One of my favorite train songs is a new one from Leslie Smith.

Ghost on the High Rail

There's a ghost on the high rail tonight
No, he ain't what he used to be
His beard's harsh and gray, but he's still got those ways
Of a sixteen year old boy

You might have seen him in your own hometown
Whenever the moon paints a purple sky
Still dodging the bums and the cops and
the railroad bull's eye

But he don't matter much these days
He's the rattle of old steel from another time
Takes a veteran to love them rails anyway
Most of them are gone
Move along, Steam Train

That old ghost don't just appear to anyone
Mostly to the kids skipping stones across the track
He's carrying his bindle and his
tree-branch cane and derby hat
He's been spotted from Toledo to Chicago
They say he's searching for his true love, still
All he wanted was a fair paid wage
for a well-done skill

Don't it sound make-believe in these times
Like the rattle of of old steel down a rusted track
All the campfires are cold along the river bank
and the boxcars are gone for scrap

Five hundred miles, you'll know he's gone
You'll hear that whistle moaning on and on

His true love, she's lying abandoned
Down at that southside rail yard
They bring field trips of children to come see her
And some have even carved their names
In her stubborn old black frame
But that ghost he longs to set her free

And there ain't half a chance, not nowadays
She's the rattle of old steel from another time
Takes a vagabond to tell the story anyway
Most of them are gone
Move along, Steam Train

There's a ghost on the high rail tonight

The song is from Leslie's album These Things Wrapped, and the rest of the songs are just as good as this one.