Train Songs

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: SINSULL
Date: 19 Apr 00 - 11:13 AM

I remember a 78RPM of "Freight Train Blues".

I got the freight train blues Lawdy Lawdy Lawdy I got em in the bottom of my ramblin' shoes When the whistle blows I got to go Oh Lawdy ain't I ever gonna lose the freight train blues.

Can't remember more and who sang it but I loved it as a child. Also had "The Wreck of Old 99" and "The Train That Never Returned Again".

Did anyone mention "100 Miles"? Not my favorite but a train song.

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Mbo
Date: 19 Apr 00 - 11:07 AM

Sorcha, I was just listening to that very song yesterday! Like Gene Price used to say..."ah..that's Chris Ledoux, and he do do do!"

--Mbo

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Sorcha
Date: 19 Apr 00 - 10:57 AM

Chris LeDoux does a wonderful "Raised By the Railroad Line" by Paul Craft. I'll see if I can transcribe them, all I can remember right now is
I'ts a part of your past, you never quite turn loose........part of the soul in the heart of a man, of a boy that was raised by the railroad line"

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Robo
Date: 19 Apr 00 - 12:10 AM

Thanks to the 'Cat who added "Texas 1947" by Guy Clark. Let me throw in Woody Guthrie's meanest man on the shiney iron, little "East Texas Red."

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Mark Clark
Date: 17 Apr 00 - 01:27 AM

Dave Prine and Tyler Wilson (The National Recovery Act) used to say there were no good train songs anymore. Trains don't run down the grade at 90 MPH any more; they go 30 MPH along a straight flat run, get halfway there and fall off. How do you write a song about that?

      - Mark

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Snuffy
Date: 16 Apr 00 - 08:43 PM

What about Flanders & Swan's The Last Train with the names of all those dead stations.

Wassail! V

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: bobby's girl
Date: 16 Apr 00 - 01:09 PM

My husband has just dug out his Dave Goulder LP, which is called "Requiem For Steam", a great LP which includes as session musicians in the credits Martin Carthy and Maddy Prior! It was produced by Big Ben Records of London.

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: bobby's girl
Date: 16 Apr 00 - 12:57 PM

On Strawhead's CD "Argent", Chris Pollington sings a Stanley Accrington song called Last Train, which is lovely, and tells of the demise of the rural railways.

Subject: Lyr Add: THE OLD S & D and SWANAGE STEAM (Sartin)
From: wildlone
Date: 16 Apr 00 - 09:53 AM

Here is a couple of songs about the old Somerset and Dorset line or as it was known by those that used it the Slow and Dirty
I could scan the music and send as a gif send me a personal message with your email address if you want a copy.

The Old S&D
Copyright: B Sartin

We had a railway line some years ago
It might have been dirty, it might have been slow
Now that its gone it affects you and me
And everyone misses the old S & D
Everyone misses the old S & D.

Through the loveliest landscapes of England it rolled
Past woodland and meadow and cornfields of gold
From Bath running seventy miles to the sea
A beautiful ride was the old S & D
A beautiful ride was the old S & D.

There's museums and theme parks around us today
Tempting the tourists and trippers to stay
A pity the planners were too blind to see
The biggest attraction, the old S & D
The biggest attraction, the old S & D.

Through Somerset and Dorset it hauled all the freight
No matter the size. no matter the weight
Helping the farmers and our industry
Everyday jobs for the old S & D
Everyday jobs for the old S & D.

Next time you're stuck on the Evercreech road
Behind an artic with a 40-ton load
Think how much pleasanter living would be
If they'd only developed the old S & D
If they'd only developed the old S & D.

They knocked down the bridges and took out the track
And everyone knows that there's no going back
There's little remaining for posterity
But we'll always remember the old S & D
We'll always remember the old S & D.

Where locos once ran there are houses instead
The sleepers now lie in a much softer bed
Do they rest contented or doze fitfully
Disturbed by the ghosts of the old S&D?
Disturbed by the ghosts of the old S&D.

Swanage Steam.
Copyright: B Sartin.

They said, "It'll have to go,
Far too dirty, far too slow,
Too much soot and too much grime,
Not enough arrive on time."

(Chorus)
But trains are rolling, trains are rolling
On the old Swanage branch, trains are rolling.

So they gave the men the sack,
And they ripped up all the track,
Sold it all for scrap,
Wiped the line right off the map.

But when they'd done their worst,
And BR's name was cursed,
There came men with a dream
Who loved the power of steam.

