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Speedometer Readings
PubBeat’s Music by Numbers Challenge
As we cross off pages on the October calendar, I am grateful to Buddy Gott for this month’s Music by Numbers challenge. I realized that there is a whole category of songs mentioning numbers as speedometer readings. There are more than I know, obviously; and it surprised me how many songs about driving fast do not mention a specific speed.
The image above is from a car that has so many stories that I may write in future days. I am an iconoclast in many ways, and while I reveled in it as a younger person it has become a burdensome part of who I am. You may note that the primary instrument on the display is the tachometer and the little inset is the speedometer. At 9,000rpm in third gear the car hits 85 mph — I’ve no clue about fourth, fifth and sixth.
So…umm, I am familiar with speed behind the wheel. The following songs came to me, are ordered by speed mentioned, with notes about why I even remembered them.
One of the uses of speed in terms of miles per hour is as a metaphor for discomfort or being out of control is something many of us use. At the lowest speed — a mere 75 or 80 mph comes the fun song “Clap for the Wolfman” by The Guess Who. In this case it’s a man going too fast, though, Robert Weston Smith (a.k.a. Wolfman Jack) is involved too so it may be impelling the…
