Chess

Willie Nelson – “On the Road Again”

The song that always accompanies long journeys. When the band is on the road a lot, it reminds me of how lucky we are to be doing what we do but also gets me hyped for whatever adventure awaits! – Chess

First Aid Kit – “My Silver Lining”

My uncle introduced me to a lot of music which has had a huge influence on me, including this song. I was blown away by the rawness and flawless harmonies. The band had just [gotten] together and this song really made me realize that Tara and I have something special when we sing together. I was working all the jobs under the sun at the time, but it gave me such hope that music was possible and that it was all worth it. – Chess

Sister Sledge – “We Are Family”

During the endless UK lockdowns over the past year, when we were feeling down, demotivated or just fed up, my sister and I would FaceTime each other, put disco music on and dance around our kitchens! It really did the trick of getting me out of a funk and also cheering her up with my silly dancing! This song has featured every time and I will, from now on, blast this song if I’m ever having bad day. – Chess

Jason Isbell & The 400 Unit – “If We Were Vampires”

A sad song, but one of those songs that makes me feel so grateful to have what I have in life. It reminds me to make the most of the time we’re given. – Tara

Cyndi Lauper – “Time After Time”

When you feel hard to love or unworthy, a song about not giving up on yourself. It’s about letting yourself be loved. Reminding you that you are enough. – Tara

Dolly Parton – “The Grass Is Blue”

A cathartic song for me. A sad song about survival and heartbreak but also about not allowing that ache to consume you. To find a way through, even if you have to lie to yourself to begin with. – Tara

Ella Fitzgerald – “Blue Skies”

Ella’s voice is a tonic for me. This song is restorative in her tone and phrasing as much as in the hopeful lyrics of a new beginning. – Tara

The Beatles – “Golden Slumbers/Carry That Weight”

Technically two songs, but you really can’t listen to one and not the other and they run in like one track, so there!! Going through “Golden Slumbers” into “Carry That Weight” has a whole journey for me of going through the reflection associated with loss or sadness, transitioning into the self-realization that we only have ourselves, so it encourages me to suck up the pain and keep going. – AJ

Randy Crawford – “One Day I’ll Fly Away”

Randy Crawford’s performance on this song, as so many of her recordings, just has a perfect energy. She sounds so peacefully resolved despite this sad exhaustion in the lyrics. This resolve is so infectious and when I hear her singing through a smile it makes me want to fly away and leave all my troubles to yesterday too! – AJ

Stone Poneys – “Different Drum”

Maybe it’s just me, but I notice when I look for music to lift me out of a rut, it often ends up including songs that feature escapism or leaving. This is no exception and there’s something about the way this song just ploughs on and Linda Ronstadt sings like she’s sticking two fingers up to her problems while driving off into the horizon. I’d like that to be me. – AJ

Shakey Graves (feat. Esmé Patterson) – “Dearly Departed”

Such a tune. It has a really lairy way of facing down feelings of loneliness and subduing them into a kind of angry but empowering joyfulness. I always find this one picks me off the floor a bit and gets me doing the useful easy things, like getting up and making a cup of tea. Might not be the big push I need but just enough to get that movement going. It’s a start and that’s a lot sometimes! – AJ


Photo credit: Shane McCauly

LISTEN: The Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band, “I’ll Pick You Up”

Artist: The Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band
Hometown: Nashville, Indiana
Song: “I’ll Pick You Up”
Album: Dance Songs for Hard Times
Release Date: April 9, 2021
Label: Thirty Tigers

In Their Words: “Well, this song goes out to anyone that drives or has ever driven a POS car. Of all of the songs on the record, this one probably has the most ‘rural’ subject matter, but it’s the most complicated in its vocal layers, and in my mind I wanted to layer it like a Stax records song from the ’60s. It starts with my thumb on the bass, and I wanted my slide guitar and my harmonica to come in together like a horn section. Breezy and Max worked really hard to get the strange vocal layering I came up with to really work in the choruses. And the beat that Max plays is straight ’60s R&B.” — Rev. Peyton


Photo credit: Tyler Zoller

The Show on the Road – Bettye LaVette

This week on The Show On The Road, we feature an intimate conversation with beloved soul and R&B singer, Bettye LaVette.

LISTEN: APPLE PODCASTSSPOTIFYSTITCHER

Covering her remarkable six decades in show-business, we dive deep into LaVette‘s beginnings as a Detroit hit-making teenager during Motown’s heyday (her neighbor was Smokey Robinson), to her early career touring with Otis Redding and James Brown, and the hard times that followed, as a music industry steeped in racist and sexist traditions largely turned its back on her.

While other soulful song stylists like Sharon Jones, Tina Turner, Mavis Staples and others saw their status and popularity rise with time, LaVette remains an underrated, best kept secret on the Americana circuit, with younger listeners just discovering her remarkable work covering anyone and everyone from The Beatles to Neil Young to Billie Holiday.

After nearly dropping out of music, her remarkable comeback began in 2005 with a string of acclaimed records — bringing her from half-filled bars to singing “Blackbird” at The Hollywood Bowl with a 32-piece orchestra, being nominated for five Grammy awards, and being inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame.

One thing you’ll notice immediately is her fiery laugh, which punctuates the episode — even when telling the darkest stories, like her early manager getting shot and her 1960s hits being recorded by white artists, leaving her versions largely forgotten. Her Grammy-nominated newest LP Blackbirds, produced by legendary drummer Steve Jordan, shows her at her most vulnerable best.


