“King of the Road” is a song written by country singer Roger Miller, who first recorded it in November 1964. The lyrics tell of the day-to-day life of a traveling hobo, who despite having little money (a “man of means by no means”), revels in his freedom, describing himself humorously and cynically as the “king of the road”. It was Miller’s fifth single for Smash Records. The song won Miller 5 Grammy Awards in 1966.
The crossover record reached number one on the Billboard US Country chart, number four on the Billboard Hot 100, and number one on the Easy Listening surveys. It was also number one in the UK Singles Chart and in Norway. Miller recalled that the song was inspired when he was driving and saw a sign on the side of a barn that read, “Trailers for sale or rent”. This became the opening line of the song.
In June 1966, Richard Pryor performed the song on the premiere episode of Kraft Summer Music Hall.
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