'Ramblin'' by The Red Clay Strays - Lyrics & Meaning

They aren't many bands out there with a better live show than a certain group from Mobile, Alabama.

With their distinctive brand of country rock n' soul, The Red Clay Strays have developed a steaming hot live show that has had thousands groovin' and sweatin' in every town they've pulled up in since 2016.

Since they first started playing it around the middle of last year, not many of their songs have been able to surmise the energy and raucousness they brew up better than 'Ramblin'', a previously unreleased number that's set to become a staple of their live set.

Now the slate-clearing centre-point of their sophomore album, 'Ramblin'' not only captures their lives on the road, but plays out at the same breakneck speed in which the group have grown in popularity.

As drummer John Hall quickly counts in with his southern drawl, a raucous, reverberating guitar steamrolls into town, leading the group into a four-to-the-floor rockabilly trot. It never ceases from there, the band playing hot potato with that searing guitar riff as Coleman sings of blasting through cities and never leaving the road with his trademark burl.

Much like he does with the unwieldy pace of 'On My Knees', Dave Cobb channels the groups inflamed live performance into a resonating recording - sharpening the edges on the guitars, keeping the bass high in the mix and feeding Brandon Coleman's vocal a good glug of distortion to capture that energy on record while losing none of its intensity.

Prep your driving and roadtrip playlists, you're going to want this bad boy in there. Capturing life on the road and the inability to stay in one place for too long, Coleman's words are simple yet purposeful - he's seen it all, but he sure ain't stopping.

I was born to ramble

I've got that travelling bone

Well I was born to ramble

and I keep ramblin' on

As much as the words might suggest, there's no sense of tiredness to Coleman's delivery - it's what's meant to be, it's his purpose in life, as if he was born to do this. When you've got that itch, you can't help but scratch.

Don't get me wrong I love where I'm from

I've got a beautiful woman waitin' on me back home

I don't take for granted my family

But ramblin' fevers got a hold on me

He's thankful to have loved ones he can return to, but when desires in life drive you, you have to follow them. It represents what we sacrifice to make our dreams a reality - whether that simply be the time we have with those we love the most.

Coleman is undeterred. Like the greats before, he's succinctly captured the life of a wanderer, an aspirer, an observant of the world around us - him.

Posting to social media in April 2024, the band explained the song came from their new partnership with a certain Nashville producer and favourite of Music City. "We wrote this song in the studio a while back. Dave Cobb came to us with the guitar melody in mind and we used one of Drew’s old songs as a starting point and worked it up from there. It’s one of the most upbeat songs we play now!"

Well I was born with a travelling bone

I can't hang around for too long

I've been following that long white line

Coast to coast through town every night

I was born to ramble

I've got that travelling bone

Well I was born to ramble

and I keep ramblin' on

Well I've seen Boston, San Antone

Kansas City, just-a rollin' along

Oklahoma, Tennessee

Louisiana, New Orleans

I was born to ramble

I've got that travelling bone

Well was born to ramble

I keep ramblin' on

Don't get me wrong I love where I'm from

I've got a beautiful woman waitin' on me back home

I don't take for granted my family

But ramblin' fevers got a hold on me

Cause I was born to ramble

I've got that travelling bone

I was born to ramble

I keep on ramblin' on

I was born to ramble

I keep on ramblin' on

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