What's the perfect roadtrip playlist?

Summary

All Songs Considered: "What's the Perfect Roadtrip Playlist?"

Host: Robin Hilton
Guests: Stephen Thompson, Lars Gottrich
Release Date: August 12, 2025

As summer ushers in road trip season, NPR’s flagship music discovery show, All Songs Considered, delves into crafting the ultimate road trip playlist. Host Robin Hilton, alongside music enthusiasts Stephen Thompson and Lars Gottrich, explores various musical categories tailored to enhance the road trip experience. Through lively discussions, personal anecdotes, and shared favorite tracks, the trio offers insights into selecting songs that cater to diverse passengers, energize the journey, and evoke nostalgia.

---

1. Embracing the Road Trip Season

Robin Hilton sets the stage by acknowledging the universal love for road trips paired with the perfect soundtrack.

Robin Hilton [00:17]: "Well, it's road trip season, and nothing goes better with road trips and listening to music."

2. Navigating Road Trips with Kids

The conversation begins with addressing the challenges and joys of traveling with children. Lars Gottrich discusses his strategy for keeping his young daughter entertained during long drives.

Lars Gottrich [03:00]: "And especially if we're gonna do that eight hour drive, I need to have something right at the front of that trip that's gonna like, get her motivated to get through it until she has iPad time."

The trio emphasizes the importance of balancing screen time with engaging music, ensuring that children remain entertained without becoming overly reliant on electronic devices.

3. The Power of Sing-Alongs

Stephen Thompson highlights the significance of sing-alongs in fostering family bonding and making the journey enjoyable.

Stephen Thompson [06:25]: "I think that's a really, really important part of the family road trip and part of teaching your children to be goobers."

Robin shares her experience with the Broadway cast album of "Hamilton," noting how it serves as a perfect sing-along tool for her older children.

Robin Hilton [05:33]: "And my wife along with every lyric. I think having a group sing along is so important when you're in the car with other people."

4. Energizing the Journey with Upbeat Tracks

The discussion shifts to selecting songs that keep the energy high and everyone alert. Lars Gottrich introduces "Mystery" by the Wipers, praising its high-energy and existential themes that resonate during long drives.

Lars Gottrich [12:20]: "It's full of energy. It's existential as hell. It's asking big life questions in every single song."

Robin Hilton counters with her appreciation for Steely Dan’s "Countdown to Ecstasy," highlighting its timeless appeal despite differing personal tastes among the guests.

Robin Hilton [15:14]: "Well, I would. This is my old school from their album 'Countdown to Ecstasy.'"

5. Curating Nighttime Driving Music

Addressing the unique atmosphere of nighttime driving, Lars Gottrich recommends "Monster Collecting" by Unwed Sailor for its meditative yet engaging qualities.

Lars Gottrich [31:05]: "The song's called 'Monster Collecting.' Perfect for that moment in the night where you got a lot of thoughts running through your head and you need to collect them a little bit."

Robin Hilton adds "Midnight Rider" by the Allman Brothers as a quintessential track that combines nostalgia with driving energy.

Robin Hilton [33:21]: "Midnight Rider from their album 'Idle Wild South.' ... it lifts me up, you know?"

6. Tapping into Nostalgia

Robin Hilton emphasizes the role of nostalgic songs in enriching the road trip experience by sparking memories and fostering deeper connections among travelers.

Robin Hilton [41:46]: "This is my playlist called 'No One Needs to Know,' and it is full of all of the 80s pop songs that I actually really, really love."

The guests agree that songs like Simple Minds' "Don't You (Forget About Me)" serve as powerful nostalgia triggers.

Robin Hilton [42:05]: "But, you know, this whole song, so they did not write it. Simple Minds did not write it. ... an anthem of a generation."

7. Personal Playlists and Anecdotes

Throughout the episode, the hosts share their personal road trip playlists and the stories behind them.

• Stephen Thompson discusses his "Grace against the Machine" mix for his daughter, blending 90s hard rock and heavy metal to suit her tastes.

  Stephen Thompson [28:46]: "She loves the darkness, clearly including the band the Darkness. And so I made her a mix, heavy music of the 90s called Grace against the Machine."

• Lars Gottrich talks about his disciplined approach to in-car music control, ensuring safety and enjoyment without distractions.

  Lars Gottrich [11:54]: "I'm not allowed to fiddle. I'm not allowed to, like, be touching screen. So I always literally do boxes of CDs..."

8. Celebrating 25 Years and Top Songs of 2024

In the final segment, Robin Hilton and Stephen Thompson reflect on their favorite songs from 2024 as part of celebrating All Songs Considered’s 25th anniversary. They discuss memorable tracks that have left a significant impact over the past quarter-century.

Robin Hilton [43:05]: "So we'll put all these songs and anything else that we can think of into a road trip playlist that people can find on Spotify and Apple."

They introduce new tracks like "Highlands" by Middle Kids and "God Person" by Matty Diaz, sharing why these songs resonate deeply with them.

Stephen Thompson [45:35]: "This is a song called 'Highlands' by the band Middle Kids... I hear it, and I'm like, this is phenomenal."

Robin Hilton [48:27]: "His behavior and a truly, truly gifted storyteller, too."

9. Wrapping Up and Future Plans

The episode concludes with the hosts announcing plans to release their year-end segments as individual episodes, allowing listeners to revisit favorite tracks and memories. They encourage listeners to create their own road trip playlists inspired by the episode’s discussions.

Robin Hilton [43:41]: "This is a way to inspire you to make your own mix for your road trip."

