Lessons from "Take Me Home, Country Roads"

You may have heard it at a football game, in an advertisement, or on the radio on a road trip far from home. It may have moved you to dance at a wedding or cry at a funeral. Regardless of where it plays, the song "Take Me Home, Country Roads" is ubiquitous, unmistakable, universal. Recorded by John Denver in 1971, the song continues to resonate across cultures and audiences in nearly 300 recorded English versions and in more than 20 languages. Sarah L. Morris examines "Take Me Home, Country Roads" as it illuminates a universal sense of belonging to place even as it obscures the literality of the place it names. She explores the song in various contexts, such as how it pertains to West Virginia geography and heritage and the diversity of these beliefs, external perceptions of the state, concepts of home and belonging, and the song as a phenomenon across different media platforms. "Take Me Home, Country Roads," while being about West Virginia, has registered as a global phenomenon.