Driving Playlist – Patrick in OUTLAW

I never had an appreciation for driving until I met my

husband. When we were in college, he drove a yellow

CRX. It only sat two of us in these deep bucket seats.

And it had huge speakers that would blast music in our

ears over the sound of the wind blowing through the

open windows. It was a stick shift and Sean used to

hold my hand over the stick shift so that he could

change gears but still have his hand on mine.

We would make a date with no other plan outside of

grabbing a couple of coffees, getting behind the wheel,

and seeing where the day took us. It was exciting. It was

adventurous. And most of all, it was romantic.

While everybody has a different taste in music, the playlist to which you drive is hugely

important. Mine and Sean’s playlist (which way back then, we had to select and pack the CDs

we wanted to hear. There were no iPods yet! I know, I KNOW… I’m aging myself 😉 ) varied

depending on the season, our moods, and to be honest, we have such different taste in music, it was

always a compromise.

So while I was writing OUTLAW, the soundtrack to which my hero, Patrick Flanagan, would drive to

was extremely important to me. Patrick had a lot of trauma as a teenager. He handled the grief of

loss by embracing his playful, humorous side. Because “If you don’t laugh, you’ll cry.” But beneath

that, he still had a darkness. Much like most members of the Harrison Street Crew.

 

So, here are Patrick Flanagan’s top 10 driving songs:

1) Black Betty by RAM JAM

2) Highway to Hell by AC/DC

3) Paradise By the Dashboard Light by Meatloaf and Ellen Foley

4) Radar Love by Golden Earring

5) Bohemian Rhapsody by Queen

6) Summer of ’69 by Bryan Adams (He would never admit this to his crew. They would

annihilate him.)

7) Here I Go Again by Whitesnake

8) Paradise City by Guns ’N Roses

9) Spirit In The Sky by Norman Greenbaum

10) Riders on the Storm by The Doors

So there you have it! I’m not exactly one who listens to music while I write, but in the first high-

speed chase scene in chapter 1, I listened to at least half of the songs while writing it. So go

grab a loved one, your favorite playlist, and hop in the car!

 

All three parts of Outlaw are now available in a discounted boxed set! 😉 Check it out and enjoy!