The Best Ten Corvette Songs in History

Whether it be childhood memories, the sound of a big beefy engine, or the sensation of freedom on the opened road, the Chevrolet Corvette brings a deep meaning to American culture, and this meaning is reflected in the many songs inspired by the car. Here are ten favorites from varying decades and genres.

“Shut Down” by the Beach Boys – The Beach Boys created many hit car songs, and this is one of my favorites dedicated to the Corvette Stingray. A Superstock Dodge Dart with ram induction and a fuel-injected Stingray are head-to-head with engines revving high. Once the Stingray’s traction catches up to the power, the Dodge Dart is overtaken.

Best Lyric:
“Superstock Dart is windin’ out in low,
But my fuel injected Stingray’s really startin’ to go,
To get the traction I’m ridin’ the clutch,
My pressure plate’s burnin’ that machine’s too much.”

“Dead Man’s Curve” by Jan and Dean – Released in 1964, it’s a teenage tragedy surf-rock song about a street race between a Corvette Sting Ray and a Jaguar XKE that quickly took a turn for the worst. It became an instant hit and ranked number 8 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart, hopefully bringing awareness to the dangers of street racing and saving lives.

Best Lyric:
“Dead Man’s Curve, it’s no place to play.
Dead Man’s Curve, you best keep away.
Dead Man’s Curve, I can hear ’em say,
Won’t come back from Dead Man’s Curve.”

“Riding with Private Malone” performed by David Bell – A man fresh out of the service falls upon an ad for an “old Chevy,” and low-and-behold it was a 1966 Corvette. He purchased it for only $1,000, later to find a note in the glovebox from late Private Andrew Malone, who didn’t make it home from the war. It didn’t take long to get the car fixed up, but one rainy night the veteran took a curve too fast. A witness stated they saw a soldier pull him out of the car after the fiery crash. It’s a timeless country-style tale of patriotism, tragedy, and survival.

Best Lyric:
“It was a young man named Private Andrew Malone,
Who fought for his country and never made it home,
But for every dream that’s shattered, another one comes true,
This car was once a dream of his, back when it was new.
He told me to take her and make her my own,
And I was proud to be riding with Private Malone.”

“The Best Day” by George Strait – While country singer-songwriter George Straight reminisces about his son’s best days — from camping trips to marriage — he mentions a father/son Corvette restoration project. They worked for nights on end until it was new again, and when his son sat in the finished car he said, “Dad, this could be the best day of my life.”

Best Lyric:
“Well, his fifteenth birthday rolled around,
Classic cars were his thing,
When I pulled in the drive with that old ‘Vette,
I thought that boy would go insane.”

“Corvette Dreams” by Highway 55 – Country singer and songwriter Cody Smith sings of dreams of fast machines in this uplifting tune. He won his wife over with the help of a candy red Corvette, but much like any family trying to scrape by, the Corvette was later sold for a van. But his Corvette dreams never faded, and he soon brought a Corvette back into his life.

Best Lyric:
“At the age of 17 there was only one thing that could put an end to my troubles,
And it was 400 horses of chrome and steel,
Pure American muscle,
And I knew if I could ever get my hands on that car,
The distance between you and me would never be that far.”

“Corvette Cruisin’” by Mad Dash – Mad Dash is a high-energy band that plays a wide variety of music from oldies to modern rock. This laid-back modern rock song was released in 2000, and it will give you a cool and confident feel while rolling down the street.

Best Lyric:
“Drivin’ downtown now I see the heads all start to turn,
Playin’ it too cool now until the rubber starts to burn,
Corvette Cruisin’, Corvette Cruisin’.”

“The Red Corvette” by John McCutcheon – In this comedic folk song, a man finds an ad for a low-mileage, bright red Stingray, and it’s only $65. Assuming it was a typo, he headed over to the house right away and learned that his lucky day was the result of another man’s bad karma: the Corvette owner left his wife for a younger woman, and when he was short on cash, he asked his wife to sell the car.

Best Lyric:
“It had a 587 V-8,
Gull-wing-span doors, Hurst four on the floor,
And the 8-channel tape deck was great.
There was chrome on the chrome on the fenders,
An aerodynamic design…
It was boggling to me
That for 65 bucks it was mine.”

“Corvette” by The Corvettes – A lively doo-wop from 1958, “Corvette” was written by Cecil Thompson, performed by The Corvettes and released on the “Corvette” recording label. They are dedicated Corvette enthusiasts that exclaim, “You ought to feel that mighty 290 horsepower.”

Best Lyric:
“It’s got a stick shift, quad cam, dual quads, ‘n’ supercharger,
stick shift, quad cam, dual quads, ‘n’ supercharger,
stick shift, quad cam, dual quads, ‘n’ supercharger, Ooooo.”

“The One I Loved Back Then” by George Jones – It’s a 1985 country song that zeros in on the similarities between beautiful women and sporty cars. While the narrator and his girlfriend are out for a drive in a Corvette, they stop at a convenience store where the clerk mentions having one just like it in 1963, until “the man down at the bank” took it away. The next verse reveals that the clerk was actually talking about the gal in the passenger seat.

Best Lyric:
“Oh, she was hotter than a two dollar pistol,
She was the fastest thing around,
Long and lean, every young man’s dream,
She turned every head in town.”

“Little Red Corvette” by Prince – It was Prince’s first song to reach the top ten on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. Although the lyrics are an innuendo referring to a one-night stand with a promiscuous woman, a top ten Corvette song list just didn’t seem complete without this mention.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XimFdroX8JI

Best Lyric:
“Little red Corvette,
Baby you’re much too fast.
Little red Corvette,
You need a love that’s gonna last.”

Got a Corvette anthem of your own? Let us know.