| "King of the Road" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Roger Miller | ||||
| from the album The Return of Roger Miller | ||||
| B-side | "Atta Boy Girl" | |||
| Released | January 1965 | |||
| Genre | Country | |||
| Length | 2:25 | |||
| Label | Smash | |||
| Writer(s) | Roger Miller | |||
| Producer | Jerry Kennedy | |||
| Roger Miller singles chronology | ||||
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"King of the Road" is a 1964 song written and originally recorded by country singer Roger Miller. The lyrics tell of a hobo who despite being poor (a "man of means by no means") revels in his freedom, describing himself humorously as the "king of the road". It was Miller's fifth single for Smash Records.[1]
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Belgian recording artist Helmut Lotti states that the song was written at the Idanha Hotel in Boise, Idaho.[2] In an interview with disk jockey Robert W. Morgan in the early 70's, Miller mentioned writing it while in the Chicago area, however in an introduction to the song on the 1981 live recording "Roger Miller Live! Silver Eagle Cross Country," Miller said the song was written in Boise. The highly popular crossover record hit #4 on the Billboard Hot 100, and #1 on their Country and Easy Listening surveys. It was also #1 in UK and Norway.
The King Family Show was a TV variety show broadcast from 1965 to 1969. Each week, the King Family would run through a medley of the popular tunes of the week. The family-oriented show producers were uncomfortable with the line "I ain't got no cigarettes", and replaced it with "no regrets". The kids music compilation Sugar Beats changes the line to "I don't want what I can't get".[3] It also changes "worn out suits and shoes" to "clothes and shoes".
The song has been covered by several other artists, including George Jones, Dean Martin, King (an Elvis Presley impersonation), Jack Jones, The Fabulous Echoes, Boney M., R.E.M. (a shambolic, drunken offhand cover about which guitarist Peter Buck later commented, "If there was any justice in the world, Roger Miller should be able to sue for what we did to this song."), Johnny Paycheck, The Chipmunks, Boxcar Willie, Randy Travis, Rangers, James Kilbane, John Stevens, the Statler Brothers, Rufus Wainwright & Teddy Thompson, Giant Sand, Peligro, The Proclaimers, Ray Conniff Singers and The Reverend Horton Heat, Jerry Lee Lewis, and Joe Strummer during live performances.
The song is featured in Wim Wenders' 1976 film, Im Lauf der Zeit (In the Course of Time; English title Kings of the Road). It is also featured at the beginning of Talladega Nights: The Ballad of Ricky Bobby, Brokeback Mountain, Into the Wild and in Swingers. Miller performs it in the concert film The Big T.N.T. Show. The recording by The Proclaimers featured in the film "The Crossing" (1990). Towards the end of their official music video, the pair are shown reading a newspaper whose headline is 'Roger Miller, King of Plugs'.
After the major success achieved by "King of the Road" , Dean Martin recorded the 1965 tune "Houston", which is similar in both lyrics and feel.
| Chart (1965) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.K. Singles Chart | 1 |
| Norwegian Singles Chart | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Easy Listening | 1 |
| U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 4 |
| Irish Singles Chart | 5 |
| Canadian RPM Top Singles | 10 |
| Chart (1997) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| U.S. Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks | 51 |
| Canadian RPM Country Tracks | 74 |
1965 country music singer Jody Miller answered "King of the Road" with "Queen of the House". The song used Roger Miller's music while changing the lyrics to describe the day-to-day life of a housewife. The words were written by Mary Taylor.[4][5] Singer Connie Francis later recorded the song on her 1966 album "Live at the Sahara".
| Preceded by "Have You Looked into Your Heart" by Jerry Vale |
Billboard Middle-Road Singles number-one single February 10 – April 17, 1965 |
Succeeded by "The Race Is On" by Jack Jones |
| Preceded by "I've Got a Tiger By the Tail" by Buck Owens |
Billboard Hot Country Singles number-one single March 27 – April 24, 1965 |
Succeeded by "This Is It" by Jim Reeves |
| Preceded by "Ticket to Ride" by The Beatles |
UK Singles Chart number-one single May 13, 1965 |
Succeeded by "Where Are You Now My Love" by Jackie Trent |
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