Chords Req: City of New Orleans (Steve Goodman)

Subject: Ridin on the City of New Orleans
From: Steve in Idaho
Date: 18 Jan 01 - 11:43 AM

Anyone know the chord progression to this? I've got the lyrics and figured out some of the chords - Thanks folks :-)

Subject: Lyr/Chords Add: CITY OF NEW ORLEANS (Steve Goodman
From: Trapper
Date: 18 Jan 01 - 02:20 PM

Norton -

Here's how I've always done it...

- Al

The City of New Orleans
by Steve Goodman

[C]Ridin' on the [G]City of New [C]Orleans,
Illinois Central, [F]Monday mornin' [C]Rail
Fifteen cars and [G]Fifteen restless [C]Riders
Three con[Am]ductors, [G]Twenty-five sacks of [C]mail
All a[Am]long the southbound odyssey
[Em]Trains pull out of Kankakee
[G]Rolls along past houses, farms and [D]fields.
[Am]Passin' trains that have no names,
[Em]Freight yards full of old black men
And the [G]graveyards of the [F]rusted automo[C]biles.

CHORUS:
[F]Good morning A[G]merica how [C]are you?
[Am]Don't you know me [F]I'm your native [C]son, [G]
I'm the [C]train they call The [G]City of New [Am]Orleans,
I'll be [Bb]gone five [Am]hundred [G]miles
when the day is [C]done.

Dealin' card games with the old men in the club car.
Penny a point ain't no one keepin' score.
Pass the paper bag that holds the bottle
Feel the wheels rumblin' 'neath the floor.
And the sons of pullman porters
And the sons of engineers
Ride their father's magic carpets made of steel.
Mothers with their babes asleep,
Are rockin' to the gentle beat
And the rhythm of the rails is all they feel.

CHORUS

Nighttime on The City of New Orleans,
Changing cars in Memphis, Tennessee.
Half way home, we'll be there by morning
Through the Mississippi darkness
Rolling down to the sea.
And all the towns and people seem
To fade into a bad dream
And the steel rails still ain't heard the news.
The conductor sings his song again,
The passengers will please refrain
This train's got the disappearing railroad blues.

Good night, America, how are you?
Don't you know me I'm your native son,
I'm the train they call The City of New Orleans,
I'll be gone five hundred miles when the day is done.

©1970, 1971 EMI U Catalogue, Inc and Turnpike Tom Music (ASCAP)

Subject: Chords Add: CITY OF NEW ORLEANS (Steve Goodman)
From: Sarah2
Date: 18 Jan 01 - 03:45 PM

Or, if you like:

[G]Ridin' on the [D]City of New [G]Orleans,
[Em]Illinois Central, [C]Monday mornin' [G]Rail [D]
[G]Thirteen cars and [D]fifteen restless [G]riders
Three con[Em]ductors, [D]twenty-five sacks of [G]mail
All a[Em]long the southbound odyssey, the [Bm]train pulls out of Kankakee,
[D]Rolling past the houses, farms and [A]fields.
[Em]Passin' trains that have no names, [Bm]freight yards full of old black men
And the [D]graveyards of the [C]rusted automo[G]biles.

CHORUS: [C]Good morning A[D]merica how [G]are you?
[Em]Don't you know me [C]I'm your native [G]son, [D]
I'm the [G]train they call The [D]City of New [Em]Orleans,
I'll be [F]gone five [Em]hundred [D]miles
when the day is [G]done.

***

Just gotta find your own key...

Sarah

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Ridin on the City of New Orle
From: mousethief
Date: 18 Jan 01 - 03:47 PM

The first version eliminates a lot of walk-down progressions from C to Am -- See where there are Em's in the second version? The Arlo Guthrie version contains a walkdown in these places (On 2nd string (A string), play notes C - B - A, and at A, play the whole chord Am.)

Alex

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Ridin on the City of New Orle
From: Sarah2
Date: 18 Jan 01 - 03:52 PM

Alex,

Yeah, but Arlo may not be in Norton1's key, eh? Even the G progression can be weird if you have to capo way up the neck, so the C progresssion might work better for him. Just options. (Thought Arlo always played it on the piano, though...? Did whenever I saw him.)

Sarah

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Ridin on the City of New Orle
From: mousethief
Date: 18 Jan 01 - 04:15 PM

Oh, agree totally on the key thing. If you're playing in G, the walkdown is on the fat (E) string, and goes G - F# - E. All depends on where you sing best. My only point was that the version in C left out the relative minor chord entirely, at least at that point.

Alex

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Ridin on the City of New Orle
From: Steve in Idaho
Date: 19 Jan 01 - 06:13 PM

Thanks to you all - I think I can sing it in C but the G option is always good also. You're fine people - have a superb weekend!! Steve

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Ridin on the City of New Orle
From: Sarah2
Date: 19 Jan 01 - 09:10 PM

Mousethief,

Too true. And the walkdown adds a real "train" touch, somehow -- at least to moi.

Sarah

Subject: RE: Chords Req: City of New Orleans (Steve Goodman)
From: GUEST,Tony Levy. from the village of wednesfield.
Date: 07 Sep 10 - 11:35 AM

I know chuff all about music, but this song, and its lyrics allways brings a tear to my eye,its the only song in the country and western idiom that grips my attention. Brought up with steam trains over 50 years ago, i appreaciate the sentiments. over here in these islands, we have over 200 preserved volunteer run lines, from narrow gauge, to standard, the most well known is the seven valley railway,up here in leafy Staffordshire. on the south coast, the Romney Hythe and Dimchurch railway, a one third scale line that runs for 20 miles. In north wales, the little trains of wales, (narrow Gauge) are rack railways, and meander around and up the majestic welsh mountains.So you now undrestand why this song, and its lyrics strike a chord with me.The chord changes, and tone of the song are irellivant to this tone deaf old soldier, what matters is the sentiment.it is the best at summing up the demise of steam travel, and the iconic service it reprsented.

Subject: RE: Chords Req: City of New Orleans (Steve Goodman)
From: MissouriMud
Date: 07 Sep 10 - 11:56 AM

The chording shown above for the last two lines of the chorus appears to be based on Arlo's version (which I think may actually have been closer to Eflat, F, G rather than Bflat, Am, G, although I havent listened closely to it for a while).

I think Steve Goodman's original (in C) was simpler and fit the slightly different the way he sang that part of the melody - he just had it go:

I'll be [Am]gone five [F]hundred [G]miles
when the day is [C]done.

Subject: RE: Chords Req: City of New Orleans (Steve Goodman)
From: DonMeixner
Date: 07 Sep 10 - 04:16 PM

I remember seeing Steve Goodman do this song as the last song on the 1970 Philadelphia Folk Festival shown in the US on PBS. I remember thinking it was the best train song I had ever heard. Then JOhn Denver did it on his Aerie LP and he changed the last verse to a bridge (With Goodman's permission, he told me so) and it pretty much wrecked the song. John got points latter when he repaired his Karma and recorded the song as written.

Arlo Guthrie recorded it and I was not so impressed but he did the song pretty OK and Steve Goodman said he sang the song as it was meant to be sung. Well it was Goodman's song and he can say what he liked about who ever recorded it.

I think it was never done better that it was in Philadelphia in 1970.
This is how I play it.


[G]Ridin' on the [D]City of New [G]Orleans,
[Em]Illinois Central, [C]Monday mornin' [G]Rail [D]
[G]Fifteen cars and [D]fifteen restless [G]riders
Three con[Em]ductors, [D]twenty-five sacks of [G]mail
All a[Em]long the southbound odyssey, the [Bm]train pulls out of Kankakee,
[D]Rolling past the houses, farms and [A]fields.
[Em]Passin' trains that have no names, [Bm]freight yards full of old black men
And the [D]graveyards of the [C]rusted aut(D)omo[G]biles.

CHORUS: [C]Good morning A[D]merica how [G]are you(G-Em)?
Don't you know me [C]I'm your native [G]son, [D]
I'm the [G]train they call The [D]City of New [Em]Orleans,
I'll be [F]gone five hundred [D]miles
when the day is [G]done.



Don

Subject: RE: Chords Req: City of New Orleans (Steve Goodman)
From: open mike
Date: 07 Sep 10 - 06:29 PM

i do it in C with the walk down to Am on the way to the F

if you know what i mean....for more train info go to this thread

http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=50331#1271901 or this one

http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=50331#765339 or this one

with a wonderful story from SPAW - love affair with (not on) trains

http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=48724#2977665