Stephen Thompson [50:08]: "Thank you, Robin."

---

Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Robin Hilton [00:17]: "Well, it's road trip season, and nothing goes better with road trips and listening to music."
• Lars Gottrich [03:00]: "And especially if we're gonna do that eight hour drive, I need to have something right at the front of that trip that's gonna like, get her motivated to get through it until she has iPad time."
• Stephen Thompson [06:25]: "I think that's a really, really important part of the family road trip and part of teaching your children to be goobers."
• Lars Gottrich [12:20]: "It's full of energy. It's existential as hell. It's asking big life questions in every single song."
• Robin Hilton [41:46]: "This is my playlist called 'No One Needs to Know,' and it is full of all of the 80s pop songs that I actually really, really love."
• Stephen Thompson [45:35]: "This is a song called 'Highlands' by the band Middle Kids... I hear it, and I'm like, this is phenomenal."
• Robin Hilton [48:27]: "His behavior and a truly, truly gifted storyteller, too."

---

Conclusion

"What's the Perfect Roadtrip Playlist?" offers a comprehensive exploration of musical selections tailored to enhance the road trip experience. From kid-friendly tunes and energizing tracks to nostalgic anthems and nighttime melodies, Robin Hilton, Stephen Thompson, and Lars Gottrich provide listeners with valuable insights and personal favorites. Celebrating 25 years of celebrated music discussions, the episode not only curates a diverse playlist but also fosters a deeper appreciation for the role music plays in making road trips memorable.

Listeners are encouraged to create their own playlists inspired by the episode’s categories and recommendations, ensuring that every road trip is accompanied by the perfect soundtrack.

Transcript

[Unknown Sponsor]

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[Robin Hilton]

Mics are on. How are we doing this here? Well, it's road trip season, and nothing goes better with road trips and listening to music. I'm Robin Hilton. All songs considered, Stephen Thompson is here. Stephen, I know you're a road trip warrior.

[Stephen Thompson]

You know, I have been.

[Robin Hilton]

Oh, come on. Your trips to Wisconsin are legendary.

[Lars Gottrich]

This is true. Yeah.

[Stephen Thompson]

They're the stuff of a younger, more foolish.

[Robin Hilton]

And Lars Gottrich, you're here as well. Have you been known to get behind the wheel?

[Lars Gottrich]

I like to get behind the wheel. We do a lot of road trips down to Asheville, North Carolina. That's where my folks live, so.

[Robin Hilton]

But don't you, Steven, don't you, like, get in the car at night, like in the evening or something, and just drive all night or like, you do it in one shot or something?

[Stephen Thompson]

You know, I did that for a really long time. You know, I would go back and I still, you know, to this day have some of the most dearly loved people in my life live in Wisconsin. I love to go back. Driving for 14 to 18 hours.

[Lars Gottrich]

Okay.

[Stephen Thompson]

Does not do for my back what it used to.

[Robin Hilton]

I used to be an absolute machine behind the wheel. Like, I remember one time I was in Kansas and I had a friend in D.C. and he's like, why don't you come out? We'll just hang out. I was like, okay. And I got in the car and drove 21 hours by myself. And I just never didn't think anything of it. And now I don't even like going to Fairfax. That's like 30 minutes away.

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah, Tony, I. Yeah, 30, 40.

[Stephen Thompson]

That's the beltway.

[Robin Hilton]

Who doing that? Maybe we shouldn't be doing the show.

[Stephen Thompson]

What I'm saying is none of us qualify.

[Robin Hilton]

Well. Okay. Well. So the whole premise of this show is we were thinking before summer gets completely away from us, you know, we thought we'd share and talk about some of the songs that we play and listen to when we're on the road. Because this is road trip season and we've got some categories I think we're gonna. And some themes for some of the songs that we're gonna play. Might not get through everything, but let's just see where it goes. Who wants to start?

[Lars Gottrich]

So should I start with kid stuff?

[Robin Hilton]

Well, that is one of the categories, what do you play when you've got kids in the car?

[Lars Gottrich]

Okay, so I used to take solo road trips all the time, but, you know, now I got a kid, she's like five. She's six and a half, which is important.

[Robin Hilton]

Yes.

[Lars Gottrich]

And especially if we're gonna do that eight hour drive, I need to have something right at the front of that trip that's gonna like, get her motivated to get through it until she has iPad time.

[Robin Hilton]

Did you say iPad time? Yeah, iPad.

[Stephen Thompson]

So just to clarify, the entire road trip is not iPad time?

[Lars Gottrich]

It's not iPad time.

[Stephen Thompson]

You are a more disciplined parent than.

[Lars Gottrich]

I. I try, I really do. But anyway. She has fallen in love with Strobe. Yes, yes. She loves Treme and in particular the song Sante. And I'm going to tell you why she loves the song after we hear a little bit of it.

[Robin Hilton]

This is interesting because I. I would not have thought, oh, kid friendly music. But hearing it now, obviously, yeah, it's.

[Lars Gottrich]

Bright, it's very catchy, it's very fun. If I'm starting out a trip with my kid in the backseat, I tend to go for this kind of mood. But my suggestion for those parents out there, your kid is going to fall in love with this song and they're going to want to hear it eight times in a row. So what I would suggest immediately follow this song with their second or third favorite song.

[Stephen Thompson]

You don't just get into a pattern of.

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah. So like, you know, for my kid, that'll be any number of Amy Grant songs from the 80s. Or like Carly Rae Jepsen.