So they called for volunteers,
Firemen, drivers, engineers,
And those who had no skill
But muscle and good will.

Helpers came to build and lay,
What had been just thrown away,
To struggle and to strive
And keep the line alive.

Now the track will grow and grow,
To Corfe Castle we will go,
Because men had a dream
And loved the power of steam.

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Billy the Bus
Date: 16 Apr 00 - 09:28 AM

Silly old me you'll find the tune for Taumaranui and Okaihau Express chords on-line.

There's more NZ songs on the NZ Folk song list and a good smattering on Dexter Muir's Hot of the scanner

Well must hit the pit (go to bed)

Cheers - Sam

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Mooh
Date: 16 Apr 00 - 09:23 AM

Did anyone mention Love In Vain by the Rolling Stones?

Peace, Mooh.

Subject: Lyr Add: OKAIHAU EXPRESS^^
From: Billy the Bus
Date: 16 Apr 00 - 09:15 AM

Here's another Kiwi train song, again by Peter Cape

Okaihau Express
===============
© Peter Cape

She starts out from Otiria, the smallest train you've seen:
That's the Okaihau Express.
Just an engine and a guards van with a carriage in between:
This is the Okaihau Express.

The driver doesn't worry if he takes the journey slow,
Drivin' the Okaihau Express.
He's got all day to do it in, and thirty miles to go,
Drivin' the Okaihau Express.

She was goin' round the bend doin' ten miles an hour,
The whistle began to shriek (Whoo-whoo!)
Well she caught that bull in the middle of the brisket
And the engine smelt of steak for a week.

There's puppies in an apple box and pipis in a sack,
Ridin' the Okaihau Express,
But no-one knows the difference when they're drippin' from the rack,
Ridin' the Okaihau Express.

She stops at Lake Omapere to take some water in:
That's the Okaihau Express.
The fireman takes a bucket, the driver takes a swim:
That's the Okaihau Express.

Okaihau to Otiria it's just a single track,
When you're ridin' the Okaihau Express.
You can't turn it at the terminus, you just reverse her back.
That's the Okaihau Express!
_____________________________

Translations

Okaihau and Omapere are small towns in Northland NZ - only some tem mileas apart from memory.

Guards van = caboose

pipi = bivalve shellfish

Must learn some of these newfangled tune writing thingies sometime...;)

Cheers - Sam

HTML line breaks added. -JoeClone 26-Mar-01.

Subject: Lyr Add: Taumarunui (Peter Cape)^^
From: Billy the Bus
Date: 16 Apr 00 - 08:57 AM

Hi Joe,

Herewith a contri from NZ.

Taumarunui
==========
TAUMARUNUI
(Peter Cape 1957)

I'm an ordinary joker, growin' old before me time,
'Cause me heart's in Taumarunui on the Main Trunk Line.
In Taumarunui, Taumarunui. Taumarunui on the Main Trunk Line!

You can get to Taumarunui going North or going South,
And you pull in there at midnight and there's cinders in your mouth,
You've got cinders in your whiskers and a cinder in your eye,
So you pop off to Refreshments for a cuppa tea and pie,

[Chorus]

There's this sheila in Refreshments and she's pouring cups'a tea,
And me heart jumps like a rabbit when she pours a cup for me.
She's got hair of flamin' yeller, and lips of flamin' red,
And I'll love that flamin' sheila till I'm up and gone and dead,

[Chorus]

Now you can get a job in Wellington or get a job up North,
But you can't in Taumarunui though you try for all you're worth.
If I want to see this sheila I've got to take a train,
Get ten minutes for refresments then they cart me off again,

[Chorus]

Well they took me on as Fireman on the Limited Express,
And I thought that she'd be Jake but now she's all a flamin' mess.
That sheila didn't take to me: I thought she'd be a gift,
She's gone and changed her duty hours and works the daylight shift,

[Chorus]

Yeah I'm an ordinary joker, growin' old before me time,
'Cause me heart's in Taumarunui on the Main Trunk Line.
In Taumarunui, Taumarunui. Taumarunui on the Main Trunk Line,

____________________________

Peter Cape wrote a heap of great NZ songs in the 50s.

Taumarunui (A Maori name, pronounced Tam-ra-new-ee in the 50s - politically incorrect now) is a small town in the centre of the North Island (NZ). I used to have wonderful holidays there as a kid in the forties. The Main Trunk Line, links Wellington and Auckland - 3'6" narrow gauge. The Limited Express ran an overnight 14 hour trip - one train up the line, one down, each night. They crossed just south of Taumarunui.

