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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: Rob Naylor Date: 13 Apr 17 - 04:14 AM Fairport's version of "Travelling By Steam" (with the tune "Travel By Steam" tacked on at the end!): Travelling By Steam And Eels "Railroad Man" (on Jools Holland, on the "Eels With Strings" tour: Railroad Man |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: Jim Carroll Date: 09 Sep 19 - 03:26 AM One of the best train songs I know Jim Carroll The West Clare Railway Michael ‘Straighty’ Flanagan, Inagh, Recorded 1978 Carroll Mackenzie Collection Come listen unto me awhile I won’t detain you long. I’ll sing you a few verses of a very comic song. It’s all about the West Clare train that goes back to Loop Head, And when that you were landed there you’ll wish that you were dead. This is the way it jogs along a mile in every hour. The only things ‘tis fit for is to hide you from a shower. I own it is a holy show, ‘twould break your very heart, I hope to God, they’ll pawn it soon and get an old bread cart There are excursions every Sunday as you may plainly see From the famous Ennis station to the cliffs of sweet Kilkee. But sure you’d rather walk it than go in this cursed train, For no matter how fine the day may be, ‘twill surely draw the rain. It then jogs off up to Ruan and the first thing there you’ll see Branded on a placard there is Liptons famous teas. To take in some passengers she sometimes gives a call, But anytime it stops there sure it knocks Moloney’s wall. It then jogs on to Willbrook, and there twill stop also, To take in a noted passenger boy, the name of Padrigín Crowe. Sullivan gives orders, with his new railway hat. And his face all spotted over just like a pox-marked cat. We went one Sunday to Lahinch the weather it was fine. And Sullivan gave orders he’d be back at half-past nine. But when returning home that night, I’m sure he must be blind, He never saw the station so he left us all behind. We packed some new spuds in Miltown, and likewise some fresh beef. When passing Lahinch station he was snoring fast asleep. I’m sure they disagreed with him, they made the tummy swell. For when passing Willbrook station he cried, “This is the Golf Hotel.” He’ll soon be out in pension and for him we’ll get the news, To drive around the station like a celebratory railway fool. We’ll also write beneath his mouth, drop a penny in the slot. And in thousands they will come to see this railway hotel pot. Now to conclude I’ll finish and end this wretched call I hope to god they’ll pawn it soon and not be wasting coal. Or else they will repair it or get an old bread cart instead. And I’ll also say we’ll rue the day that we went back to Loop Head. The West Clare Railway opened on July 2nd in 1887. It was a steam driven rail service between Ennis and Kilrush and the journey took about 3 hours. It was a very important service to the people who lived along its route. Charles Stewart Parnell was invited to lift the first sod in laying of the tracks and the silver spade he used is exhibited in the de Valera Museum. The railway employed about 70 people in Ennis alone. It continued to run quite successfully up until World War II, when the pressure of improving roads finally began to tell and in 1948 the Irish National Railway (CIE) decided to close the line, but instead they replaced the steam engines with diesel engines. In 1952 four new diesel engines were supplied and in 1953 CIE bought three more. The last steam passenger train left Ennis on March 15, 1952. In 1955, the West Clare was the only diesel run, narrow gauge railway in Britain and Ireland. It continued to run at a loss and finally all services were closed down on February 1961. The Ennis station house built around 1860 served as the terminus of the West Clare Railway. Many of the old railway bridges, piers, banks and other such works are still standing. In 1896 Percy French sued The West Clare Railway for £10 for a journey he took from Ennis which was delayed at Miltown Malbay, causing him to be late for an “entertainment” he was giving at Kilkee. French’s relationship with the West Clare Railway is immortalised in the song “Are You Right There Michael” In 1956, American director John Ford produced ‘A Minute's Wait’, a short comedy on the ‘hazards’ of travelling on ‘The West Clare’ filmed at Kilkee. Apart from French’s ‘revenge taking’ song, as far as we can make out there were at least another two songs about the railway. This is a fragment which we found in a handwritten notebook of songs given to us by our late neighbour Pat MacNamara (Paddy Mac) of Miltown Malbay. The Train Runs to Malbay O’Brien dear, come listen