Sheryl Crow’s song “Real Gone” plays during the opening credits of Pixar’s Cars.
“Real Gone” establishes the film’s energetic road-and-racing mood before the story moves into Lightning McQueen’s first major competition. Its driving rhythm suits Lightning’s confidence and the movie’s emphasis on speed, travel, and American car culture.
The Cars soundtrack includes several other well-known songs, which can cause confusion. Rascal Flatts recorded “Life Is a Highway” for the film, and James Taylor performed “Our Town.” “Route 66” is also connected with the movie’s road-trip atmosphere, but Sheryl Crow’s opening-credits track is “Real Gone.”
The film’s score was composed by Randy Newman, who also wrote original songs for Cars. This combination of licensed songs and Newman’s score helped give the movie a musical identity tied to racing, highways, and small-town America.