I used the expression “once bitten, twice shy” the other day, which led me to start singing the song to myself under my breath, which turned into a bit of an earworm, which got me to thinking, there have to be a million songs about the various aspects of being a musician and touring. Here are some I can think of just off the top of my head without any googling:
As mentioned “Once Bitten Twice Shy”- originally Ian Hunter, but the Great White cover seems like the only one that’s ever played on the radio anymore.
“Shooting Star” - Bad Company
“Turn the Page” - Bob Seger
“The Load-Out” - Jackson Browne
“Stray Cat Blues” - The Rolling Stones
Famous musicians tend to be egotistical types, so what better song lyric subject than oneself- or a fictionalized version of oneself? Bring them on…
or not touring: there’s “Session Man” by The Kinks, and “Studio Musician” (recorded by Barry Manilow on his Live album, ironically enough, and written by Rupert Holmes).
Good point- I wasn’t trying to limit the thread to songs about musicians touring- I guess I should have said “…aspects of being a musician or touring…”
“We gotta drive all night to do the show in Chicago…or Detroit…I don’t know. We do so many shows in a row and these towns all look the same.
I used to work on the road constantly, not as a musician, but when you do that the road gets weary. You can easily empathize. You learn how they could be a prisoner of what we all from the outside see as so glamorous. It deprives you of so many other aspects of life. Of all of them, this was my favorite road weary song. The differences were negligible between us compared to the similarities. Not a truck driver either. I would stay in a hotel at a location a month or three or maybe just a week. You get used to a spot, co-workers, restaurants, roads, hotel staff, anything to hold on to, then leave. “Oh wont you stay, just a little bit longer”.