here, I’ll tell to you some news, And though you’re at your breakfast, the treat you won’t refuse. No more the wintry winds we’ll face in Patsy Gorman’s car, Or face the bleak Mount Callan when the elements are at war. We’ll snugly sit and smoke our pipes in sunshine or in rain, As we hasten home to Miltown in the West Clare railway train. My father sure, I’m sore afraid, must sacrifice his ears, When Daniel Barry comes along and wields his ready shears. For though my father always believed the words of Columbcille, He said the train would never run as far as Hynes’ Hill We never found any more of it. |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: Jim Carroll Date: 09 Sep 19 - 03:26 AM One of the best train songs I know Jim Carroll The West Clare Railway Michael ‘Straighty’ Flanagan, Inagh, Recorded 1978 Carroll Mackenzie Collection Come listen unto me awhile I won’t detain you long. I’ll sing you a few verses of a very comic song. It’s all about the West Clare train that goes back to Loop Head, And when that you were landed there you’ll wish that you were dead. This is the way it jogs along a mile in every hour. The only things ‘tis fit for is to hide you from a shower. I own it is a holy show, ‘twould break your very heart, I hope to God, they’ll pawn it soon and get an old bread cart There are excursions every Sunday as you may plainly see From the famous Ennis station to the cliffs of sweet Kilkee. But sure you’d rather walk it than go in this cursed train, For no matter how fine the day may be, ‘twill surely draw the rain. It then jogs off up to Ruan and the first thing there you’ll see Branded on a placard there is Liptons famous teas. To take in some passengers she sometimes gives a call, But anytime it stops there sure it knocks Moloney’s wall. It then jogs on to Willbrook, and there twill stop also, To take in a noted passenger boy, the name of Padrigín Crowe. Sullivan gives orders, with his new railway hat. And his face all spotted over just like a pox-marked cat. We went one Sunday to Lahinch the weather it was fine. And Sullivan gave orders he’d be back at half-past nine. But when returning home that night, I’m sure he must be blind, He never saw the station so he left us all behind. We packed some new spuds in Miltown, and likewise some fresh beef. When passing Lahinch station he was snoring fast asleep. I’m sure they disagreed with him, they made the tummy swell. For when passing Willbrook station he cried, “This is the Golf Hotel.” He’ll soon be out in pension and for him we’ll get the news, To drive around the station like a celebratory railway fool. We’ll also write beneath his mouth, drop a penny in the slot. And in thousands they will come to see this railway hotel pot. Now to conclude I’ll finish and end this wretched call I hope to god they’ll pawn it soon and not be wasting coal. Or else they will repair it or get an old bread cart instead. And I’ll also say we’ll rue the day that we went back to Loop Head. The West Clare Railway opened on July 2nd in 1887. It was a steam driven rail service between Ennis and Kilrush and the journey took about 3 hours. It was a very important service to the people who lived along its route. Charles Stewart Parnell was invited to lift the first sod in laying of the tracks and the silver spade he used is exhibited in the de Valera Museum. The railway employed about 70 people in Ennis alone. It continued to run quite successfully up until World War II, when the pressure of improving roads finally began to tell and in 1948 the Irish National Railway (CIE) decided to close the line, but instead they replaced the steam engines with diesel engines. In 1952 four new diesel engines were supplied and in 1953 CIE bought three more. The last steam passenger train left Ennis on March 15, 1952. In 1955, the West Clare was the only diesel run, narrow gauge railway in Britain and Ireland. It continued to run at a loss and finally all services were closed down on February 1961. The Ennis station house built around 1860 served as the terminus of the West Clare Railway. Many of the old railway bridges, piers, banks and other such works are still standing. In 1896 Percy French sued The West Clare Railway for £10 for a journey he took from Ennis which was delayed at Miltown Malbay, causing him to be late for an “entertainment” he was giving at Kilkee. French’s relationship with the West Clare Railway is immortalised in the song “Are You Right There Michael” In 1956, American director John Ford produced ‘A Minute's Wait’, a short comedy on the ‘hazards’ of travelling on ‘The West Clare’ filmed at Kilkee. Apart from French’s ‘revenge taking’ song, as far as we can make out there were