In 1954, on the heals of the Nat King Cole's success with Bobby Troup's "(Get Your Kicks on) Route 66," composer Larry Sullivan approached lyricist Frank Kauzlaric about writing a highway song. Sullivan's choice of Kauzlaric was perfect: Kauzlaric was a successful Hollywood songwriter and a former teamster.
When he first put pen to paper, Kauzlaric wrote about a long haul truck driver traveling across the country on Route 66. But, he abandoned those lyrics when he realized several problems. First, a song about Route 66 wasn't original. Second, Route 66 didn't go all the way across the country. Finally, from personal experience, Route 66 was "an awful road to drive." As he related in an interview late in 2000, "Anyone who tells you what a great highway Route 66 was, never drove it. The road conditions were terrible and the scenery was boring. Most of us long haul truckers hated Route 66." So, Kauzlaric switched to Route 40. "Mile for mile," he recalls, "Route 40 was a much better road for trucking."
Not long after the song was completed, it was recorded for RCA by C&W dynamo, Wade Ray and later in a rousing R&B version by Chuck Miller. The song survives to this day and is available on CD on a number of C&W and rockabilly compilations.
There is an interesting note about the songwriting credits. Right after the song was released, composer Larry Sullivan ran into some financial troubles. First, sold his rights and songwriting credit, not an uncommon practice in those days. Suddenly, the name 'Reno Saels' appeared on the label.
In the lyrics of "Idaho Red," the narrator recites the names of locations through which Red passes. Here's a list of places mentioned in the song:
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RCA label for "Idaho Red."
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Newspaper article about "Idaho Red." Courtesy of Frank Kauzlaric.
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