[Stephen Thompson]

She is your. Wow. She is your child.

[Lars Gottrich]

Amy Grant. She's very much my kid.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yeah. Is she into black metal?

[Robin Hilton]

No, she doesn't go from that to Sabbath. Like.

[Lars Gottrich]

No. She hasn't really gotten to the heavy stuff yet.

[Robin Hilton]

Well, I wasn't gonna do one strictly for kids, but I do have one that I play when the kids are in the car because they love it so much. And this is gonna maybe seem like maybe not immediately kid friendly, but I can explain.

[Stephen Thompson]

Oh yeah, how does a bastard orphan, son of a whore and a scientist.

[Lars Gottrich]

Very kid friendly, Trapped in the middle.

[Stephen Thompson]

Of a forgotten spot in the Caribbean by Providence, impoverished and squalor, grow up to be a hero and a scholar.

[Robin Hilton]

Okay, so maybe it's obviously Alexander Hamilton from Hamilton. Maybe for slightly older kids. Mine are 10 and 13. They love this song so much because it is the perfect sing along. Like I put this on and they immediately sing both of them together. And my wife along with every lyric. I think having a group sing along is so important when you're in the car with other people.

[Stephen Thompson]

I was going to talk about sing alongs because I think that's a really, really important part of the family road trip and part of teaching your children to be goobers.

[Robin Hilton]

Yeah.

[Stephen Thompson]

And I mean, I'm serious.

[Robin Hilton]

They ham it up in this. Like, when this song takes off, like, around the part where. Oh, yeah, it's here. Where it's with Leslie Odom Jr.

[Unknown Speaker]

Took a book collection just to send him to the mainland. Get your education. Don't forget from whence you came and the world's gonna know your name. What's your name, man?

[Robin Hilton]

Alexander Hamill. They sing every word. And they're in character. They love it. I never in a million years would have thought, oh, this is the one song I can get the whole family behind. Oh, yeah, it is. Yeah.

[Stephen Thompson]

And I think the Hamilton cast album is a great example of something that works really, really well on road trips, which is music that has a theatrical quality to it that tells a story, definitely, and that helps pass the time. Big part of what you're trying to do on a road trip, you're trying to turn 12 hours into nine and a half hours. And so you put on the Hamilton cast album.

[Robin Hilton]

Well, and you're trying get everyone as animated as possible. Right. Because that also makes the time pass a lot faster. If you've got younger kids, there's some moments in this song where you've got some questions you need to answer, particularly in that opening. Opening or something, what's a bastard? And some stuff a little bit later on.

[Stephen Thompson]

But, yeah, another one for our family was Be More Chill. Be More Chill was a Broadway production that had a cult following on streaming, and that really caught the imagination of a lot of Gen Z kids. Often, like, if I'm desperate, if I'm tired, you know, and I'm in the car with the kids or my partner or, you know, whatever, you put that on and immediately two, two and a half hours are gone.

[Robin Hilton]

Is there something from Be More Chill you wanted to play, or did you have something else you wanted to do for kids? In the car?

[Stephen Thompson]

So Be More Chill. For those who don't know, it's a Broadway production about a pill that this kind of nerdy kid could take in order to be cool. And his best friend Michael sort of gets left behind in the process of that. And so one of the iconic songs from that cast album is called Michael in the Bathroom.

[Unknown Speaker]

I am hanging in a bathroom at the biggest party of the fall. I could stay right here or disappear and nobody'd even notice it all? I'm a creeper in a bathroom? Cause my buddy kinda left me alone? But I'd rather fake pee Than stand awkwardly or pretend to check a text on my phone? Everything felt fine when I was half.

Of a pair.

Through no fault of mine there's no other half there.

[Robin Hilton]

That pill that you were talking about that makes you cool, is that a real thing?

[Stephen Thompson]

Tell me more about that.

[Robin Hilton]

Is that available?

[Stephen Thompson]

That's a fictional item. I mean, recommendation for those who are suddenly like, oh, be more chill. I remember that there is a be more chill tiny desk that is really moving and sweet. And that brings a bunch of the original cast.

[Robin Hilton]

Well, Stephen, I don't know if you remember this, but back when you used to do a regular column called the Good Listener, this was actually a question that you considered one time. I think it was a question that a listener sent in. And the question was, with kids in the car, who controls the stereo? Do you remember writing about that?

[Stephen Thompson]

I do. I think I had to cop to the fact in that column that I don't control the stereo when I'm driving.

[Robin Hilton]

But you said, and I'm going to quote you here, you said, and when listening to music purely for pleasure on, say, a family road trip, it's most fun to stick to songs we'll all enjoy, with an emphasis on Fermo Sapien by Abiotic. I actually don't know that, Robin.

[Stephen Thompson]

I'm sorry. Would you like to hear it?

[Robin Hilton]

Oh, sure, we'll do that. And then I will.

[Stephen Thompson]

I once burned this song to a CD and it just says, kids mix, and it's just the one song. So if we listen to the entire nearly five minutes of Vermo Sapien and it would end, the CD would kind of go. And then it would start over like, oh, let's. Or like, oh, you know, we should skip to the next track. And I would skip to the full dad mode.

[Robin Hilton]

Yeah, no, that's classic.

[Stephen Thompson]

You know, I used to do that when I would drive them to school all the time.

[Robin Hilton]

But the most important line you have here, and you say this at the very end, you say, but the tie. The tie always, always, always goes to the driver. So I want to raise. If there are ground rules for how you pick music in the car, can we all agree on the most important rule is that the driver chooses? Do we agree on that?

