"Hot Rod Lincoln" is a song by American singer-songwriter

Charlie Ryan Charles Ryan (December 19, 1915 – February 16, 2008) was an American singer and songwriter, best known for co-writing and first recording the rockabilly hit single "Hot Rod Lincoln". Biography Ryan grew up in Polson, Montana and moved to Spoka ...

, first released in 1955. It was written as an

answer song An answer song, response song or answer record, is a song (usually a recorded track) made in answer to a previous song, normally by another artist. The concept became widespread in blues and R&B recorded music in the 1930s to the 1950s. Answer son ...

Arkie Shibley Jesse Lee Shibley, known as Arkie Shibley (21 September 1914 – September 1975) was an American Old-time music, country singer who recorded the original version of "Hot Rod Race" in 1950. The record was important because ''"it introduced ...

's 1950 hit "

Hot Rod Race "Hot Rod Race" is a Western swing song about a fictional automobile race in San Pedro, California, between a Ford and a Mercury. Released in November 1950, it broke the ground for a series of hot rod songs recorded for the car culture of the 1950 ...

" (US #29). It describes a drive north on US Route 99 (predecessor to Interstate 5) from

San Pedro, Los Angeles San Pedro ( ; Spanish: " St. Peter") is a neighborhood within the City of Los Angeles, California. Formerly a separate city, it consolidated with Los Angeles in 1909. The Port of Los Angeles, a major international seaport, is partially located wi ...

, and over the Grapevine which soon becomes a

hot rod Hot rods are typically American cars that might be old, classic, or modern and that have been rebuilt or modified with large engines optimised for speed and acceleration. One definition is: "a car that's been stripped down, souped up and made ...

race that ends with serious consequences.

Song details

The car race is described between two

cars, the narrator's Ford Model A (with a Lincoln motor) and a Cadillac. The song says the Ford's "got 12 cylinders"

overdrive Overdrive may refer to: Organizations * OverDrive, Inc., a digital distributor of entertainment media ** OverDrive Media Console, a media player developed by OverDrive, Inc. * Overdrive PC, a subsidiary of Velocity Micro Technology * Overdrive ...

, a four-barrel

carburetor A carburetor (also spelled carburettor) is a device used by an internal combustion engine to control and mix air and fuel entering the engine. The primary method of adding fuel to the intake air is through the venturi tube in the main meteri ...

, 4.11:1

gear ratio A gear train is a mechanical system formed by mounting gears on a frame so the teeth of the gears engage. Gear teeth are designed to ensure the pitch circles of engaging gears roll on each other without slipping, providing a smooth transmission ...

, and safety

tube Tube or tubes may refer to: * ''Tube'' (2003 film), a 2003 Korean film * ''The Tube'' (TV series), a music related TV series by Channel 4 in the United Kingdom * "Tubes" (Peter Dale), performer on the Soccer AM television show * Tube (band), a ...

s. The narrator ends up being arrested by the police for his high-speed driving and describes the exasperation of his father: "He said, 'Son, you're gonna drive me to drinkin' / You don't quit drivin' that hot rod Lincoln!'" Ryan's original

rockabilly Rockabilly is one of the earliest styles of rock and roll music. It dates back to the early 1950s in the United States, especially the Southern United States, South. As a genre it blends the sound of Western music (North America), Western music ...

version of the song was released in 1955 through Souvenir Records under the artist name Charley Ryan and the Livingston Bros. A second version was released in 1959 through

Four Star Records 4 Star Records was a record label that recorded many well-known country music acts in the 1950s. The label, founded after World War II, was home to singers such as Hank Locklin, Maddox Brothers and Rose, Rose Maddox, Webb Pierce, Cousin Ford Lew ...

, credited to Charlie Ryan and the Timberline Riders. Ryan based the description of the

eponym An eponym is a person, a place, or a thing after whom or which someone or something is, or is believed to be, named. The adjectives which are derived from the word eponym include ''eponymous'' and ''eponymic''. Usage of the word The term ''epon ...

ous car on his own hot rod, built from a 1948 12-cylinder Lincoln

chassis A chassis (, ; plural ''chassis'' from French châssis ) is the load-bearing framework of an artificial object, which structurally supports the object in its construction and function. An example of a chassis is a vehicle frame, the underpart ...

shortened two feet, with a 1930 Ford Model A body fitted to it. Ryan raced his hot rod against a Cadillac sedan driven by a friend in

Lewiston, Idaho Lewiston is a city and the county seat of Nez Perce County, Idaho, United States, in the state's north central region. It is the second-largest city in the northern Idaho region, behind Coeur d'Alene, and ninth-largest in the state. Lewiston is ...

, driving up the Spiral Highway (former

U.S. Route 95 in Idaho In the U.S. state of Idaho, U.S. Route 95 (US-95) is a north–south highway near the western border of the state, stretching from Oregon to British Columbia for over ; it was earlier known in the state as the North and South Highway. Route ...

) to the top of Lewiston Hill. Some say he incorporated elements from this race in his lyrics to "Hot Rod Lincoln", but changed the setting to Grapevine Hill (a long, nearly straight grade up Grapevine Canyon to

Tejon Pass The Tejon Pass , previously known as ''Portezuelo de Cortes'', ''Portezuela de Castac'', and Fort Tejon Pass is a mountain pass between the southwest end of the Tehachapi Mountains and northeastern San Emigdio Mountains, linking Southern Californ ...

