Best and Worst Songs for Driving
Drivers haven't stopped believin' in Journey as the 80s chart-toppers had the No. 1 and No. 4 spots in Insurance.com's survey of best driving songs.
Insurance.com commissioned a survey of 2,000 drivers and asked them to choose the best and worst songs for driving, as well as music they listen to in the car that they don't publicly admit liking.
The following percentage of voters chose these songs as the best car music:
- "Don't Stop Believin'" by Journey: 30%
- "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen: 27%
- "You Shook Me All Night Long" by AC/DC: 22%
- "Any Way You Want It" by Journey: 22%
- "Life is a Highway" by Tom Cochrane: 21%
- "Dancing Queen" by ABBA: 19%
- "American Girl" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: 16%
- "Don't Stop Till You Get Enough" by Michael Jackson: 15%
- "Born to Run" by Bruce Springsteen: 14%
- "Fortunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival: 14%
- "September" by Earth, Wind and Fire: 13%
- "Every Day is a Winding Road" by Sheryl Crow: 13%
- "California Love" by 2Pac: 13%
- "Drive My Car" by the Beatles: 13%
- "Little Red Corvette" by Prince: 13%
- "Runnin' Down a Dream" by Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers: 12%
- "This is How We Do It" by Montell Jordan: 11%
- "I'm Gonna Be (500 Miles)" by The Proclaimers: 9%
- "Holiday" by Madonna: 9%
- "London Calling" by The Clash: 6%
Percentages total more than 100 because respondents were allowed to choose up to five songs.
Road warrior themes drove the popular write-in choices for best road music."Highway to Hell" by AC/DC, "Radar Love" by Golden Earring and "I Can't Drive 55" by Sammy Hagar topped the list of respondent picks for songs that people enjoy hearing in the car.
Worst songs for driving
Despite being played in sports stadiums nationwide, winning the Grammy for Best Dance Recording and becoming a popular cultural catch-phrase to kick off the turn of the century in 2000, "Who Let the Dogs Out?" only reached No. 40 on the Billboard Hot 100 list. Fourteen years later The Baha Men's break-out hit is finally No. 1 - on the list of songs that make you want to turn the radio off. Taylor Swift's break-up anthem and Cher's comeback dance-club song only trailed by 4 and 7 points, respectively, faring worse than even the earnest oldie "Feelings."
The following percentage of voters chose these songs as the worst car music:
- "Who Let the Dogs Out?" by The Baha Men: 29%
- "We Are Never, Ever Getting Back Together" by Taylor Swift: 25%
- "Believe" by Cher: 22%
- "Feelings" by Morris Albert: 20%
- "Papa Don't Preach" by Madonna: 18%
- "Firework" by Katy Perry: 18%
- "Mambo #5" by Lou Bega: 18%
- "You're Beautiful" by James Blunt: 14%
- "Arms Wide Open" by Creed: 13%
- "I Will Survive" by Gloria Gaynor: 12%
- "Let's Hear it for the Boy" by Deniece Williams: 12%
- "Caribbean Queen" by Billy Ocean: 10%
- "Maneater" by Hall and Oates: 10%
- "We Built this City" by Jefferson Starship: 8%
- "Total Eclipse of the Heart" by Bonnie Tyler: 8%
There are rumors circulating among the celebrity watchers that teen sensation Justin Bieber may take some time off from the spotlight, but apparently some drivers are already retiring his monster hit from 2010. When respondents wrote in the names of songs and artists that make them want to tune out immediately, "Baby" by Bieber, "Wrecking Ball" by Miley Cyrus and "any type of rap" were among the most popular station-switching songs.
Real men listen to Adele
In the rankings of bands, artists or stations drivers secretly listen to in the car, the pack of contenders were a close-knit bunch. Among drivers who have guilty- pleasure listening favorites, here are the top picks:
Bruno Mars: 12%
Taylor Swift: 12%
Lady Gaga: 11%
Journey: 9%
Katy Perry: 9%
Coldplay: 8%
Justin Bieber: 7%
Madonna: 6%
NPR: 6%
Rush Limbaugh: 5%
Howard Stern: 4%
When guilty-pleasure listening is broken down by gender, tied for the top write-in response for women are Gospel music and Eminem; for men, Adele and 2Pac tied for top write-in response.
Safety dance: Don't be distracted
Whether you are jamming an air guitar solo or in full-body convulsions as you reach for the radio button to switch stations, keep your eyes on the road. Nearly 80% of crashes and 65% of near-crashes involved some form of driver inattention within three seconds before the event, according to an analysis by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) and the Virginia Tech Transportation Institute (VTTI).
A separate report sponsored by the NHTSA found that "adjusting the car radio" (65%) and using a portable music player in the car (30%) are among the most commonly performed potentially distracting behaviors while driving.
Many factors go into setting your auto insurance rates --including your age, the type of car you drive, your marital status, where you live and in most states your credit history - but your driving record is chief among them. Being a safe driver with no accidents will keep your rates lower.
Methodology
Insurance.com surveyed 2,000 licensed drivers age 18 and older. Respondents were split evenly between males and females and distributed across age groups according to Census data on age distribution. The online-panel survey was fielded in October 2013. Percentages for best and worst songs total more than 100 because respondents were allowed to choose up to five songs in each category.
The original article can be found at Insurance.com:The votes are in: The best and worst songs for driving