A few "translations"

Joker=guy, Sheila=girl (used as a Christian name also)

Refreshments = no dining cars, the train stopped about each three hours, and there was a mad dash of passengers to "Refreshment Rooms" in the station building. You had ten minutes to grab your cuppa and pie, then back on board, and off. Railway cups were about a half inch thick..

She'd be Jake = OK

I've got an hilarious description of a trip on the Limited Express, from a book "From N to Z", also written in the 50s. Much too lengthy to post here - if any rail buffs want a copy e-mail me.

Cheers - Sam

Subject: Train Songs
From: Joe Offer
Date: 15 Apr 00 - 05:31 PM

Dale Rose sent me a page called Music and Railways (click). Take a look - you'll be amazed.

Just a note - threads that discuss music shouldn't receive the "BS" label. That label is supposed to designate threads that are purely chit-chat.
But I found the thread, and will monitor it for lyrics that can be included in the Digital Tradition. If you have train song lyrics to share with us, please post them here. If you've posted train songs in other locations, please put links to those songs here.
-Joe Offer-

---

Wikipedia List of Train Songs

Subject: Lyr Add: ENGINE ENGINE NUMBER NINE (R Miller)^^
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 13 Apr 00 - 02:28 PM

ENGINE, ENGINE NUMBER NINE
(Roger Miller © 1965)

Engine, engine number nine,
Coming down the railroad line,
How much farther back did she get off?
Old brown suitcase that she carried,
I've looked for it ev'rywhere. It
Just ain't here among the rest and
I'm a little upset, yes. Tell me,

(Chorus:)
Engine, engine number nine,
Coming down the railroad line,
I know she got on in Baltimore.
A hundred and ten miles ain't much distance,
But it sure do make a diff'rence;
I don't think she loves me anymore.

I warned her of all the dangers:
Don't speak to strangers.
Did by chance she find a romance,
Warmer lips to kiss her,
Arms to hold her tighter,
Stirring new fires inside her?
How I wish that it was me
Instead of he that stands beside her.

(Repeat chorus; repeat last line of chorus.)
JTD

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: GUEST,ej
Date: 13 Apr 00 - 05:39 AM

Sorry, I cut myself off. Continuing.... The Chorus goes; Please tell me, if you can, what time do the trains roll in? [response by other singer] Two ten, six eighteen, ten forty four. The song appears to about a soldier returning to his home town. One verse is: I've been away from town(home) so long Fought a war that's come and gone.. Doesn't anybody know my name? etc. A very poignant and sad song.

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: GUEST,ej
Date: 13 Apr 00 - 05:24 AM

I don't recall the name ot this one by Glen Yarborough, or someone else around that era. It's a sad song - perhaps an anti-war song. The chorus goes;

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: ddw
Date: 13 Apr 00 - 12:53 AM

One that I don't think's been mentioned is 2:10 Train, which is in the DT. The only recording I've ever heard of it was sung by Linda Ronstadt when she was fronting for The Stone Poneys back in the late '60s. I opened for them one night at a place in Cleveland and she sang it that night. Blew me away. I think she was one of the writers, tho' under what may have been her maiden name. Not sure of that. But the song's great.

david

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: catspaw49
Date: 12 Apr 00 - 09:43 PM

Back to "Engine 143"....Although used by other roads, the term FFV (as was correctly pointed out as standing for Fast Flying Vestibule) was attributed to the Chesapeake and Ohio and the line is often sung as:

"Running down that C&O road"

Also Leej, I still like "New River Train" a lot. A fun singalong.......I thought we had a thread about that but it must be under another name.

Spaw

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: McGrath of Harlow
Date: 12 Apr 00 - 08:10 PM

Dave Goulder's a great song writer, and the best known of his songs is JANUARY MAN, in the DT. When he was a young man back in England he worked on the footplate.

I think the record karen k was trying to remember the name of might be "The man who put the engine in the chip shop" (Fellside Records FEO65 - vinyl only I suspect, or it might be Stone, Steam and Starlings, which is on CD. The thing about his trains is they aren't big epic American trains, they're rattly English ones.

Here's a site with lots of stuff about railway records, including Dave Goulder's "man who put the engine in the chip shop"

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: GUEST,Lee
Date: 12 Apr 00 - 08:00 PM

Back in the '50s Jack Kingston in Ont., Canada, did a catchy number titled "'C.N. Special", and the Kingston Trio [no relation], put out "Blue Water Line".

