When I first got the idea to write about cars and music I needed a way to change it up a bit. This topic has unfortunately been covered to death, so making this piece stand out was going to be a bit of a challenge. The more I thought about it, the more I thought about being a kid again and watching MTV, you know, when it still show music videos. One that immediately came to mind was ZZ Tops, “Gimme All Your Lovin”. It had all the prerequisites for a hot 1980’s music video. Hot chicks, a cool car and a beat that just wanted to make you drive on into the sunset. So, based upon that I did a little research and came up with 20 music videos where the car is the star. Now I’m sure I’ve left some out, so if you’ve got suggestions post them to the comments section and I’ll add them to the list. No go forth and waste time at work…

Michael Jackson, the king of pop and an international icon, passed away today at the age of 50. His life was a mixed bag of headlines, but I’ll always remember him as my first experience with good music. Back in April, Julien’s Auctions hosted a seven-day auction of artwork, games, sculpture and cars from “the life and career of Michael Jackson”. While I wouldn’t consider MJ a car nut by my standards, his collection was not without the flair that made him famous. Here is a sample.

Cars and music go together like peanut butter and chocolate, or, for our peanut-intolerant readers, peas and carrots. The automobile has been romanticized in song for nearly a century. In the early days of the automobile, audiophiles adapted home equipment to work on the road. In 1930 the Motorola 5T71 was introduced giving car buyers a factory-installed radio. Over time the capabilities of automotive audio systems grew to include record players from Chrysler in 1956 to cassette decks in the ’60s to CD players in the ’80s and finally arriving at the MP3 player capability offered in most new cars today. Throughout all of this one thing has remained: the alluring combination of cars and music.

Since the birth of the automobile, there’s been a culture of fanboys (and girls) surrounding it thicker in density than the fuel mixture in a nitrous-tuned engine racing at 3,000 feet above sea level. As a result, countless songs have been penned exalting the many virtues of the automobile. In an effort to properly acknowledge those that accomplish that very feat best, I put together a list of the 10 songs that illustrate/celebrate the nuanced culture of the automobile the best.

1. Oh Detroit, Lift Up Your Weary Head Sufjan Stevens

When you first take in the Cosby sweater-esque cover art and the terrible Bureau of Tourism album title, it’s easy to miss the subtle quality of Sufjan’s Stevens’ underground vibe. In Oh Detroit, Lift Up Your Weary Head, Stevens salutes the innovation of the early auto industry and the genius of Henry Ford while simultaneously lamenting the decline in popularity of the American automobile. Soulfully mourning how the far the mighty have fallen, Stevens’ seemingly disjointed lyrics quietly urge Detroit to remember from whence they came and rebuild their crumbling empire.