at least another two songs about the railway. This is a fragment which we found in a handwritten notebook of songs given to us by our late neighbour Pat MacNamara (Paddy Mac) of Miltown Malbay. The Train Runs to Malbay O’Brien dear, come listen here, I’ll tell to you some news, And though you’re at your breakfast, the treat you won’t refuse. No more the wintry winds we’ll face in Patsy Gorman’s car, Or face the bleak Mount Callan when the elements are at war. We’ll snugly sit and smoke our pipes in sunshine or in rain, As we hasten home to Miltown in the West Clare railway train. My father sure, I’m sore afraid, must sacrifice his ears, When Daniel Barry comes along and wields his ready shears. For though my father always believed the words of Columbcille, He said the train would never run as far as Hynes’ Hill We never found any more of it. |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: GUEST,GUEST, Kathy in Wisconsin Date: 03 Oct 20 - 12:41 PM Volunteer music librarian here, got the following from a radio listener. Does this ring a bell with anyone? ‘Somewhere long ago I heard this lyric in a song. I think the line was,"It's always made me wonder, that steel made of thunder..." this was back in 1975 or so. I may have heard it on WFMT show the Midnight Special. Anyway, my friend asked me where I heard that phrase and I thought it may have been a song by U. Utah Phillips. I looked at his website and after some searching could not find that phrase in a song. Perhaps it was another singer/songwriter. Do you or any of your listeners know the source of "steel made of thunder.." in a train referenced song?‘ |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: Jack Campin Date: 03 Oct 20 - 03:04 PM Many thanks to Billy the Bus for the Peter Cape songs. "Taumaranui on the Main Trunk Line" is one of my favourites - and having ridden on the Limited back then I know exactly what he's singing about. Turkish children's song, "The Train's Coming". There are probably many more. Tren Gelir |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: rich-joy Date: 03 Oct 20 - 05:54 PM ORE TRAIN BLUES © BOB WILSON 2013 V.1 He got a job way out west carting iron ore From the outback mines of the Pilbara to the West Australian shore The hours were long, but the pay was good, but there wasn’t much to do Except strum the ukulele and sing train songs with the crew. CH.1 and they sang: Freight train, Graveyard train, Blow that Lonesome Whistle train The Indian Pacific and the Abalinga Mail Night train, Morning train Roll in m’Baby’s Arms train Picking up the tempo with the rattling of the rails. V.2 Now the bosses and the union called a meeting in the yard They had heard about this trio with the engineer and guard “It’s workplace health and safety, it’s like talking on your phone.” But he knew it wasn’t the music, they just didn’t like the tone. CH.2 and they sang: Ghost train, Poison train, not bound for glory, This train And they all sang la la la la, when They Drove Old Dixie Down Bridal train, Salvation train, Get on Board Little Children train He could have been the King of the Road but he never got the crown. V.3 The boss bought high-tech robots from Korea and Japan And the maiden hands-free journey went pretty much to plan They said: “It’s a boring job, we’ll find you something else to do.” Now he’s in a control room, sharing train songs with the crew. CH.3 and they sang: Freight train, Graveyard train, Blow that Lonesome Whistle train The Indian Pacific and the Abalinga Mail Night train, Morning train Roll in m’Baby’s Arms train Picking up the tempo with the rattling of the rails. CH.4 and they sang: Mail train, Slow train, Desper-ados Waiting for a Train Homeward Bound, John Henry, Engine Engine Number Nine Peace train, Freedom train, Robert Johnston’s Love in Vain And they all sang like Dylan: well, I'm walkin' down the line And they all sang like Dylan: well, I'm walkin' down the line. For all you lovers of Train Songs - another from Bob & Laurel Wilson (aka The Goodwills) and a great one to try and sing along, esp with the 4 chorus variations!! You'll find it here : https://www.thegoodwills.com/store/music-by-the-goodwills/the-last-waterhole/ on their latest CD "The Last Waterhole". Cheers, R-J |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: keberoxu Date: 03 Oct 20 - 06:28 PM Looks like a double-post a little ways back there. I love me a good train song, whether it's Mystery Train or the Wabash Cannonball. |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: Bonzo3legs Date: 03 Oct 20 - 06:39 PM The Train Kept a Rollin' first made famous by the Johnny Burnette Rock 'n Roll Trio, and later the Yardbirds. |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: GUEST Date: 04 Oct 20 - 01:35 AM Bill Mason (Article originally published: Inside Bluegrass, January 2008) Roy Harvey (?