I have been listening to the song Wagon Wheel a lot lately. So, I thought I would share some history
about this interesting song.
To begin with, this song’s chorus was originally sketched by
Bob Dylan, and it was then completed by Ketch Secor of Old Crow Medicine Show,
a string band, or what some people call a Bluegrass band. The part of the song that Dylan wrote was originally entitled Rock Me Mama, and was never actually officially released, but instead it
was released on a bootleg. After Secor wrote in the additional verses the title
was transformed into Wagon Wheel. Old
Crow Medicine Show released the song in 2004, and has since then became extremely popular. The song was then covered by Matt
Andersen (2005), Against Me! and Jeremy McComb (2007), Nathan Carter (2012),
and, my personal favorite, Darius Rucker (2013).
Rucker did not really care for the song too much at first, but when he was at his daughter's high school talent show the faculty band played the song. Then he decided he had to sing it, with backing vocals by Lady Antebellum, of course. He first performed his cover at the Grand Ole Opry on July 6, 2012 joined by Old Crow Medicine Show. Rucker's version of the song has sold 1,504,000 copies in the U.S. so far. It has reached #1 on U.S. Billboard Hot Country Song. And, it has reached #15 on U.S. Billboard Hot 100.
Content/Story: The song is actually about a hitchhiking journey along the
east coast of the United States toward Raleigh, North Carolina, which is where
the protagonist of the song intends to see his lover, "my baby." During the journey he had a long talk with a trucker just outside of Roanoke, Virginia.Rucker did not really care for the song too much at first, but when he was at his daughter's high school talent show the faculty band played the song. Then he decided he had to sing it, with backing vocals by Lady Antebellum, of course. He first performed his cover at the Grand Ole Opry on July 6, 2012 joined by Old Crow Medicine Show. Rucker's version of the song has sold 1,504,000 copies in the U.S. so far. It has reached #1 on U.S. Billboard Hot Country Song. And, it has reached #15 on U.S. Billboard Hot 100.
My Thoughts: Although, I do love both versions of the song, I must say that I favor Darius Rucker's country version of it a bit more. I am more of a fan of country music than I am of Bluegrass music, but I do love all kinds of music. Also, the music video of Darius Rucker's version of the song made more sense to me, especially when you read the lyrics. Therefore, on a 1-5 star rating scale for songs I would give this song a 5/5 rating.
Which music video and/or version of the song do you like better?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1gX1EP6mG-E
Lyrics: http://www.azlyrics.com/lyrics/dariusrucker/wagonwheel.html
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