Photo credit: Mark Seliger

WATCH: Elizabeth King, “Living in the Last Days”

Artist: Elizabeth King
Hometown: Memphis, Tennessee
Song: “Living in the Last Days”
Album: Living in the Last Days
Release Date: April 2, 2021
Label: Bible & Tire Recording Co.

In Their Words: “There’s so much going on now that you wake up in the morning time and all you hear is something going wrong, you know. It’s affecting your children. People know they wrong but they think it’s right. How is it that a mother can hit a child in the streets and don’t even stop to think. It set my mind back, like in the Bible days, like when the lady went to sleep and killed her child and stole the other lady’s baby. It just let you know that time is getting shorter and shorter every day. If you notice the weather, it look like even the storms are mad. There’s just so many of them. There used to be a storm every now and then. Now, just look like it’s in a hurry to get it over with. I know I’m living in my last days. God already gave me my promise. Every day with him, it just gets sweeter.” — Elizabeth King


Photo courtesy of Nick Loss Eaton Media

WATCH: CeeLo Green, “Slow Down” (Live From Easy Eye Sound Studio)

Artist: CeeLo Green
Hometown: Atlanta, Georgia
Song: “Slow Down”
Album: CeeLo Green… Is Thomas Callaway
Label: BMG / Easy Eye Sound

In Their Words: “The song ‘Slow Down’ is ironic because it actually speeds up the process, pulling you closer to the climatic heights of this heartfelt album and the consumer just continues to soar from there. Recording this video with Dan was like experiencing déjà vu… surreal and exciting. To be able to get that feeling working with him on the album and then reliving it to record this live version was amazing. This album was just a thought and we turned it into a full body of work. From start to finish, to express ourselves the way we did writing this song… it was like an out of body experience.”” — CeeLo Green


Photo credit: Alysse Gafkjen

Artist of the Month: Black Pumas

Even without continuing to tour the world, Black Pumas have lost very little momentum since the arrival of breakout singles like “Black Moon Rising,” “Fire,” and “Colors.” The duo of Eric Burton and Adrian Quesada were shocked to land on the 2019 Grammy ballot as a contender for Best New Artist, and in 2020, they picked up nominations in three more categories: Best American Roots Performance and Record of the Year for the irresistible “Colors,” and overall Album of the Year for Black Pumas (Deluxe Edition). That expanded edition collects several new tracks, a few live versions of familiar favorites, and a must-hear cover of Tracy Chapman’s “Fast Car” — a favorite song of Burton’s to sing while he was busking on the Santa Monica Pier, and later in Austin, Texas.

Drawing on folk songwriting as much as soul groove, both men agree that the term American Roots fits their sound well. The Americana Music Association seconds that notion, as Black Pumas picked up that organization’s Emerging Act of the Year in late 2020. And in January, the band performed a dazzling and powerful rendition of “Colors” on the soundstage of Austin City Limits in recognition of the historic win of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

“The first thing people think of when they say ‘Americana’ is not always music that’s influenced by soul music, but it’s great to be recognized by people that are open-minded music fans,” Quesada tells BGS. “This is every bit as much American music as country music, you know?” Burton adds, “Soul music is just as a part of American music as folk music and country music. This country is a massive melting pot of the different cultures… so we’re honored to be a part of the conversation as we make music in America.”

The two musicians met through a mutual friend as Quesada sought an exceptional singer to add lyrics and a voice to the instrumental tracks he was creating. Little did he know that Burton was around the corner, literally, where Sixth Street meets Congress Avenue. In our two-part interview (Read part one here. Read part two here.), they shared their influences, their first impressions of each other’s talent, and their hopes for the year ahead as our Artist of the Month. Meanwhile, enjoy our BGS Essentials playlist below.


Photo credit: Jackie Lee Young

WATCH: Ben Harper, “Black Beauty”

Artist: Ben Harper
Hometown: Claremont, California
Song: “Black Beauty” (from the 2020 film, Black Boys)
Release Date: January 12, 2021
Label: ANTI- Records

In Their Words: “It was an honor to have been asked to write a song for this culturally vital documentary,” Harper said. “After watching Black Boys and discussing it in depth with [director] Sonia Lowman, I went immediately to work on composing ‘Black Beauty.’ I am old-school and still love getting players in a room together, so a production of this scale during a pandemic was challenging, with quarantine. I was fortunate that the incredible musicians in my circle have taken it upon themselves to become circumstantial recording engineers, and thanks to modern recording technology and some FaceTime sessions, I was able to work by sending tracks back and forth over the internet.” — Ben Harper


Photo credit: Jacob Boll

LISTEN: Annie Mack, “Shadows of a Kingdom”

Artist: Annie Mack
Hometown: Rochester, Minnesota
Song: “Shadows of a Kingdom”
Album: Testify
Release Date: January 29, 2021

In Their Words: “Two years ago my daughter was fighting for her life, for her voice to be heard. No matter how much I loved her and wanted to go through it for her, this was her journey and beast to kill. And she did. I wrote this song for my daughter, but it’s really a love letter to all Black women, giving voice to the defining moments that we can use to step into our power and sovereignty.” — Annie Mack


Photo credit: Shelly Mosman