[Lars Gottrich]

Yes, the driver chooses, I think is generally a good rule. But there are sub rules in My car. I am not allowed to fiddle. I'm not allowed to, like, be touching screen. So I always.

[Stephen Thompson]

You have to be eating.

[Robin Hilton]

Yes.

[Lars Gottrich]

So I always. I literally do boxes of CDs, but I always have a little stack. I refresh it every couple of months. And, yeah, it's just I have to be able to grab one of those and stick it in and not be fiddling around with my phone trying to find a song that I want to play.

[Robin Hilton]

Do you have something that you get to play because you're the driver that you otherwise might not get to play?

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah. This song is normally meant for solo time, but occasionally I can sneak it in if there are others in the car. And it is the song Mystery by the Wipers.

[Unknown Speaker]

I'm retrospective of someone you used to know I think it's indecision God leaves us a far way to go but you say it's not that way Try to make amends to never end does.

[Robin Hilton]

This sound like Jonathan Richmond to you?

[Lars Gottrich]

A little bit, yeah. Hear that? Sure, sure.

[Robin Hilton]

Totally. So this came out in 1980, I think, from the album Is this Real? Yeah, this is a great example of how maybe music was actually pretty great in the 80s. And I just wasn't hearing any of it because, like, this was not on the radio where I was growing up.

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah, I've been on a real wiper's kick this year. It's basically all I have in a car. Like, if I'm in the car by myself, this is what I am blasting because it's full of energy. It's existential as hell. It's asking big life questions in every single song. So when you're in a car and you're on the highway and you're in your head, you want to scream along to somebody who's also feeling the frustration and mystery of this world. And so the Wipers, especially the album Is this Real is, like, perfect for that.

[Robin Hilton]

I think one of the categories could also be music to get you there faster.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yes.

[Robin Hilton]

This song could fall under that, I think, for my pick for the driver gets to decide that rule. I think I'll go with this.

[Unknown Speaker]

I remember the 35. Sweet advice when you put me on the Wolverine of you and dare.

[Robin Hilton]

It.

[Unknown Speaker]

Was still September when your daddy was.

[Stephen Thompson]

I was quite surprised.

[Unknown Speaker]

To find you with the working girls in the county jail.

[Robin Hilton]

Come on, guys. Steely Dan, you know this, right? My old school.

[Lars Gottrich]

Never. I've tried.

[Stephen Thompson]

I'm aware of their work.

[Lars Gottrich]

No, it's just every now and again, it's like coffee. I Don't drink coffee. But every few years, I'll try it just to see how I feel about it and see if anything's changed.

[Robin Hilton]

And much like coffee, Steely Dan has not changed. It's still coffee.

[Stephen Thompson]

Still the exact same thing.

[Robin Hilton]

Well, I would. This is my old school from their album Countdown to Ecstasy.

[Stephen Thompson]

Oh, Robin, I. I hate to agree with Lars.

[Robin Hilton]

Neither of you. Neither of you know what you're talking about.

[Stephen Thompson]

And I know this has been a blind spot. This has been a blind spot for me my whole life. I think my impression of Steely Dan was cast in amber from, like, Reelin in the Years, and I hate that song.

[Robin Hilton]

Okay, this is not.

[Lars Gottrich]

Can I. Can I share what Steve Albini used to say about Steve Albini? Okay.

[Robin Hilton]

What?

[Lars Gottrich]

He used to call them a wedding band that really needs to try.

[Robin Hilton]

Oh, my God. All right. They are. First of all, they're not a cheesy band. I think that word gets thrown around. They are so weird. They are a very weird band. Their lyrics are incredible. Often complete, like, nonsense. And the musicianship across their records, you know, they worked with so many incredible studio musicians. Next level. I mean, listen to the horn. Listen to the horns on this song.

[Unknown Speaker]

California Tumbles into the sea. That'll be the day I go back to Annale.

[Robin Hilton]

The horns on this are sick. And also the lines like, I'm sorry, California tumble into the sea. That'll be the day I go back to Annandale. All time. Great song, but clearly you feel much the same way the rest of my family does.

[Stephen Thompson]

Lars and I are the kids in the back of the car begging you to change it, because I never get to.

[Robin Hilton]

I mean, they all just have to sit there and fume. When I put Steely Dan on, you know, it wakes me up, it takes me back, it lifts me up, you know? Their 2000 album, Two Against Nature, may be one of the only times the Grammys finally got it right. Beat out Radiohead's Kid A for Album of the Year, Beck's Midnight Vultures, Eminem's the Marshall Mathers lp, Paul Simons. You're the one. They beat that one out for Album of the year, too. But whatever. Steely Dan. Love Steely Dan. You know who else on the team loves Steely Dan? Felix Contreras. I can drop any random line from a Steely Dan song and he'll immediately pick it up.

[Stephen Thompson]

I knew you're not my only friend who loves Steely Dan. I knew there were also people whose tastes I respect.

[Robin Hilton]

Yeah, yeah.

[Lars Gottrich]

Okay.

[Robin Hilton]

Stephen.

[Unknown Speaker]

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[Robin Hilton]

All right, coming up, Stephen Thompson, you and I will talk about our number one songs from 2024. It's the final segment. Wow. That you and I have been doing all spring. Yeah. And this has been quite a march we've been making this year as we look back at some of the memorable music from the past 25 years. This is for All Songs Considered's 25th anniversary. We will wrap it all up later on the show. That plus your weekly reset. That's all coming up. But what's next here for our road trip mix?