For anyone who really LOVES "The Orange Blossom Special", the best version ever recorded, [my unhumble opinion], was done by a fiddler in Barberton, Ohio, by the name of Jim Pontius, on his "Down Home Fiddle" album. I've worked with fiddlers for about forty-five years and this is the best piece of work I've ever heard. Jim has a phone number, 1-216-825-4376. He might have a few copies left.

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Ely
Date: 12 Apr 00 - 06:05 PM

More about Larry Penn:

Has a really good one called "End of Train Device" about the demise of cabooses. I was trying to remember when this happened--I know trains still had them when I was a kid so I'm guessing about 15 years ago.

He's also got one about Kate Shelley, who crawled across a trestle in the dark, during a storm, with her dead father's railroad lantern to warn of a wash-out.

Subject: Lyr Add: GLENDALE TRAIN^^
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 12 Apr 00 - 05:13 PM

GLENDALE TRAIN
(John Dawson, © 1971)

(Chorus:)
Somebody robbed the Glendale train this morning at half past nine.
Somebody robbed the Glendale train, and I swear I ain't lyin'.
They made clean off with sixteen G's and left two men lyin' cold.
Somebody robbed the Glendale train and they made off with the gold.

Charlie Jones was the engineer. He had twenty years on the line.
He kissed his wife at the station gate this morning six thirty-five.
Everything went fine until half past nine, when Charlie looked up and saw
There were men with horses and men with guns and no sign of the law. (Chorus)

Amos Wise was the baggage man and he dearly loved his job.
The company they rewarded him with a golden watch and fob.
Amos Wise was a markin' time when the door blew off his car.
They found Amos Wise in fifteen pieces fifteen miles apart. (Chorus)
- -
^^
Recorded by the New Riders of the Purple Sage, Frank Wakefield and the Good Old Boys,
The Middle Spunk Creek Boys. JTD

Subject: Lyr Add: FOLSOM PRISON BLUES (Johnny Cash)^^
From: Jim Dixon
Date: 12 Apr 00 - 05:02 PM

FOLSOM PRISON BLUES
Words and music by Johnny Cash, ©1956
As recorded by Johnny Cash on "I Walk the Line" (1964)

I hear that train a-comin'. It's rollin' round the bend.
And I ain't seen the sunshine since I don't know when.
I'm stuck in Folsom Prison and time keeps draggin' on.
But that train keeps a-rollin' on down to San Antone.

When I was just a baby, my mama told me, "Son,
Always be a good boy. Don't ever play with guns."
But I shot a man in Reno just to watch him die.
When I hear that whistle blowin', I hang my head and cry.

I bet there's rich folks eatin' in a fancy dinin' car.
They're prob'ly drinkin' coffee and smokin' big cigars.
Well, I know I had it comin'. I know I can't be free.
But those people keep a-movin', and that's what tortures me.

Well, if they freed me from this prison, if that railroad train was mine,
I bet I'd move it on a little farther down the line.
Far from Folsom Prison, that's where I want to stay,
And I'd let that lonesome whistle blow my blues away.

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Banjer
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 07:25 PM

Just a wee bit of thread creep...I dug out one of a series of tapes, Country Family Reunion II, Vol. 1, which was produced after the passing of Grandpa Jones and Justin Tubb, both featured on version I of the series and before the passing of one of my longtime favorites, Boxcar Willie. Boxcar sings Wabash Cannonball and while one must keep in mind that the hobo personna was largely his stage act, the love for that song and Roy Acuff that shows through as he sings it is amazing. He also does a real nice version of Life Is Like A Mountain Railway, after which he talks about not knowing how much time he has left here on earth but is thankful for every day. Brought a tear to my eye, it did! Just had to throw that in!

Subject: Train song links
From: GUEST,Jim Dixon
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 07:06 PM

Here are some Internet sources for train songs:

Choo choo. - a list of 50 songs with lyrics and discography.

RailServe - Train Songs and Sound FX - a list of CD's with links to CDnow, which sometimes provides track listings and samples.

Wes Modes' Train Songs - a list of about 500 songs and performers.

Philip Pacey's Music and Railways - a truly amazing list of mainly classical, but some pop, music inspired by railways.

Chris Coleman's Railroad Songs - a list of about 1000 songs and performers, some with dates.