, near the town of

Gorman, California Gorman is an unincorporated community in northwestern Los Angeles County. It is located in Peace Valley south of the Tejon Pass, which links Southern California with the San Joaquin Valley and Northern California. Due to this location, the area ...

) to fit it within the narrative of "Hot Rod Race".

Johnny Bond version

Another version of "Hot Rod Lincoln" was recorded by

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

musician

Johnny Bond Cyrus Whitfield Bond (June 1, 1915 – June 12, 1978), known professionally as Johnny Bond, was an American country music singer-songwriter, guitarist and composer and publisher, who co-founded a music publishing firm, he was active in the musi ...

and released in 1960 through

Republic Records Republic Records is a New York City–based American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). It was founded by Avery Lipman and Monte Lipman as an independent label in 1995, and was acquired by UMG in 2000. Republic was initially an ...

, with Bond's lyrics changing the hot rod's engine from a

V12 V12 or V-12 may refer to: Aircraft * Mil V-12, a Soviet heavy lift helicopter * Pilatus OV-12, a planned American military utility aircraft * Rockwell XFV-12, an American experimental aircraft project * Škoda-Kauba V12, a Czechoslovak experim ...

to a V8., among other changes. It reached number 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1960. Bond released a sequel in the same year called "X-15", set in 1997, about an air race in an X-15 plane.

Commander Cody version

A 1971 version, by

country rock Country rock is a genre of music which fuses rock and country. It was developed by rock musicians who began to record country-flavored records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. These musicians recorded rock records using country themes, vocal s ...

band

Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen were an American rock band founded in 1967. The group's leader and co-founder was pianist and vocalist George Frayne IV, alias Commander Cody (born July 19, 1944 in Boise, Idaho, died September 26, 2021 i ...

on their album ''

Lost in the Ozone ''Lost in the Ozone'' is an album by American rock band Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen. Their first album, it was released in 1971. it contains their hit cover version of "Hot Rod Lincoln" as well as the band's live staples "Lost in t ...

'', became the most successful version of "Hot Rod Lincoln", reaching No. 9 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, No. 28 Adult Contemporary, No. 7 in Canada, and was ranked No. 69 on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1972. The song peaked at number 45 in Australia. This version maintained most of the lyrical changes from Johnny Bond's version and changed them further while maintaining the original story.

Chart history

Weekly charts

;Charlie Ryan ;Johnny Bond ;Commander Cody

Year-end charts

Other versions

In addition to Johnny Bond and Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen, many other artists have recorded "Hot Rod Lincoln" in the decades since its original release, including: *

Pat Travers Patrick Henry Travers (born April 12, 1954) is a Canadian rock guitarist, keyboardist and singer who began his recording career in the mid-1970s. Early life Travers was born and raised in Toronto, Canada. Soon after picking up the guitar at ag ...

, on ''

'' (1976) *

Asleep at the Wheel Asleep at the Wheel is an American Western swing group that was formed in Paw Paw, West Virginia, and is based in Austin, Texas. The band has won nine Grammy Awards since their 1970 inception, released over twenty albums, and has charted more t ...

, on ''Western Standard Time'' (1988); this version reached no. 65 on ''Billboard'''s

Hot Country Songs Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sal ...

All All or ALL may refer to: Language * All, an indefinite pronoun in English * All, one of the English determiners * Allar language (ISO 639-3 code) * Allative case (abbreviated ALL) Music * All (band), an American punk rock band * ''All'' (All al ...

, on ''

Allroy's Revenge ''Allroy's Revenge'' is the second studio album by the American punk rock band All, released in 1989 through Cruz Records. It was the band's first release with singer Scott Reynolds, replacing Dave Smalley who had left in late 1988. The album i ...

'' (1989) *

Jim Varney James Albert Varney Jr. (June 15, 1949 – February 10, 2000) was an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his broadly comedic role as Ernest P. Worrell, for which he won a Daytime Emmy Award, as well as appearing in films and ...

, on ''

The Beverly Hillbillies ''The Beverly Hillbillies'' is an American television sitcom that was broadcast on CBS from 1962 to 1971. It had an ensemble cast featuring Buddy Ebsen, Irene Ryan, Donna Douglas, and Max Baer Jr. as the Clampetts, a poor, backwoods family from ...

'' soundtrack (1993) *

Les Claypool Leslie Edward Claypool (born September 29, 1963) is an American musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, filmmaker, and author. He is best known as the founder, lead singer, bassist, primary songwriter, and only continuous member of the ro ...

, on ''Crank It Up'' (2002) *

Roger Miller Roger Dean Miller Sr. (January 2, 1936 – October 25, 1992) was an American singer-songwriter, widely known for his honky-tonk-influenced novelty songs and his chart-topping Country music, country and pop hits "King of the Road (song), Ki ...

, on ''A Man Like Me: The Early Years of Roger Miller'' (2006) *Lawrence Ramsay, on ''Blowin' Cash'' (2010) *Chris Casello, on ''Chris Casello Trio'' (2013) *Bill Kirchen (lead guitar in Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen) on ''Hot Rod Lincoln Live'' (1997) *George Thorogood & the Destroyers

References

External links

Rockabilly Hall of Fame
nbsp;— Documents the history of the song through dozens of covers, including lyrics.
www.hot-rod-lincoln.com
nbsp;— The official site of Charlie Ryan * {{authority control Rockabilly songs 1955 songs 1955 singles 1972 singles Asleep at the Wheel songs Charlie Ryan songs Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen songs Johnny Bond songs Songs about cars Answer songs Lincoln Motor Company Paramount Records singles