[Stephen Thompson]

Well, for many years my kids just had to get used to the fact that, you know, when I was the driver and they were little kids, I had complete control. And when my partner Katie, Katie Presley used to be on this show. When Katie moved in and started joining us on road trips, some changes had to Be made as dictated by Katie Pressley. So we started a mix first on itunes, then on Spotify called Katie is in the Car. If you Google Katie is in the car. Spotify is a public playlist. It's got like 2,000 saves. So.

[Unknown Speaker]

Wow.

[Stephen Thompson]

Other people do use this. It's bangers, I will say, not small, kid friendly, but, you know, one song that everyone in the family can agree on, that is an anchor of Katie is in the car is this.

[Unknown Speaker]

See him flossing in the metal. The games in a higher level dimensions.

We in December, you see, we get them together.

[Robin Hilton]

Is this Justin Bieber's? What do you mean?

[Stephen Thompson]

Or you're scanning, you're scanning. Katie is in the car.

[Robin Hilton]

I'm looking at the Katie is in the car playlist.

[Stephen Thompson]

So that is Tunde O' Lanoran from an album from 2015 called Transgressor. And I think it's actually kind of in the spirit Lars of the Strome song that you were playing.

[Lars Gottrich]

Oh, sure.

[Stephen Thompson]

Where there's just like. There's just sounds whizzing from every corner of the speaker. It's got a jumpy quality to it, and it eventually just blasts into this huge anthemic chorus.

[Lars Gottrich]

You know, sometimes we come to music late, but my personal opinion has always been music comes to you when it should.

[Unknown Speaker]

Right.

[Lars Gottrich]

So I was in the thrift store one day, saw Shania Twain's Come on over and I was like, hey, I know like a couple of her songs. I like those songs. Let me pick this up. Ended up having a revelation about Shania Twain.

[Stephen Thompson]

I mean, you are the godfather of wave, man. I mean, this is true.

[Lars Gottrich]

But I just never spent time with this particular album. And it's just full of a and A songs. Yeah, let's go with the song that everybody knows.

[Robin Hilton]

Let's go, girls, come on.

[H]

I'm going out tonight I'm feeling alright Go Let it all hang out Wanna make some noise really raise my voice yeah I wanna scream and shout no interventions Mango conditions get a little out of line I ain't gonna have to let it be correct I only wanna have a good time the best thing about me little.

[Robin Hilton]

I don't know this song.

[Lars Gottrich]

What?

[Stephen Thompson]

How this is like. How do you.

[Robin Hilton]

I just don't know this song. You, you, you. You said every. The one song everybody knows. I was like, nah, I don't know how to know. I don't know this song. I don't know this song. I don't, I can't. I haven't listened to a lot of Shania Twain. I don't listen to the radio very much. I certainly wasn't in the 90s when I think this came out.

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah.

[Robin Hilton]

Yeah. I mean, this was just not remotely what I was listening to in the 90s.

[Stephen Thompson]

I just assumed this song was on the wind. I mean, I was a college radio music director. I wasn't, like, necessarily listening to a ton of the radio.

[Robin Hilton]

You were playing this on college radio?

[Stephen Thompson]

No, I'm just saying this song was on the wind in a way that was important, impossible to avoid.

[Robin Hilton]

Well, if you didn't have a TV and you didn't listen to the radio and you got all your news from a printed paper, like me at the time, I just. Yeah, I just totally miss this. I. I don't dislike it. Yeah. How's it getting you now?

[Stephen Thompson]

It's joyful. I hate it.

[Lars Gottrich]

I think this is, like, my hot take. But I think this album in particular, come on over, is the blueprint for Taylor Swift's entire career.

[Stephen Thompson]

Interesting.

[Lars Gottrich]

Especially the era when she went from country to pop.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yeah. Certainly the straddling of the two genres feels like it was a blueprint. That's interesting.

[Robin Hilton]

Well, let me play something that I am certain everybody actually knows. Unlike maybe that song, the very obscure.

[Stephen Thompson]

Song that is like, certified diamond by the Ria.

[Lars Gottrich]

For those who don't paint.

[Stephen Thompson]

A picture with words.

[Robin Hilton]

Words.

[Lars Gottrich]

Robin is currently air drumming, but also air guitarist standing.

[Robin Hilton]

Wait for it. Wait for it. Okay.

[Lars Gottrich]

Doing the solo.

[Robin Hilton]

Oh, I'm Breathless. Pat Travers. I'm Guana Kick Booty. Right. Come on. I.

[Lars Gottrich]

No, this is the song for everybody in the car.

[Robin Hilton]

No, no, this is the category songs that'll get you there faster or wake you up. This is an absolute heart attack of a song from the guitarist Pat Travers.

[Lars Gottrich]

Guys, guys, guys. Gotta check this out.

[Stephen Thompson]

I've always known about you, Robin, that there is, like, this part of you.

[Lars Gottrich]

There's County Fair Rock, Robin.

[Stephen Thompson]

Yeah, well, there's also, like, Billy Joel, dad. Robin.

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah, that's fair.

[Robin Hilton]

There is maybe more guitar wankery per second in this one song than anything that has ever been written.

[Stephen Thompson]

Did you not grow up listening to Joe Satriani the way I did?

[Robin Hilton]

It is. It's. The song is ridiculous, and I can't help it. I absolutely love it. Many memories of listening to this song both on the road and in the parking lots that we'd all hang out in, in our cars, wherever we are.

[Stephen Thompson]

This is in Abilene.

