Wagon Wheel

Listen while you read: Wagon Wheel

Headed down south to the land of the pines
I'm thumbing' my way into North Caroline
Starin' up the road and pray to God I see headlights

I made it down the coast in seventeen hours
Pickin' me a bouquet of dogwood flowers
And I'm a hopin' for Raleigh 
I can see my baby tonight

So rock me, Mama, like a wagon wheel
Rock me, Mama, any way you feel
Hey, Mama, rock me
Rock me, Mama, like the wind and the rain
Rock me, Mama, like a southbound train
Hey, Mama, rock me

~  Bob Dylan and Ketch Secor (Old Crow Medicine Show)

Who doesn't love this song? Although it appeared on the 2004 release O.C.M.S., it was a few years later that the song became well-known. Maybe more people heard it when Darius Rucker recorded it in 2012? I don't know; I knew it long before that. Four years ago, I went with two of my kids (who were both living in New England at the time) to see a concert in New Hampshire. It was Old Crow Medicine Show and The Avett Brothers. My son was mad that The Avetts got top billing, and I kind of understand why. Although both bands put on amazing shows, it could be argued that Old Crow exhibited more versatility. This is one of those bands in which all the members can just switch off instruments because they are so multi-talented.

You may have been surprised to see Bob Dylan get some credit for writing the song. Apparently, he wrote the chorus and the melody during the Pat Garrett & Billy the Kid time. Somehow Ketch Secor of Old Crow got ahold of that much and added the verses. Google it if you're interested; it's a cool story. And it includes a geographical mistake which can only be attributed to youth and inexperience.

And I'm a hopin' for Raleigh / I can see my baby tonight. While you are reading this, I am on the road again, heading for Raleigh-Durham, and I hope to be there some time tonight. My first-born (my baby) awaits me there. Unlike the singer in Old Crow Medicine Show, I am going north, not south, and I am driving, not hitching. And there's no way that I am enjoying a nice long toke. But I am enjoying some good tunes on the drive. Hey, Mama, rock me.

And if you haven't already, watch the video (linked above). It's a hoot.