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: bob schwarer
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 06:59 PM

Note to "Mrrzy".

FFB is realyy FFV..........Fast Flying Vestibule.

Bob S.

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Art Thieme
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 04:41 PM

Hllo again Mr. Ernie,

"New River Train" (if I'm remembering correctly) was recorded by BILL and CHARLIE MONROE----a pre-bluegrass classic. Was on RCA Camden as an LP. That's all I recall.

Art Thieme

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Art Thieme
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 04:35 PM

Tonight, April 10, 2000 on the Nashville Network at 7:00 PM (Central Daylight Time) is an intriguingly blurbed film. It's called THE LONG SUMMER OF GEORGE ADAMS. The blurb says: *** 1982---James Garner & Joan Hackett---The diesel changes an old time railroad man's life and job with his wife in 1950s Oklahoma.

Another interesting film late tonight seems to be Wild Boys Of The Road"-*** -- 1933-- on Turner Classic Movies at 2:30 AM. blurb: 2 guys and a girl hop a freight train to nowhere.

Art Thieme

Subject: Lyr Add: One More Ride (Garnet Rogers)^^
From: Clinton Hammond2
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 02:46 PM

Let's not forget Jethro Tulls "Locomotive Breath!! LOL!! O.k.. so it's not actually about a train... but what the hell! LOL!!

Maybe I'll submit the lyrics to the One More Ride that I know...

ONE MORE RIDE
(Garnet Rogers)

My legs had gone to sleep By the time we made Swift Current
I gathered up my suitcase and guitar
When I saw him on the platform in a cap and baggy trousers
He nodded as I stepped down from the car
I was zipping up my coat; he was flagging down a taxi
For a flustered mother, He sent her on her way
A young woman turned and asked me
"Does that man work for the railroad?"
I said "No, that's Bill, he's here every day.

That's old Bill, he's down here every day
He likes to work, he won't take pay
He's been here since he retired in 82
I've seen his kind everywhere I go
They're made to feel to old and slow
They're restless when they have no job to do

He wants one more ride, before his time is over
I think he worked these rails before the war
One more ride, and you know he'd better hurry
The railroad won't come through here anymore."

He was blowing across his coffee At the counter in the restaurant
I sat down next to him and said "hello"
I said, "I guess the days are numbered
When you can work here at the station
They're closing down the line, now where'll you go?"

He shook his head, he bit his lip, His cup and saucer rattled
He cleared his throat and slowly turned around
He said, "I don't know what I'll do, I'm too old to change my habits
I can't believe they'd close the railway down."

He said, "I love the sound, I even love the smell
God damn the bastards all to hell
How dare they say the railroad won't pay?

I wanted one more ride, before my time was over
To feel the wind and hear the diesels roar.
One more ride, to dream when I was younger
But dreams count for nothing anymore."

Well I gave into the impulse, I ran and bought a ticket
I brought it back and I set it by his side
i said, "Let's head out west together, I tell my best lies in a club car
Come on old man, let's take one more ride.

We'll drink and watch the sun sink in flames across the prairie
At nighttime feel the darkened coaches sway
We'll hear the whistle echo through a thousand icy canyons
Come on old man, let's go. What do you say?"

His eyes grew bright he raised his chin
A longing hit him like a gust of wind
And then he shook his head and whispered
"Thanks, but no,
Some dreams you win, some dreams you hold,
Some haunt you like the gleam of gold
And I'll hang on to this one
Thank you all the same."

One more ride, the time is over
We stood outside and watched the sun go down
One more ride I heard him whisper in the darkness
And he turned to walk toward the lights of town

A fantastic song, if I've ever heard one!

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Lonesome EJ
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 02:39 PM

Is anyone familiar with New River Train? I remember this from the distant past, but find no evidence of it in the DT. It was a bluegrass song and it went

"I'm leavin' on that New River Train, Lord, Lord
Leavin' on that New River Train
The same old train that brought me here
Gonna carry me back home again..."

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Lonesome EJ
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 01:27 PM

And how about Glendale Train, about the robbing of same by the James Gang. It was a New Riders song, and we had a thread on the forum about it not long ago. Also the Grateful Dead's Casey Jones, and John Fogerty's Big Train from Memphis, although Fogerty's tune is a metaphorical song about Presley. A group called the Long Riders also had a good train song called Here Comes that Train Again.