[Robin Hilton]

In Abilene, Kansas. Yeah. Tasty. Pat Travers. I'm Guana Kick Booty.

[Stephen Thompson]

Robin. If you didn't already have kids, Two kids would be assigned to you.

[Lars Gottrich]

Oh, they.

[Robin Hilton]

My children hate this so much. This is also under the category of I get to play whatever I want if I'm driving. Oh. Anyway, Steven, we're to you. I guess you get to play something else here.

[Stephen Thompson]

All right, well, you know, one trick to pulling off a family road trip is to meet the other people in the car part way. My daughter. My daughter loves 90s hard rock and heavy metal. And a few years back, she did the greatest thing any child can do for a parent. She said, dad, can you make me a mix?

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah.

[Robin Hilton]

I really thought you were gonna tell the story of when she came to you and said, dad, have you ever seen the Human Centipede?

[Stephen Thompson]

I tell that story frequently. She was about 11.

[Robin Hilton]

Have you ever seen the Human Centipede?

[Stephen Thompson]

I was literally tucking her in at night, had turned out the light, kissed her forehead, and this sweet voice cuts through the darkness. Dad, have you ever seen a movie called the Human Centaur? Oh, God. So Grace has always loved the darkness, clearly including the band the Darkness. And so I made her a mix, heavy music of the 90s called Grace against the Machine.

[Robin Hilton]

Oh, that's awesome.

[Stephen Thompson]

And it kicks off with this.

[Unknown Speaker]

How low can you go? Death row. What a brother.

[Stephen Thompson]

No.

[Unknown Speaker]

Once again back. It's the incredible prime animal, the untenable Public enemy number one five won't set freeze and I can got dumb Can I tell him? Never really never had a gun but it's the wax they sell Cuz a fella like me said well.

[Robin Hilton]

It'S a.

[Stephen Thompson]

Public enemy Public enemy with Anthrax.

[Lars Gottrich]

Right, right.

[Stephen Thompson]

So. So the song. Later in the song, Chuck D shouts out waxes for Anthrax still it can rock bells. And it's like a shout out to Anthrax in this song that is also praising like Eric B and Rakim. And Anthrax took this for the greatest honor imaginable that it was and did kind of a version of the song for one of their albums that pairs up like Chuck D raps the first two verses and then Anthrax kind of comes in and does the second two. And it is, I think, just a wonderful marriage of the two sensibilities.

[Lars Gottrich]

So this is a completely different vibe. But one thing that I've been thinking about lately is how do I soundtrack nighttime when I'm still on the road. Maybe other people have nodded off in the car and I still need music that is driving music, but maybe I don't need somebody singing or yelling at me.

[Robin Hilton]

But you can't. Nothing that's gonna make you fall asleep.

[Lars Gottrich]

Nothing that's gonna make you fall asleep. So it still has to be engaging enough. And so I immediately went to the band Unwed Sailor.

[Stephen Thompson]

Oh, yeah.

[Lars Gottrich]

From the wonderful bassist and songwriter Jonathan Ford.

[Unknown Speaker]

Sam.

[Robin Hilton]

Yeah, this is good. It's like, it's probably not gonna wake anybody else up, right? It's not gonna put you to sleep, but it's got enough drive to sort of lift you up and kind of energize you.

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah, it's a good pick.

[Stephen Thompson]

There's a lilt to it.

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah. Yeah. And this is from a record called Cruel Entertainment, came out this year. The song's called Monster Collecting. Perfect for that moment in the night where you got a lot of thoughts running through your head and you need to collect them a little bit, but you don't need somebody else telling you what to think. So it's like. It's good meditative but driving music.

[Robin Hilton]

Well, if we're gonna do nighttime music, I brought something that I think is sort of the ultimate driving song. It's perfect for night, but actually you could probably do it just about anytime. But I often think about it when I think about nighttime music.

[Unknown Speaker]

I've got to run to keep roping and I'm bound to keep on red I've got one more silver dollar But I'm not gonna let them kill.

[Robin Hilton]

I'm literally never having you on the show again.

[Stephen Thompson]

If you guys don't know Robin, you just grew. You just grew a Hawaiian shirt.

[Robin Hilton]

Allman Brothers. This is Midnight Rider from their album Idle Wild South.

[Stephen Thompson]

I just like Robin's demeanor. The character you are playing this entire album episode is Homer Simpson yelling out the car to his kids. For more about Grand Funk, consult your local library. Is that Homer?

[Robin Hilton]

The Homer Palooza episode. I actually watched that recently with my kids, and I thought everything that Homer played for them was amazing.

[Stephen Thompson]

The competent drum work of Don Brewer.

[Robin Hilton]

The Allman Brothers actually have a lot of great driving music. I would say if you're not going to do Midnight Rider, a great runner up is the song Southbound. I'm assuming you guys know the song Southbound.

[Stephen Thompson]

It all just sounds like Steely Dan playing Reelan in the years.

[Robin Hilton]

There's this great piano part to Southbound, and I remember listening to the this song one time. I was on the highway. I was in my VW Bug driving home from college. It was a long drive and I had this song blasting and it got to the piano solo. And I was air playing the keyboard.

[Lars Gottrich]

Sure.

[Robin Hilton]

Along with this And I'm just. Just jam it. Yes. And I see out of the corner of my eye this other car slowly comes up alongside me on the highway. And I look over and the guy in the passenger seat of the car is staring right at me. He's kind of sitting sideways and he is airplane the piano mocking me. He had seen me playing the keyboard on my invisible keyboard over the steering wheel and. And it made last time I ever played the invisible keyboard in my car. He totally ruined it for me. Yeah. And unless I'm sometimes I'll just go out and sit in my car in the driveway and just play the song.