-1958), a member of the North Carolina Ramblers, probably learned it when he worked as a railroad engineer before he started a musical career. He recorded it in 1927. This version, from 1929, was also recorded by the NC Ramblers, this time with Charlie Poole (1892-1931) singing. Complete Lyrics: [Spoken introduction: (whistle) Roy Harvey: Mmm – that man sure does blow a wicked whistle, don’t he? Sounds like that old feller that used to run on the Southern, between Monroe and Spencer. Pulled that Crescent Limited. What was his name, Charlie? Charlie Poole: Oh, you thinking about Bill Mason. R: O, yeah. Whatever become of him? C: Well, he got married here awhile back. R: O, married! I thought he was sick, that’s what’s the matter with him, I thought. C: Murdered near ‘bout it, but then he got married here awhile back and we made up a song on him. R: Let’s play it then. C: Alright.] 1. Bill Mason was an engineer, he’d been on the road all his life; I’ll never forget the morning he married him a chunk of a wife; Bill hadn’t been married more’n an hour, ‘til up came a message from Kress, And ordered Bill to come down and bring out the night express. 2. While Maggie set by the window, a-waiting for the night express, And if she hadn’t-a done so, she’d-a been a widow, I guess; There were some drunken rascals that came down by the ridge, They came down by the railroad and tore off a rail from the bridge. 3. Well, Maggie heard them working, “I guess there’s something wrong.” In less than fifteen minutes, Bill’s train would be along. She couldn’t come near to tell him ¾ a mile, it wouldn’t have done; She just grabbed up the lantern and made for the bridge alone. 4. By Jove, Bill saw the signal, and stopped the night express. He found his Maggie crying on the track in her wedding dress; A-crying and laughing with joy, still holding onto the light. He come ‘round the curve a-flying, Bill Mason’s on time tonight. |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: GUEST,Kathy in Wisconsin Date: 06 Oct 20 - 10:19 AM Delighted to see this thread reactivate itself. It’s been fun reading the replies, even if they weren’t specific to my question. Meanwhile, I think we figured out the answer: ‘Bloodline’ by Glenn Campbell. The line our listener remembered was actually ‘It was something of wonder, that steel-plated thunder’. Here are the full lyrics. BLOODLINE (Glenn Campbell) In the eyes of the old ones Who watched from a distance It was a devilish magic at best But the hearts of the children Were filled with excitement As they dreamed of their house in the West Oh the engine would fire the black smoke would rise Thru the spray of the slick silver steam It was something of wonder that steel plated thunder That moved the American dream That moved the American dream I can hear the sleepy whistle blowin' I can see the spark beneath the wheels As the leaves the hills behind her For the ragged cotton fields In a dusty one-house station All the children grow impatient As they stare into the distance for a sign Here she comes can't you hear her whistle whine Here she comes rollin' in my bloodline Running' in my bloodline Old man Grady waves his lantern "All on board" I hear him cry While Lucius stokes the cinder And wipes the coal dust from his eyes Yes she was prowd and full of fire As she road that silver wire >From the Kansas Plains to the great Sierra Pine Here she comes can't you hear the whistle whine Here she comes rollin' in right on time I can feel her she's runnin' in my bloodline Runnin' in my bloodline Here she comes Now the stockyards are empty The steel rails are rusted They belong to the wind and the sand But we long will remember The steel and the timber And the pulse that once beat thru this land Oh the engine would fire the black smoke would rise Thru the spray of the slick silver steam It was something of wonder that steel plated thunder That moved the American dream That moved the American dream The American dream Dream ... Thanks for being out there, Mudcatters. Carry on! |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: GUEST Date: 06 Oct 20 - 10:44 AM Het boemeltje van Purmerend |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: GUEST,henryp Date: 06 Oct 20 - 01:20 PM Sergeant Small I went broke in western Queensland in Nineteen Thirty One Nobody would employ me and my swag carrying days begun I started out through Charleville and all the western towns I was on me way to Roma destination Darling Downs Me pants was getting ragged and me boots