"Forty Miles of Bad Road" is a rock and roll instrumental recorded by Duane Eddy. Released as a single in 1959, it also appeared on Eddy's 1960 album $1,000,000 Worth of Twang.
Chart performance The song charted at No. 9 on the Pop chart.Koda, Cub (1994).Rock Instrumental Classics Volume 1: The Fifties (p. 14) [CD booklet]. Los Angeles: Rhino Records. "Forty Miles of Bad Road" also went to No. 17 on the Hot R&B Sides chart. Chart (1959)PeakpositionCanada (CHUM Chart)(2wks@4)4UK Singles (The Official Charts Company)11US Billboard Hot 1009US Billboard Hot R&B Sides17
Song influence The idiom is referenced in the lyrics of the R.E.M. song "Crush with Eyeliner": "She's a sad tomato/She's three miles of bad road". It is also referenced in Bob Dylan's 2000 Academy Award winning song "Things Have Changed": "I've been walking forty miles of bad road/If the Bible is right, the world will explode."
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