LEJ

Subject: Lyr Add: THE WRECK ON THE C & O^^^
From: GUEST,Mrrzy-at-work
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 12:33 PM

Didn't see this one in the dB so here it is. I know Joan Baez sang it, I can't remember which album (same as Once I knew a pretty girl), and I never knew who wrote it. These are the words I hear...

ENGINE 143

Along came the FFB, the swiftest on the line,
Running down that steel road, just twenty minutes behind,
Running into Sou'ville, headquarters on the line,
Receiving their strict orders from the station just behind.

Georgie's mother came to him with a bucket on her arm.
She said, "My darling son, be careful how you run.
There's many a man has lost his life in trying to make lost time,
But if you run your engine right, you'll get there just on time."

Up the track she darted. Into a rock she crashed.
Upside down the engine turned, and Georgie's breast is smashed.
His head lay against the firebox door. The flames were roaring high.
"I'm proud to be born for an engineer and see no road to die."

The doctor said to Georgie, "My darling boy, be still!
Your life may yet be saved, if it is God's blessed will!"
"Oh, no!" cried George, "This will not do. I'd rather die so free.
I want to die for the engine I loved, a hundred and forty three."

Then the doctor said to Georgie, "Your life cannot be saved."
Murdered upon the railway, and laid in a lonesome grave,
His face was covered up with blood. His eyes they could not see,
And the very last words poor Georgie cried were "Nearer my God, to Thee!"

As an aside, I couldn't find the thread where how to type accents was explained, can anyone help with that?

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: GUEST,Mrrzy-at-work
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 12:21 PM

Don't ignore Shel Silverstein's famous one-verse train song:

Let me sing you a song 'bout the old 49 / Fastest engine on the Santa Fe line / On the 12th of December, she made a desparate dash / And she got there on time and she did not crash.

Also the old one that Joan Baez did, that I should have listed under Songs I Can't Sing Without Bursting Into Tears, about Engine 143 and Georgie, which has that fantastic imagery about the crash's effects on the engineer, even better than the Cisco Houston imagery about how "they found him in the wreck with his hand on the throttle: he was scalded to death by the steam."

Subject: Lyr Add: ONE MORE RIDE (Bob Nolan)
From: GUEST,Jim Dixon
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 12:13 PM

ONE MORE RIDE
Words and music by Bob Nolan
As recorded by Sons of the Pioneers (Okeh 5725, 1936)

I'm along for a trip; don't need no grip; I'm takin' one more ride
Way out there in the prairie air; I guess it's in my hide.
For the clickety-clack of the railroad track is callin'.
Here's a man that knows where the Santa Fe goes when she gets under steam,
And her big loud bell bids a fond farewell; hear her whistle scream.
She's bound to go where there ain't no snow a-fallin'.
One more ride.

Now I miss the gloom of the pale white moon that seemed to know my name,
And the tumbleweed where the prairie dog feeds, I miss them just the same.
They're all a part of the song in my heart I'm singin'.
I recall the tune I sang to the moon; it seemed to make him smile,
As I rode away at the close of day and stayed so long, awhile,
But I long to be where the memory is ringin'.
One more ride.

As the years go by, I'll wonder why I longed to leave my home,
And hit the trail of the iron rail away out there alone,
But my heart will sigh till I know that I am leavin'.
If I don't come back, there's a one-way track way down in Mexico
You'll find me there or any old where that a tumbleweed will grow.
So it's goodbye now, you'll never know how I'm grievin'.
One more ride.

[Also recorded by Hank Snow, Johnny Cash, Marty Stuart, Johnny Bond, et al.]

Subject: Lyr Add: THE LAST RIDE^^
From: Art Thieme
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 11:29 AM

"Zack, The Mormon Engineer" is a classic---about an engineer on the Denver & Rio Grand R.R. that had a wife in every town along the way. Also, "The Hobo's Last Ride"--originally done with banjo by Buell Kazee (1928 ?)and then re-done with a new tune by Hank Snow (and by me too on Folk Legacy).

THE LAST RIDE

In the Dodge City Yards of the Santa Fe stood a freight made up for the east,
The engineer with his oil and waste stood groomin' the great iron beast,
Ten cars back in the murky dusk a boxcar door swung wide,
And a hobo hoisted his pal aboard to start on his last long ride.

The lantern swung, the freight pulled out and the engine it gathered speed,
The engineer pulled his throttle wide and clucked to his fiery steed.

Ten cars back in the murky dusk a hobo rolled a pill,
The flare of the match showed his partner's face stark, white and deathly still,
As ther train wheels clicked on the couplin' joints---a song for the rambler's ear,
The hobo talked to the still white form--his pal for many a year.