was a-getting thin And as I came into Mitchell the goods train shunted in I could hear her whistle blowing it was mighty plain to see She was on her way to Roma or so it seemed to me Chorus: I wish I was about twenty stone and only seven feet tall I’d go back to western Queensland and beat up Sergeant Small Traditional arranged by Andy Irvine; “Sergeant Small” is an Australian song which tells the story of an unemployed man who rides freight trains in his search for work during the Great Depression in the 1930s but gets trapped by Sergeant Small, a policeman masquerading as a hobo. This song is an amalgamation from two sources put together by Brad Tate: the recording made by Tex Morton in the 1940s and the poem written by Terry Boylan in the 1970s. Irvine first heard it sung by Seamus Gill of Canberra, a Donegal man who has lived most of his life in Australia. |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: GUEST,BlackAcornUK Date: 06 Oct 20 - 01:36 PM A bit far-out from many of the other suggestions, perhaps, but there was an excellent LP in the late 90s that melded dust-bowl roots with gentle instrumental avant-rock - 'Train Songs' by Two Dollar Guitar. Features Sonic Youth's Steve Shelley on drums. |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: GUEST,BlackAcornUK Date: 06 Oct 20 - 01:37 PM Oops, meant to click the 'link-maker', and hit 'submit' instead - here's the whole LP, on Youtube: https://youtu.be/Dwpi4c1Mlrg |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: GUEST,henryp Date: 06 Oct 20 - 01:52 PM In the Sidings by Cyril Tawney, 1963. The pin-stripe boys have had their say, A line must go if it doesn’t pay. But I’m too old to move away, I'm in the sidings now. |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: Felipa Date: 03 Jun 21 - 07:48 AM https://reelear.com/sounds-like-a-train/ is a blog to promote an ear-training app, but it has sound files of Rev. Dan Smith playing a harmonica throw down simply called – The Train; Bukka White’s Special Streamline; Train 45, from the Log Cabin Boys; Chuck Berry’s, Down Bound Train |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: Felipa Date: 03 Jun 21 - 07:50 AM https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=19614 = Reuben's Train |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: Jack Campin Date: 03 Jun 21 - 10:04 AM India has by far the biggest railway system in the world. They must have train songs. Who knows about them? |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: gillymor Date: 03 Jun 21 - 10:51 AM The only one I know of is New Dehli Freight Train, written by Texan Terry Allen and covered here by Little Feat. John Starling also covered it. |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: GUEST Date: 30 May 25 - 03:35 PM 219 Train |
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Subject: RE: Train Songs From: GUEST,henryp Date: 01 Jun 25 - 06:13 AM From A Railway Carriage from A Child's Garden of Verses by Robert Louis Stevenson Written in 1885, when trains still had an element of novelty and excitement. Syllables amended to make lines uniform. Ode by Coal Henry Peacock 2025 The growth of the railways was driven by steam power, generated by burning coal. After electrification, power stations still depended upon coal. The last coal-fired power station in the UK - Ratcliffe-on-Soar - closed down in 2024. Faster than fairies, faster than witches, Bridges and houses, hedges and ditches; And charging along like troops in a battle, All through the meadows the horses and cattle: Leaving a long trail of smoke in the sky Everyone waves as the train passes by! All of the sights of the hill and the plain Fly past as thick as the hard driving rain; And ever again, in the wink of an eye, We see painted stations as they whistle by. Leaving a long trail of smoke in the sky Everyone waves as the train passes by! Here is a child who clambers and scrambles, All by himself and gathering brambles; And here is a tramp who stands back and gazes; And there is the green for stringing the daisies! Leaving a long trail of smoke in the sky Everyone waves as the train passes by! Here is a cart run away in the road Lumping along with a man and his load; And here is a mill and there is a river: Each one a glimpse and then gone for ever! Leaving a long trail of smoke in the sky Everyone waves as the train passes by! Where is the winding gear, wheel spinning round? Where are the men who worked deep underground? Where are the tall chimneys? Gone every one Now we rely on the rays of the sun! Leaving a long trail of smoke in the sky Everyone waves as the train passes by! |
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