… make sure your geography is correct.
Wagon Wheel by Darius Rucker has such a pretty melody… but it annoys me every time I hear it because it’s geographically wrong. You don’t go West from the Cumberland Gap to Johnson City, you go East. Or you go West TO the Cumberland Gap FROM Johnson City, TN.
Going south from Roanoke, you’d either take I81 (the song was written after the Interstate opened, but if you want to argue, in the pre-Interstate days, you’d take US11 South – the roads run side-by-side most of the way), and hit the Johnson city area then go west to the Gap. He clearly hitched a ride with the wrong trucker as US221 from Roanoke to Hillsville VA then east to Mt Airy NC and on to Raleigh would be the shorter route. Or even south on I81 to I77 (except parts of I77 weren’t open when the song was written) and hitch a ride with an east bound trucker…
Even if he took US58 or a similarly dinky road west from Roanoke through Southwest Virginia to the Gap, you’d still go East to get to Johnson City. Plus, it would be stupid to hitch a ride west when Raleigh is east….
“Walkin’ to the south out of Roanoke
I caught a trucker out of Philly
Had a nice long toke
But he’s a headed west from the Cumberland Gap
To Johnson City, Tennessee ”
Full lyrics:
Headed down south to the land of the pines
And I’m thumbin’ my way into North Caroline
Starin’ up the road
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 south-bound train
Hey mama rock me
Runnin’ from the cold up in New England
I was born to be a fiddler in an old-time stringband
My baby plays the guitar
I pick a banjo now
Oh, the North country winters keep a gettin’ me now
Lost my money playin’ poker so I had to up and leave
But I ain’t a turnin’ back
To livin’ that old life no more
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 south-bound train
Hey mama rock me
Walkin’ to the south out of Roanoke
I caught a trucker out of Philly
Had a nice long toke
But he’s a headed west from the Cumberland Gap
To Johnson City, Tennessee
And I gotta get a move on before for the sun
I hear my baby callin’ my name
And I know that she’s the only one
And if I die in Raleigh
At least I will die free
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 south-bound train
Hey mama rock me