Old And In The Way #2

By Nelly

"I want to ride my bicyle, I want to ride my bike..."

"If music be the food of love, ride on..." Or something like that.

Face it, on occasion we all like to listen to tunes while we ride. For inspiration when you're not feeling up to a hard effort. To psych yourself up before an intense race. Or simply to keep yourself company on long solo rides.

While we know it's not the wisest thing to do from a safety standpoint, sometimes humming along to some tunes four hours into a ride beats talking to the roadkill for company.

When on an epic mountain bike ride I like a playlist to have lots of boogie based music, old stuff. Tunes that the originators of mountain biking would have been into. Lots of Grateful Dead, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Ray Vaughan and Bob Marley.

I recal as a younger criterium rider getting ready for high speed, handlebar bashing wrestling matches on wheels a little Slayer or Voivod cranked to "11" would be wise preparation for the dash to the first corner.

But now as I'm "Old and in the Way" (Jerry Garcia Band reference), I no longer race but ride on and off ride for fitness but mainly the sheer pleasure of riding a bike. Now I want my tunes to reflect that. So now I present for your perusal my all-time playlist of songs about bikes or with pop-culture connections to bicycles.

Now I know some 18 year old whiz kid is going to tell me "What about the tune "Satan's 10 inch travel huck machine" by Iron MetalliOzzy?" or some similar thing. Hey, I'm "old" remember, "old"!

So here's what, and why:

Nelly's alltime top cycling playlist (your mileage may vary):

1. Overture to "Pee Wee's Big Adventure" by Danny Elfman.

Come on, trenchcoat movie houses aside, Pee Wee is an icon for cycling. I've had a bike stolen, I know how he feels. It's also a fun tune to get the wheels rolling.

2. "Bicycle Race" by Queen.

Yes I had a copy of Queen's "Jazz" album and yes I did have the poster of the nude bicycle race. "Fat bottomed girls will be riding today, look out for those beauties oh yeah!"

3. The Acoustic Motobike by Luka Bloom

It's not the most interesting thing on a very good album (that would be his version of LL Cool J's "I need love.") but hey, it's about bikes.

4. Tour de France by Kraftwerk

I still have the 45 somewhere, picture sleeve and all. Classic bike tune by the guys who provided the sample for Afrika Bambaata's "Planet Rock".

5. 4th Symphony, "the Italian" by Felix Mendelsson

From my all-time favourite bike movie "Breaking Away". You want to get the legs turning, this will do it!

6. Overture to the Barber of Seville by Gioachino Rossi.

Again, used in Breaking Away but let's face it, if you want to get swept up in the romance of cycling, nothing like Italian Opera to do the trick. See also Guiseppe Verdi and Giacomo Puccini.

7. Cycling is Fun by Shonen Knife

Hell, anything by Shonen Knife is fun.

8. Motorcrash by the Sugarcubes

The band that spawned Bjork was even wierder than Bjork. Great tune!

9. This Charming Man by the Smiths

An all time guilty pleasure. Great guitar work and the ponciest lyrics anywhere courtesy of Morrisey. "Punctured bicycle on a hillside desolate. Will nature make a man of me yet?". Probably not.

10. La Bicyclette by Yves Montand

While Italians kick ass in cycling, none have more panache than les Francais. Don't we all dream of riding in France past old men in berets smoking Gallouise someday?

11. My White Bicycle by Tomorrow

I think the Moody Blues also covered this (not like that's a selling point) this tune is about the "communal bikes of Amsterdam. If it's good enough for Amsterdam...

I'm sure everyone out there will have a ton of suggestions and I'd love to hear them.

But for now, I've got my bike, my bell and Pee Wee Herman and we're off to Chuck's Bike-O-Rama!

Posted by bikergrl at September 21, 2005 08:22 PM

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