Route 66
Route 66
| |
| |
| Song | Route 66 |
|---|---|
| By | Depeche Mode |
| Songwriter | Bobby Troup |
| Produced by | Depeche Mode Dave Bascombe Daniel Miller |
| Recorded at | Guillaume Tell (Paris) Konk (London) |
| Length (mm:ss) | 4:11 |
| Tempo | 124.923 BPM |
| Time signature | 4 4 |
| Key | A Minor |
| Recorded | March 10, 1987 |
| Originally released | 28 December 1987 |
| Live performances as Depeche Mode | 88 times * |
| Total live performances | 88 times * |
"Route 66" is a cover of the Bobby Troup song "(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66" recorded by Depeche Mode during the production of the 1987 album Music For The Masses. It was released as a B-side on the "Behind The Wheel" single on 28 December 1987.
Notes
Martin Gore and Andy Fletcher said in the commentary track on the DVD of '101' in 2003:
Martin Gore: "I thought it would be a good idea to record a driving song on the B-side of 'Behind The Wheel', and it was a nice idea to try and incorporate the elements that made up the song 'Behind The Wheel' into that version."
Andy Fletcher: "This is a version of 'Route 66' that was remixed by The Beatmasters. So we did our original version, and then we gave it to these very talented people called The Beatmasters, and they came up with this. It was mixed with a track of ours, called 'Behind The Wheel'. We wanted a driving track to go with it, so we chose 'Route 66'. It was very apt, obviously, for this film, regarding the travelling throughout America. And also ending up in LA as well, so it was perfect. [...] Martin actually got a call from the guy [songwriter Bobby Troup] when we did it, to say that it was one of his favourite versions."
Martin Gore told Best magazine in 1990 (translated from French):
"'Route 66' was a complete DIY. We did this song in less than a day in the studio and it was mixed immediately the next day. For us, there was nothing very serious about it, it was just a good B-side for 'Behind The Wheel', a song for the road. But everyone was crazy about it and we used it a lot for the movie '101'. The Americans even wanted to put it on the A-side of the single. In fact, I think this song was publicised too much, it was not made for that."
Alan Wilder also wrote in his 86-98 editorial in 1998:
"The entire concept for the single release of 'Behind The Wheel' is centred around the theme of motor travel, from the opening sample of a spinning saucepan lid designed to sound like a hub-cap, through to the B-side - a strange hybrid cover of the classic 'Route 66' which included the middle 8 from the A-side. Apart from its obvious vehicular connotations, Alan reveals that this cover was also chosen because Martin didn't have any original songs to use at the time."
Newspaper The Springfield News-Leader quotes Dave Gahan from an unspecified issue of magazine Alternative Press as saying:
"[The highway] held something mysterious for us, and we're known for pursuing that kind of feeling. It is something of an enigma, isn't it? There's something wildly unnerving about that highway."
Lyrics
Route 66
Well if you ever plan to motor west
Travel my way
Take the highway that's the best
Get your kicks on Route 66
Well it winds from Chicago
To LA
More than two thousand miles
All the way
Get your kicks on Route 66
Well it goes to St. Louis
Down to Missouri
Oklahoma City looks oh so pretty
You'll see Amarillo
Gallup, New Mexico
Flagstaff, Arizona
Don't forget Winona
Kingman, Barstow, San Bernardino
If you get hip to this kind of tip
And go take that California trip
Get your kicks on Route 66
Well it goes to St. Louis
Down to Missouri
Oklahoma City looks oh so pretty
You'll see Amarillo
Gallup, New Mexico
Flagstaff, Arizona
Don't forget Winona
Kingman, Barstow, San Bernardino
If you get hip to this kind of tip
And go take that California trip
Get your kicks on Route 66
Songwriter: Robert William Troup Jr.
Publishing Information: ©1946 Chappel / Morris Ltd.. All rights reserved.
Live performances
- Main article: Available recordings of "Route 66"
- Main article: List of dates where "Route 66" was played