[Stephen Thompson]

Listen to the song and play playing air keyboard while crying playing the air keyboard over it.

[Robin Hilton]

Anyway, Allman Brothers Midnight Rider. Great song. Everyone should listen to it.

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[Robin Hilton]

Okay, as I mentioned, Steven, you and I are going to hang out here and talk about our number one songs from 2024 that is coming up along with your weekly reset. But I think we all have maybe one more thing that we're going to play here.

[Stephen Thompson]

Well, what I thought I would go with is the go to sing along in the car for my partner Katie. This song by the band Lake Street Dive. And when the song comes on, everybody stops. Katie goes mimics the spraying her throat and proceeds to belt this out at the top of her lungs.

[I]

Would it be true to say that I ordered you or is it you? That's all to me I could say you are the only one I see But I can't stop at 2 or 3 and I am afraid to need you sir I'm too sober, not too snow Take it you may be my problem, not my love.

[Robin Hilton]

Can Katie sing this? Can she sing?

[Stephen Thompson]

You know she can hold her own. She's certainly like the notes are in the correct order. I mean Rachel Price, the singer for Lake Street Dive, she's a tough act to match. But what is fun about that song as a sing along is it's just a completely committed vocal. And I think that's the most fun part of like late night sing along is you Just lean your whole self into the song and you're with your family who love you unconditionally. That is a fun pick me up, wake up late night communal. Everybody's just kind of wired and weird and just committed to the bit for the moment. That is a really fun place in the late night road trip experience.

[Lars Gottrich]

So a lot of what I've been hearing that we have not named as a category is can you air instrument to this song? So I feel like.

[Robin Hilton]

And if you can, then it's in.

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah. So like Robin, you had your traverse thing.

[Robin Hilton]

Yeah, well. And the Allman Brothers.

[Lars Gottrich]

And the Allman Brothers. And Stephen, during the Public Enemy song, you were like, I saw you rapping. So I will enter my song into this category with all due respect, the late Ozzy Osbourne. I have a very special Dio shaped place in my heart for Ronnie James Dio era Black Sabbath. And so turn up the night. Let's do it, Robin.

[Robin Hilton]

Ok.

[Unknown Speaker]

Under I'm suddenly under your spell Know I am a reason the time of the season.

[Stephen Thompson]

The alien.

[Robin Hilton]

Ours is totally air GUITARI oh, God, that face. Lars, you mentioned Stank Face the other on the other recent show we did. And now I've seen it with my own two eyes. It's a thing. This whole album, Mob Rules is awesome. I would have gone with the title track myself is my favorite one.

[Lars Gottrich]

Can't go wrong.

[Robin Hilton]

Yeah.

[Stephen Thompson]

And Dio's post Sabbath stuff is excellent.

[Lars Gottrich]

Oh, Dio. Solo solo Dio. Holy diver. Oh my gosh, forget about it.

[Stephen Thompson]

It's the sound of Iola, Wisconsin in 1986 or whatever it was.

[Robin Hilton]

You also, Lars, you did a whole playlist of metal for driving years ago, many years ago, the NPR music team did a whole series of songs for Road trips.

[Lars Gottrich]

And mine was just simply called Heavy Metal Road Trip.

[Robin Hilton]

Yeah.

[Lars Gottrich]

Yeah.

[Robin Hilton]

Well, Stephen mentioned the importance of sing alongs. I think another thing that is really important is something that taps into the nostalgia. Well, sure. Something from your youth, particularly your teen years. I think anything that takes you back because it'll spark memories which sparks conversations. And anything from that, you know, from that time in your life always leads to more song picks because it makes the other person in the car think of you. You know, Stephen, you've mentioned all these great playlists you have. I have one on my computer and it is called no One Needs to Know this. And in the no One Needs to Know this playlist, you will hear this one.

[Unknown Speaker]

Dancers.

[Robin Hilton]

You know it, baby don't you forget about me. So the lead singer, Jim Kerr, he intended to write more lyrics for this song and those. Although, hey, hey, all that was, like, supposed to be a placeholder. And then he goes into the studio and it does, and they're like, you know what? That sounds pretty good.

[Lars Gottrich]

I didn't know that. Yeah, let's just.

[Robin Hilton]

Let's just go with that. But, you know, this whole song, so they did not write it. Simple Minds did not write it. A music producer who was working on the film wrote the song. Simple Minds initially turned it down. Then they went to, like, Billy Idol turned it down. Corey Hart turned it down.

[Stephen Thompson]

I could hear Cory Hart or Billy Idol.

[Robin Hilton]

These were all great song off. Brian Ferry turned it down. All of them could have pulled this song out. They eventually go back to Simple Minds. They're like, come on, man, you guys got to do this. So Simple Minds very.

[Stephen Thompson]

Come on. Cory Hart turned this down.

[Robin Hilton]

So they were like, okay, fine, we'll do it. And it ends up being this massive hit. It's an anthem of a generation and instantly takes people back to that time. And this song and this whole SoundTrack is now 40 years old. It's celebrating its 40th anniversary this year. Came out in 85. Anyway, so, yes, I'm admitting that I have a playlist called no One Needs to Know. And it is full of all of the 80s pop. Pop songs that I actually really, really love. And this is one of them. I could have gone with Crowded House, maybe. Don't Dream. It's Over.

