"On the road again..."

By Hayley Woodin [entertainment bureau chief]

Music is essential for any road trip.

Not only can it pump you up, but it can keep you awake while driving and drown out any whining from your road trip companions.

When asked what constitutes good road trip music, you can’t escape those classic driving songs that immediately come to mind: “Life is a Highway,” “Livin’ on a Prayer,” “Paradise City,” “Summer of ’69,” “Free Fallin’…” The list goes on.

And when searching for music that’s fit for a road trip, it was difficult to find a list of songs that didn’t in some way include a classic rock band, bitchin’ Jon Bon Jovi or Bryan Adams.

So, I figured I could either write up a list of songs that pretty much everybody has heard before, or I could try and find an assortment of not-so-obvious road trip songs from various genres of music.

In no particular order, here is an eclectic mix of road trip songs, with something for everybody, to rejuvenate your own roadtrip mixtape:

Sublime – Santeria
NeedToBreathe – More Time
Kasabian – Fire
Steve Earle – the Galway Girl
B.o.B – Ghost in a Machine
Sam Roberts – Bridge to Nowhere
Tommy Lee – Good Times
MGMT – Kids
Mumford & Sons – Little Lion Man
Phantom Planet – California
Michael Franti & Spearhead – Anytime you need me

And, of course, you can’t forget “I’m Gonna Be (500 Miles)” by The Proclaimers.