"It's a mighty long time we've rambled, Jack, with the luck of the men that roam,
The backdoor steps for a dining room and a boxcar for a home,
We dodged the bulls on the eastern route, the cops on the Chesapeake,
We rode the Leadville narrow gauge in the days of Cripple Creek,
We traveled down through sunny Cal. on the rails of the old S.P.,
And of all you had, through good or bad, half always belonged to me,
I made a promise to you, Jack, if I lived and you cashed in,
To take you back to that old churchyard and bury you there with your kin,
I'm keepin' my promise to you, Jack, and takin' you home on the fly,
It's a decent way for a 'bo to go home to the by-and-by.

"I knew that the fever had you Jack, and the doctor, he wouldn't come,
He was too busy with the wealthy folks to doctor a worn out bum."
As the train rolled over those ribbons of steel straight through to the east it sped,
The engineer in his high cab seat kept his eyes on the rails ahead,
Ten cars back in the murky dusk, a lonely hobo sighed,
For the days of old and his pal so cold who was taking his last long ride...

Art Thieme ----(this is probably in the DT but it's fun to go through the words another time.)

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Willie-O
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 11:27 AM

well it ain't really, ceit. or, they all are.

Guy Clark Texas 1947, fer sure.

Canadiana, less obvious than the Trilogy:

• Crossties on a Railroad by Dennis Brown
• Railroad Line (Bill Garrett?)
• I Never Did Like That Train (Murray McLauchlan)
• I Like Trains (Fred Eaglesmith) (these should be sung back to back for best effect...)
• Harvest Train (Alex Sinclair)

Lonesome Willie-O

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: ceitagh
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 11:04 AM

Hey guys....why is this a BS thread?
ceit

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Mooh
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 11:03 AM

Train Kept A Rollin' (a great crossover folkie tune), If Love was a Train (Michelle Shocked), Silver Train (Johnie Winter and the Stones), Passion Train (Salamander Crossing), Kansas City (I might take a train...), lots of Gordon Lightfoot stuff...

My brain hurts. Peace Mooh.

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: GUEST,Mbo_at_ECU
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 10:49 AM

I know yer gonna hate me for this, But ELO did a smokin' version of "Orange Blossom Special" on the rare album "The Night The Light Came on in Long Beach", when with minimal band accompaniament, their fiddler Mik Kaminski tore up on the Orange Blossom Special like Paganini come back to life and fiddlin' at a barndance! Woooo woooo!

--Mbo

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: GUEST,Lost cookie
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 09:34 AM

Orange Blossom Special

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Whistle Stop
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 08:45 AM

One more: it's called Texas Eagle by Steve Earle. It's the first song on the excellent CD that he recorded with the Del McCoury band last year ("The Mountain"). that qualifies as "recent".

Of course, there's also This Train by Woody Guthrie -- can't call that one recent, but in my opinion it's timeless.

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Whistle Stop
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 08:37 AM

"Recent" is tough, probably for a lot of us. But there are lots of good suggestions here. The Norman Blake stuff is all great, and also the Tom Waits. Mbo suggests the classic City of New Orleans, but you may want to make note of the fact that it's actually a Steve Goodman song (Arlo did a cover that got a lot of airplay, but he didn't write it).

I'd also suggest It Takes A Lot To Laugh, It Takes A Train To Cry by Bob Dylan, and another by Guy Clark whose name escapes me -- it is Texas 1949?

Subject: ADDE: San Fernando
From: GUEST,Roger the skiffler
Date: 10 Apr 00 - 04:24 AM

I asked for these lyrics last year and Wolfgang pointed to a link which had them from whence I've cut 'n' pasted these, hope it's formatted OK.
As sung in the UK by Johnny Duncan and the Bluegrass boys, (and Bud & Travis in the US) not by St Lonnie as I had misremembered.

SAN FERNANDO

It's the last train to San Fernando
The last train to San Fernando
And if you miss this one
There'll never be another one
So let's bitty-bitty boom-boom
To San Fernando

Last night I met sweet Dorothy
Said, "Tomorrow I am joining in matrimony."
("Do it now, John!")
She said, "If you act right
You can take me out tonight
And we'll wine and dine but be back on time."