[Stephen Thompson]

Oh, my God. Anything by Crowded House.

[Robin Hilton]

Squeeze Tempted. Anyway, lots of great stuff. We'll put all these songs and anything else that we can think of into a road trip playlist that people can find on Spotify and Apple.

[Stephen Thompson]

A very confusing road trip playlist.

[Robin Hilton]

What is happening?

[Stephen Thompson]

We'll include Pat Travers, Chuck D, Stromay, Strome, Public Enemy.

[Robin Hilton]

Yes, but these are guidelines. Yes.

[Lars Gottrich]

This is a way to inspire you to make your own mix for your road trip. Yes.

[Robin Hilton]

All right, we'll go out on this, but, Stephen, hang tight. After the song, we're going to talk about our number one tracks from 2024 and wrap up our whole look back at the past 25 years of all songs considered. And then we'll have your weekly reset. But, Lars, I guess for you, it's Hit the Road. Wow. See what I did there? Wow. Buckle up, Buckle up for hitting the.

[Lars Gottrich]

Road.

[Unknown Speaker]

As you walk on by Will you call my name and you walk away.

[Robin Hilton]

Okay, Stephen, we have made it. Our final year in this look back at the songs that have shaped all songs considered in its 25 years gracing the virtual airwaves, and we are up to 2024. The jury is still out on 2025, and I've got a couple things that I immediately think of for 2024, but why don't you go first? And this is sort of your last chance to play Stump the chump with a song that I can't even remember or never heard, even though it was just a year ago.

[Stephen Thompson]

You know, I'm gonna go, oh, man, there's so many directions I could go because there were so many great, like, big monoculture pop hits and also just songs that. That wrecked me in various ways, which I'm sure we're gonna get to, but I think I'm just gonna go with this banger. And I bet you don't know this song.

[Robin Hilton]

Well, you're correct. Well, this does sound really familiar.

[H]

Take a look around the town you grew up in is tired and fading endlessly sighing your family is there expectantly waiting your mother complaining your father is quiet and on the way to the station you pass by the houses dark windows saying there's a reason you sneak out at night to be with all your friends in the open out in the open wherever you are we're just getting started. Out of the dark into the highlands. Give me your heart I wanna hide it and I can't keep waiting for.

[Robin Hilton]

This to change don't know it.

[Stephen Thompson]

This is a song called Highlands by the band Middle Kids. Oh, yeah, I know Middle kids and Australian band. And Middle Kids is one of these bands. They've been floating around for. For years, and every single time they put out a song or an album, I hear it, and I'm like, this is phenomenal. Who is this?

[Robin Hilton]

All right. A band I already love.

[Stephen Thompson]

A band I already love. And this particular song, to me, the fact that this song has not been, like, widely embraced by the entire world as one of the greatest, most inspirational songs in the history of the universe is beyond me.

[Robin Hilton]

I thought for sure you might go with Matty Diaz's God person. Is that your favorite song, would you say, of 2024?

[Stephen Thompson]

Talk about songs that just wreck me. Songs that make me cry every time you and I have bonded over our shared love of this song to the point where I was almost a little hesitant to bring it just because you and I have, I think, on a podcast, openly wept listening to that song.

[Robin Hilton]

Yeah, God person, Matty Diaz. I could very easily pick that.

[Unknown Speaker]

That.

[Robin Hilton]

But I'm going to go with this one that I'm pretty sure you're going to know Modesto. He says the name right there.

[Stephen Thompson]

That does, that does help narrow it down from Pedro the Lion.

[Unknown Speaker]

Isn'T lonely like you thought it would be. At first, I worked a vacuum cleaner salesman job for men I later recognized in Glengarry Glen. I only sold one. She couldn't have afford it. She wrote out the check and burst out sobbing.

[Robin Hilton]

This song, kind of like the one you played for me, it just keeps building. And by the end, I think life is beautiful and I want more. And it's really, it's just a simple story that he tells about how he came to art and music and to appreciate things like that and follow that as a career and life path for him. But really, the story song is about chasing dreams, youthful idealism, and how you hold on to those dreams as you get older. You know, it's like for most people, all those dreams don't always come true. And, you know, I guess the song is kind of a reminder that sometimes they do in small ways that you're not even aware of. And I don't know this, the song kind of crushes me in the best way.

[Stephen Thompson]

I mean, David Bazan has been crushing me in the best way since the early days of Pedro the lion in the 90s, and he's continued to be such a vital songwriter. And he's had this string of albums, each of which is kind of named for a different place in his life where he's reflected on his childhood and.

[Robin Hilton]

His behavior and a truly, truly gifted storyteller, too. But we'll go out on this. And normally I would say, until next time, Stephen, this is out of years.

[Stephen Thompson]

There will be no years, no more. There will be no more years.

[Robin Hilton]

No more years, no more music. So we've been putting these at the end of every episode of All Songs Considered, doing a different year in each episode, closing out the show with these. But I think what we're going to do now is we're going to break all of these out. We're going to drop them as individual episodes in the All Songs Considered feed so people can start looking for those. I think what we'll do is we'll start with the very first batch of five that we did, and then each week we'll we'll drop a new one of these segments. But thanks so much, Stephen, as always.

[Stephen Thompson]

Thank you, Robin.

[Robin Hilton]

And for NPR Music, I'm Robin Hilton. It's All Songs Considered.

[Unknown Speaker]

Letters, too. And I think she likes me, too. And I'm gonna find out. I'm gonna go the Bible College of my cousins in my Sam Stay where you.

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