A restaurant without a well-curated playlist is downright boring. We’re lucky, then, that many Vancouver Island restaurants know how to put together a good mixtape. For the inaugural edition of The Playlist, Kai Musseau, general manager of Wheelies Motorcycles, gives us a rundown of their mostly country-heavy playlist.
“Everyone has a part in the playlist at Wheelies; whatever the staff feel like playing goes on. For the most part, we keep a mellow and relaxed vibe. Picture sitting by the river, throwing rocks into the water while drinking a can of Lucky on a hot summer day. Once Friday afternoon hits though, things tend to change. You might hear us blasting ‘80s hair metal, like the kind of songs you’d find your uncle playing from his treasured CD collection…You know, the kind of uncle that’s not invited to Christmas dinner anymore.
Country music is what we seem to revert to the most. It’s relaxing, genuine and fitting to what we’re trying to do here [at Wheelies]. My favourite song on the list is “Bad News.” It’s a Johnny Cash song, and I hate to say it, but I think Whitney Morgan does it better. I have a lot of memories of riding my old Harley chopper down backroads and to sketchy dive bars in the U.S. while listening to that song.
If there was one person from the playlist we’d love to see play here, it’d be Fred Eaglesmith. He tends to favour smaller, more intimate spaces…so maybe we can make it happen? And if we’re talking menu items, our playlist would definitely be our pork sandwich. Consistent, classic and enjoyable.”
What’s Playing at Wheelies
“Dublin Blues” — Guy Clark
“Jamestown Ferry” — Charley Crockett
“Big Cheeseburgers & Good French Fries” — Blaze Foley
“Six Volts” — Fred Eaglesmith
“Motorcycle” — Colter Wall
“Right Time” — Nikki Lane
“Whitehouse Road” — Tyler Childers
“Shotgun Willie” — Willie Nelson
“You Can Have The Crown”— Sturgill Simpson
“Lonesome, On’ry and Mean” —Waylon Jennings
“Bad News” —Whitey Morgan and the 78’s
“Bad Moon Rising” — Creedence Clearwater Revival
“Safari Song” — Greta Van Fleet
“Children of the Grave” — Black Sabbath
Listen to the Wheelies playlist over on our Spotify account. It’s best paired with their pork sandwich. And maybe a cold beer.
Wheelies Motorcycle Shop and Cafe
2620 Rock Bay Ave, Victoria
