These Songs Made My Ultimate Pre-Hunt Playlist
OutdoorHub Editor: Keenan Crow 09.28.20
In recent weeks here in Michigan, the early morning air has turned cool and frosty and it’s got the blood in my veins boiling! Hunting season is near. And with the shuffling of the seasons, comes a need for a killer playlist to go along with those drives to the treestand, or on the way to deer camp. Every year around September/October, I begin compiling a list of songs to create the Ultimate Pre-Hunt playlist to get me fired up before climbing up in a tree with my bow. Some songs have been on the playlist for years – and likely won’t ever be removed – but I like to add new songs here and there as well. If you aren’t familiar with a tune, click on the title of each song to give it a listen on YouTube.
So read on to find out what will be playing in my truck on repeat this fall, and please offer up any additional song suggestions that seem to bring you luck before a hunt!
1. Fred Bear – Ted Nugent:
I was first introduced to this song sometime around 20 years ago while hunting with my dad. Ever since then, it’s become one of those songs that will never get left off this list. Not many songs like this track get me pumped to sit in a treestand, and Ted Nugent’s ode to the bowhunting legend, Mr. Fred Bear, still gives me chills every time. It’s listed number one here for a reason, and kicks this Pre-Hunt playlist off on a strong note.
2. Backwoods Boy – Josh Turner
“Woke up 5 AM, put on my camouflage. Wiped off my .243 and fired up my Dodge. Headed out to my old deer stand back in the pines, gonna get me a 10 point buck with 11 inch tines.”
You can bet any song that starts like this is going to find a top spot on this playlist, and will definitely be played more than once at my deer camp this year. Josh Turner leans all the way into his hunting roots on this song, and it’s become one of my favorite tunes during deer season.
3. Buck Fever – Rhett Akins & Dallas Davidson
Here’s a fun one from ‘The Bone Collector Album‘, which was inspired by Michael Waddell and the ‘Bone Collector’ show. ‘Buck Fever’ is an anthem to that familiar feeling every hunter has an intimate relationship with. “It’s a feeling like you never felt before, have you coming back for more. Buck fever gonna get you boy, buck fever gonna have you praying for the lord. That rack, that grunt, that stare, that stomp will make you a believer – in buck fever.” Truer words have never been composed in a song. Who’s with me?
4. Where To Find Me – Hardy
Mixing in a little new-school for good measure, this song from Hardy seems destined to become a staple on all hunting playlists. “If the sun’s in the sky, if the red white and blue still flies
If the day ends in Y, you know where to find me.” I know we can all relate to that principle, am I right?
5. Camouflage Hat – Jason Aldean
If you’re like me and your favorite color is also camouflage, this one from Jason Aldean has probably been on your radar for a little while. It’s a good highway tune, but it’s also found a spot on my running playlist this summer. Find a dirt road and hammer those miles!
6. Guns – Justin Moore
In this 2nd Amendment anthem, Justin Moore reminisces about his first time shooting a doe with his muzzle loader and stands firm on our rights to bear arms. This song has aged like fine wine in today’s crazy world!
7. Earthtones – Ted Nugent
This instrumental piece from Ted Nugent’s ‘Hunt Music’ album stirs up all of the inspiration in my brain, and it makes for a memorable driving tune. It starts slow, but picks up in a hurry. And by about 1:35 in, if you don’t feel what I’m talking about, you need to get your pulse checked. Give it a listen, and don’t be surprised if you find yourself jamming along to this song while sitting on stand.
8. Northern Redneck – Aaron Lewis
For someone driving up to northern Michigan for deer camp, this song hits right on the money. It pairs well with cold beer and a game of euchre on the eve of opening day.
9. Warrior – Kid Rock
Now, some people have their own opinions when it comes to Kid Rock, but if you’re in my deer camp you’ll hear plenty of songs with Mr. Rock and the Twisted Brown Trucker Band. An ode to those who stand guard ready to fight for our country, “Warrior” hits home like few other songs do.
10. Rooster – Alice in Chains
Another song that gives a nod to our military. Have you heard the backstory behind this one? The title of the song comes from ‘Alice in Chains’ guitarist/songwriter Jerry Cantrell’s father, who was nicknamed “Rooster” while fighting in the Vietnam war. The elder Cantrell wouldn’t talk about the war, so Jerry crafted the lyrics based on what he thought were his father’s feelings and experiences, told from his perspective. The song is about resilience, as the soldier gets sent off to war, leaving a wife and child behind. He watches his friend die, and does his best to stay alive. They come to kill the Rooster, but he won’t die.
Other than that, it’s just a badass song that will definitely get you fired up before a hunt.
11. Stranglehold – Ted Nugent
This song instantly adds horsepower to whatever you’re doing, but playing this at full volume while throwing on my camo before a hunt makes me feel particularly dangerous. I like to think that’s what Uncle Ted intended when writing a lot of his songs.
12. Back in Black – AC/DC
Because no ‘pump-up playlist’ is complete unless AC/DC is included! This is one of my all-time favorite songs to listen to when I pull down the stretch of dirt road leading to my hunting spot while it’s still pitch black outside.
13. Openin’ Day – Rhett Akins & Dallas Davidson
The Bone Collector Album makes another appearance on this playlist with a much more nostalgic song about the glories of opening day. It’s one I’m sure will resonate with a lot of you, so give it a listen this Openin’ Day!
14. Sunrize Narrated – Ted Nugent
There’s only one way to close out this Ultimate Pre-Hunt Playlist, and that’s with this basically spiritual hymn from the Nuge. “Take a deep breath, feel the spirit of the wild. Feel our instincts, feel the heart of the hunter. Each new day, each new sunrise can bring a renewal of life, the renewal of the spirit. Keep your senses alert, learn to appreciate the value of that sign. The excitement of that smell, that sight.. the aroma of the woods.”
Even though I’ve called this the ‘Ultimate Pre-Hunt Playlist,’ I’m certain I’ve left a number of other good hunting tracks off this list. But these are the songs that get me fired up around this time of year, and these are the songs I’ll likely be humming in my treestand this season. It’s got some newer songs mixed in with a few of the classics, those shredding rock n’ roll songs to get you fired up before a hunt, and some other songs that are fun to play around deer camp.
Feel free to send any song suggestions my way, and good luck to all the bow hunters heading out for Michigan’s opener in couple of days. Shoot em’ straight!