It's the last train to San Fernando
It's the last train to San Fernando
And if you miss this one
There'll never be another one
So let's bitty-bitty boom-boom
To San Fernando

Said, "I'm marrying right into society
Be careful of the place you are taking me
Because if you slip, I'll slide
And I'll never get to be a bride."
And we'll bitty-bitty boom-boom to San Fernando
("What is this?")

It's the last train to San Fernando
("Bitty-bitty-bitty!")
Last train to San Fernando
And if you miss this one
There'll never be another one
So let's bitty-bitty boom-boom
To San Fernando

("Sing it, Keely!")
Diplomatically, I asked Dorothy to dance
("How else?")
There was nothing on my mind but romance
I said to myself, "Oooh boy
Better beat this iron while it's hot."
And we'll bitty-bitty boom-boom to San Fernando

It's the last train to San Fernando
("Hush-a-baby!")
Last train to San Fernando
And if you miss this one
There'll never be another one
So let's bitty-bitty boom-boom
To San Fernando

It's the last train to San Fernando
The last train to San Fernando
(quiet)

Let's bitty-bitty boom-boom to San Fernando!
(loud)
Roger the <==0==>

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: GUEST,Frankie
Date: 09 Apr 00 - 10:44 PM

Great thread, I love train songs and I'm going to "track" some of these down. Here's a few:

Golden Rocket by Hank Snow

Streamlined Cannonball by Roy Acuff

And my all-time favorite Green Light on the Southern by Norman Blake.

F

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Harold W
Date: 09 Apr 00 - 10:18 PM

I should have defined recent meaning after 1976. Maybe this should clear this up.

Ken Johnson

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Pete Peterson
Date: 09 Apr 00 - 09:16 PM

A friend of mine JU Lee wrote a song called Atlantic Coast Line Railroad Man-- it's a series of fast images about life working on that railroad. Written in the last ten years and a GOOD song-- I'll post it if anybody is interested. PETE

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: ddw
Date: 09 Apr 00 - 08:57 PM

Don't know about the "recent" criterion, but there's Bukka White's Special Streamline and the one Tom Rush made as a spinoff of it, The Panama Limited.

Also Dwight Yoakum's Smoke Along The Track. And the Kingston Trio's Fast Freight.

I'm restraining myself; I love train songs and could probably come up with 50 or so, but a lot of them would be in the DT, so it'd just be a waste of everybody's time.

david

Subject: RE: BS: Train Songs
From: Callie
Date: 09 Apr 00 - 08:13 PM

Tom Waits' "Downtown Train" and a wonderful song called "Poison Train" by a man in Darwin (Australia) whose name eludes me.

--Callie

Subject: ADD: The Iron Horse ^^
From: Susanne (skw)
Date: 09 Apr 00 - 07:01 PM

A regrettably US-sided thread ... Here's a train song from Scotland, sung by Tony Cuffe on 'When First I Came To Caledonia' (1988):

THE IRON HORSE
(Charles Balfour)

Come Hielandman, come Lowlandman, come every man on earth, man
And I'll tell ye how I got on, atween Dundee and Perth, man
I gaed upon an iron road, a rail they did it ca', man
And ruggit [pulled] by an iron horse, an awfy beast to draw, man

There were hooses in a lang straight row a-standin' upon wheels, man
And the pair o' chiels that fed the brute were black as ony de'ils, man
And ne'er a thing they gave the beast but only coals to eat, man
'Twas the queerest beast that e'er I saw, for it had wheels for feet, man

The beast it roared and aff we gaed through water, steam and stanes, man
We gaed at sic a fearful rate I thought we'd brak' oor banes, man
By and by we stoppit at a place ca'd something-Gowrie
But ne'er a word had I to say but only sit and glower, aye

And after that we crossed the Tay and landed into Perth, man
I vow it was the queerest place that e'er I saw on Earth, man
For the hooses and the iron horse were far aboon the land, man
And how they got them up the stairs I cannae understand, man

But noo I'm safely landed and my feet are on the sod, man
If I gang tae Dundee again I'll tak' another road, man
Though I should gang upon my feet till I'm no' fit to stand, man
Catch me again when I'm ta'en in wi' the terrible iron horse, man

[1988:] A song from Ford's "Vagabond Songs" in which an old-fashioned country farmer confronts that marvel of 19th century high technology: the steam engine. According to Ford, the song was written by Charles Balfour, stationmaster at Glencarse, between Dundee and Perth, and was first sung at a "festival of railway servants" held at Perth in 1848. (Notes Tony Cuffe, 'When First I Went To Caledonia') ^^