In Natick, at the junction of Mass. Route 9 and Route 27, is the Stop & Shop store at the 9/27 Shopping Mall.
The store is part of a long strip mall at the far eastern end. It is a large store and, therefore, hard to miss. It's harder to find the entrance. One is off the entrance ramp to N Route 27 from W Route 9. The other is off Route 27 (North Main Street).
"Roadrunner is about driving along Mass. Route 128, which is at least five miles east of this location. The song was first sung by Jonathan Richman and the Modern Lovers. There were several versions of the song. One has the following lyrics about this location:
"One two three for five six!
Roadrunner, roadrunner
Going faster miles an hour
Gonna drive past the Stop 'n' Shop
With the radio on
I'm in love with Massachusetts
And the neon when it's cold outside
And the highway when it's late at night
Got the radio on
I'm like the roadrunner"
The Stop & Shop is a normal large supermarket, typically found in the suburbs of Boston. It is a large chain, part of a larger holding company. So, why is this store mentioned by Wikipedia and other sources as 'the' Stop & Shop in this song and not some other Stop & Shop (like one formerly in Needham)?
The wikipedia entry specifically mentions the Natick Stop & Shop but doesn't go further on why it's that one. However, on guardian.com, there is an article about the author's experiences to search the origins of the song.
"The next day I head out to Natick. My mission is to see the suburban streets where Richman grew up, and to visit the Super Stop & Shop, on Worcester Street. The Stop & Shop is a supermarket chain founded in 1914 and which now boasts 360 stores, most of them in New England. The Stop & Shop is one of the key locations in Roadrunner, for it is where Richman makes a key discovery about the power of rock'n'roll radio: "I walked by the Stop & Shop/ Then I drove by the Stop & Shop/ I like that much better than walking by the Stop & Shop/ 'Cause I had the radio on."
There is another reference to Jonathan's connections to Natick:
"Richman was born in the suburb of Natick in the May of 1951. It was there that he learned to play clarinet and guitar, where he met some of his Modern Lovers."
The author also was wondering if this was the exact location of the store when Richard was there. She even inquired inside with one of the staff (no help there). While I can't attest that this was THE spot when Richman went by, I can attest that this store has been there for at least 40 years. It was smaller at first, then, when it became a 'SUPER' Stop & Shop, it expanded into the next store or two in the building and had at least one major remodeling.
So, this is the likely Stop & Shop mentioned in the song.
Sources:
theguardian.com (The car, the radio, the night - and rock's most thrilling song):
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Wikipedia (Roadrunner (Johnathan Richman song):
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Facebook (Make Roadrunner Massachusetts Official Rock Song):
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Artists.laetsingit.com(Jonathan Richman Lyrics Roadrunner):
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