1: Wanderlust by Bjork
It was very kind of Bjork to name her song after a certain travel magazine. On this dramatic epic, Iceland's most famous singer talks of “relentless restlessness” to step away from society and everything that's familiar: “Whenever the unknown surrounds me / I receive it’s embrace.”
2: The Traveller by Baaba Maal
A warm euphoric track from Senegalese singer/guitarist, with Maal discussing the tough times and lessons learned from a lifetime of travel, as well as all the “colours and sounds and different cultures” he’s absorbed along the way.
3: The Passenger by Iggy Pop
Anthemic classic, with Pop singing about the joys of driving around in a car, out of the "city's backside" and into the open land beneath the stars: "We'll see the bright and hollow sky / The sky was made for us tonight."
4: Planets by Teenage FanClub
A fine string-laden moment from Scotland's Teenage FanClub, about leaving the city behind and "going over the country / And into the Highlands," which is one of travel's great pleasures.
5: Let The Wind Carry Me by Joni Mitchell
Joni Mitchell wrestles with the voices of domesticity vs a life of movement and travel: “Sometimes I get that feeling / And I wanna settle / But it passes like the summer / I'm a
wild seed again / Let the wind carry me.
6: Trans-Europe Express by Kraftwerk
There's nothing quite like a great train journey across Europe, though it's hard to tell how much Germany's influential Kraftwerk enjoyed the ride on this eerie, robotic, electronic track.
7: I’ve Been Everywhere by Johnny Cash
'Crossed the deserts bare, man / I've breathed the mountain air, man / Travel, I've had my share, man," sings Cash, as he lists a long, long list of American cities to prove it, from "Reno, Chicago, Fargo, Minnesota, Buffalo..." through to "Kansas City, Sioux City, Cedar City, Dodge City..."
Main image: Teenage FanClub (Donald Milne).
