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| "Hot Rod Lincoln" | |
|---|---|
 Label of the original 1955 single | |
| Single byCharlie Ryan and the Livingston Bros. | |
| B-side | "Hank Williams Goodbye" |
| Released | 1955 |
| Genre | Rock and roll,rockabilly |
| Length | 2:57 |
| Label | Souvenir (SOUV-101) |
| Songwriter(s) | Charlie Ryan |
| "Hot Rod Lincoln" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Single byCommander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen | ||||
| from the albumLost in the Ozone | ||||
| B-side | "My Home in My Hand" | |||
| Released | March 1972 | |||
| Genre | Rock and roll | |||
| Length | 2:40 | |||
| Label | Paramount | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Charlie Ryan | |||
| Commander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
"Hot Rod Lincoln" is a song by American singer-songwriterCharlie Ryan, first released in 1955. It was written as ananswer song toArkie Shibley's 1950 hit "Hot Rod Race" (US #29).
It describes a drive north onUS Route 99 (predecessor toInterstate 5) fromSan Pedro, Los Angeles, and over "Grapevine Hill" which soon becomes ahot rod race that ends with serious consequences.
The car race is described between twohot rod cars, the narrator'sFord Model A (with a Lincoln motor) and a Cadillac. The song says the Ford's "got12 cylinders",overdrive, a four-barrelcarburetor, 4.11:1gear ratio, and safetytubes. The narrator ends up being arrested by the police for his high-speed driving, and is thrown into jail, where the narrator calls his father to bail him out, and describes the exasperation of his father: "He said, 'Son, you're gonna drive me to drinkin' / If you don't quit (or "Stop") drivin' that hot rod Lincoln!'"
Ryan's originalrockabilly version of the song was released in 1955 through Souvenir Records under the artist name Charley Ryan and the Livingston Bros.[1] A second version was released in 1959 throughFour Star Records, credited to Charlie Ryan and the Timberline Riders.[2] Ryan based the description of theeponymous car on his own hot rod, built from a 1948 12-cylinder Lincolnchassis shortened two feet, with a 1930 Ford Model A body fitted to it.[citation needed] Ryan raced his hot rod against aCadillac sedan driven by a friend inLewiston, Idaho, driving up the Spiral Highway (formerU.S. Route 95 in Idaho) to the top ofLewiston Hill.[3] 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 toTejon Pass, near the town ofGorman, California) to fit it within the narrative of "Hot Rod Race".[citation needed]
Another version of "Hot Rod Lincoln" was recorded bycountry musicianJohnny Bond and released in 1960 throughRepublic Records, with Bond's lyrics changing the hot rod's engine from aV12 to aV8[citation needed], among other changes. It reached number 26 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August 1960.[4] Bond released a sequel in the same year called "X-15", set in 1997, about an air race in anX-15 plane.[5]
A 1971 version, bycountry rock bandCommander Cody and His Lost Planet Airmen on their albumLost in the Ozone, became the most successful version of "Hot Rod Lincoln", reaching No. 9 on theBillboard Hot 100, No. 28 Adult Contemporary, No. 7 in Canada,[6] and was ranked No. 69 on the U.S.Billboard Year-End Hot 100 singles of 1972.[7] The song peaked at number 45 in Australia.[8] This version maintained most of the lyrical changes from Johnny Bond's version but changed them further while maintaining the original story.
| Chart (1960) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S.BillboardHot 100[9] | 33 |
| U.S.BillboardCountry | 14 |
| Chart (1960) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S.BillboardHot 100[9] | 26 |
| U.S.Cash Box Top 100[10] | 25 |
| Year-end charts[edit]
|
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:
