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Music

16th Jul 2018

JOE’s guide to the perfect international travel playlist

Will Lavin

Let’s be honest, we’ve all done it, right?

You go on vacation, pop in your earphones and just drift off into your very own cinematic universe where you’re the star of the show. The movie you’ve manifested in your head is soundtracked by whatever it is blasting through the tiny speakers in your ears, and it feels pretty damn good.

You might be an undercover cop in a baking hot location hunting down a criminal making counterfeit cocktail umbrellas. Or perhaps you’re a once doting housewife who has finally decided to leave domestic bliss in her rearview in exchange for a life being the wheel of a monster truck on one of America’s many super highways.

I myself often fantasise about being an international spy who travels from city to city looking for one of our government’s most treacherous defectors. With sunglasses sitting low on the bridge of my nose and rocking a short sleeved Hawaiian shirt unbuttoned (as to expose the imaginary Ruger P89 sitting around my waist to anyone thinking about trying me), my soundtrack is often some slick sounding Hip Hop record built using drums but with an eerie string arrangement to give it that feeling of danger – think Nas’ “The Message”.

Occasionally I switch it up and put myself bang in the middle of a mafioso movie where my fellow street soldiers and I are busy helping our boss build a criminal empire in the hope that he’ll promote some of us from runners to capos on the strength of our loyalty and actions. So again, maybe some Nas, or going old school, maybe some Perry Como or Vic Damone might play through my headphones as my mind drifts off to this fantasy.

But sometimes it’s as simple as wanting to listen to a song that best represents the city, town or country I’m travelling to. So while I’m going to leave your intricate fantasies to you to soundtrack I’ve prepared a list of 35 songs that prove a good starting point for you as you create a travel playlist for various locations around the world.

CALIFORNIA

2Pac (Feat. Dr. Dre & Roger Troutman) – “California Love”

2Pac – “To Live and Die in LA”

Beach Boys – “Surfin’ U.S.A.”

SPAIN

Ed Sheeran – “Barcelona”

LONDON

The Clash – “London Calling”

AFRICA

Toto – “Africa”

Bob Dylan – “Mozambique”

JAMAICA

Damian Marley – “Welcome To Jamrock”

UB40 – “Kingston Town”

ARGENTINA

Madonna – “Don’t Cry For Me Argentina”

LIVERPOOL

The Beatles – “Strawberry Fields Forever”

Gerry & The Pacemakers – “Ferry Cross The Mersey”

Gerry & The Pacemakers – “You’ll Never Walk Alone”

MOSCOW

Michael Jackson – “Stranger In Moscow”

EAST ASIA

David Bowie – “China Girl”

Shawn Mendes – “Lost In Japan”

PARIS

JAY-Z & Kanye West – “Ni**as In Paris”

TORONTO

Drake – “5AM In Toronto”

EGYPT

The Bangles – “Walk Like An Egyptian”

NEW YORK

Frank Sinatra – “New York, New York”

Billy Joel – “New York State Of Mind”

Sting – “Englishman In New York”

MIAMI

Will Smith – “Miami”

AMSTERDAM

Rick Ross – “Amsterdam”

IRELAND

Thin Lizzy – “Whiskey In The Jar”

AMERICA

Bruce Springsteen – “Born In The U.S.A.”

Supertramp – “Breakfast In America”

David Bowie – “Young Americans”

BUDAPEST

George Ezra – “Budapest”

LAS VEGAS

Elvis Presley – “Viva Las Vegas”

PANAMA

Van Halen – “Panama”

PHILADELPHIA

Bruce Springsteen – “Streets Of Philadelphia”

SAN JOSE

Dionne Warwick – “Do You Know The Way To San Jose”

GEORGIA

Ray Charles – “Georgia On My Mind”

BARBADOS

Rihanna – “Pon De Replay”