| City Of New Orleans (Goodman) Riding on the "City of New Orleans," Illinois Central Monday Morning Rail. Fifteen cars and fifteen restless riders, three conductors and twenty five sacks of mail. They're out on the south-bound odyssey and the train pulls out of Kankokee. Rolling long past houses, farms and fields. Passing towns that have no name, freight yards full of old black men, the graveyards of the rusted automobiles, Singing, good morning America, how are you? Saying, 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. Dealing cards with the old men in the club car. Plenty of points, ain't no one keeping score. Say, won’t you pass the paper bag that holds the bottle. And feel the wheels rumbling ‘neath the floor. And the sons of foregone porters, and the sons of engineers ride their father's magic carpet made of steel. And mothers with their babes asleep rocking to the gentle beat, and the rhythm of the rails is all they feel Singing, good morning America, how are you? Saying, 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. Night time on the City of New Orleans, changing cars in Memphis, Tennessee. Halfway home and we'll be there by morning through the Mississippi darkness rolling down to the sea. But all the towns and people seems to fade into a bad dream, and the steel rails still ain't heard the news. The conductor sings his song again, the passenger will please refrain, this train has got the disappearing railroad blues Singing, good morning America, how are you? Saying, 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. Daddy, What's A Train (Phillips) Daddy what's a train? Is it something I can ride? Does it carry lots of grown-up folks and little kids inside? Is it bigger than our house? Well, how can I explain when my little boy and girl ask me "Daddy what's a train?" G When I was just a boy and living by the track, us kids would gather up the coal in big old gunnysacks. Then we heard the warning sound as the train pulled into view, the engineer would smile and wave as she went rolling through. She blew so loud and clear, we had to cover up our ears and we counted cars just as high as we could go. I can almost hear the steam those big old drivers scream, sounds my little kids will never know. Daddy what's a train? Is it something I can ride? Does it carry lots of grown-up folks and little kids inside? Is it bigger than our house? Well, how can I explain when my little boy and girl ask me "Daddy what's a train?" I guess the times have changed, kids are different now. 'Cause some don't even seem to know that milk comes from a cow. My little boy can tell the names of all the baseball stars, I remember how I memorized the names on railroad cars. The Wabash and the TP, Lackawanna, the IC, the Nickel-Plate and the good old Santa Fe, just names out of the past, I guess they're fading fast. Every time I hear my little boy say, Daddy what's a train? Is it something I can ride? Does it carry lots of grown-up folks and little kids inside? Is it bigger than our house? Well, how can I explain when my little boy and girl ask me "Daddy what's a train?" We climbed into the car, drove down into town, right up to the depot house, but no one was around. We searched the yard together for something I could show, but I know there hadn't been a train for a dozen years or so. All the things I did when I was just a kid, how far away those memories appear. I guess it's plain to see they still mean a lot to me because my ambition was to be an engineer. Daddy what's a train? Is it something I can ride? Does it carry lots of grown-up folks and little kids inside? Is it bigger than our house? Well, how can I explain when my little boy and girl ask me "Daddy what's a train?" Freight Train Boogie/Choo Choo Cha' Boogie (Griffin/Horton, Darling, Gabler) Casey Jones was a mighty man, now he's resting in the Promised Land. The only thing he could understand was an eight-wheel driver under his command. He made the freight train boogie all the time. He made the freight train boogie as he rolled down the line. Woo woo, wah wah, woo woo, wah wah. Woo woo, wah wah, woo woo, wah wah. He made the freight train boogie as he rolled down the line. I'm headed for the station with my pack on my back, I'm tired of transportation in the back of a hack. I just love the rhythm of the clickity-clack, I hear the whistle blowing, see the smoke from the stack. And pal around with democratic fellas named Mac, Take me right back to the track, Jack. Choo choo, choo choo cha' boogie, woo woo, woo woo cha' boogie. Choo choo, choo choo cha' boogie, take me right back to the track, Jack. You reach your destination and alas and alack, You need some compensation to get back in the black. You take a morning paper from the top of the stack and read the situation from the front to the back. The only job that's open needs a man with a knack, take me right back to the track, Jack. Choo choo, choo choo cha' boogie, woo woo, woo woo cha' boogie. Choo choo, choo choo cha' boogie, take me right back to the track, Jack. Choo choo, choo choo cha' boogie, woo woo, woo woo cha' boogie. Choo choo, choo choo cha' boogie, He made the freight train boogie as he rolled down the line. I've Been Working On The Railroad (Traditional) I've been working on the railroad all the livelong day. I've been working on the railroad just to pass the time away. Can't you hear the whistle blowing, rise up so early in the morn. Can't you hear the whistle blowing, Dinah, blow your horn. Dinah, won't you blow, Dinah, won't you blow, Dinah, won't you blow your horn? Dinah, won't you blow, Dinah, won't you blow, Dinah, won't you blow your horn? Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah, someone's in the kitchen I know. Someone's in the kitchen with Dinah strumming on the old banjo. Fee fie fiddle eeii o, fee fie fiddle eeii o, fee fie fiddle eeii o, strumming on the old banjo. Jenny Dreamed Of Trains (Gill/Clark) When Jenny was a little girl, she only dreamed of trains. She never play with dolls or lacy kinds of things. Jenny counted boxcars instead of counting sheep, she could go anywhere when she went to sleep. All she ever talked about was getting on the ride, she was living in another time, you could see it in her eyes. And every day after school she'd head down to the track, waiting for a train that was never coming back. Jenny dreamed of trains when the nighttime came. Nobody knew how she made it come true, Jenny dreamed of trains. The depot's been boarded up, the trains have turned to rust. There hasn't been a train through here since the mill went bust. No one believed her when she said she heard the train, they said she was just a little girl acting kind of strange. Jenny dreamed of trains when the nighttime came. Nobody knew how she made it come true, Jenny dreamed of trains. Jenny laid a penny on the track one day, in God we trust, she walked away. The very next morning all she could find was a little piece of copper squashed flatter than a dime. Jenny dreamed of trains when the nighttime came. Nobody knew how she made it come true, Jenny dreamed of trains. Jenny dreamed of trains when the nighttime came. Nobody knew how she made it come true, Jenny dreamed of trains. Last Hobo (Allen) He was born in International Falls a long, long time ago. Moved to Tucumcari when the ironwork got slow. He was cornbread and hard scrabble and scratching for every dime, till he threw it in and he hit the road to walk that endless line. Now he's the last hobo riding the last boxcar on the last freight train leaving here. Now he's the last hobo riding the last boxcar on the last freight train leaving here. He tried his hands at lots of jobs and he did them all with pride. From shoeing mules to driving trucks, he mastered what he tried. It must have been Ramona, she was all he cared about. When she ran away and left him, you could see the fire go out. Now he's the last hobo riding the last boxcar on the last freight train leaving here. Now he's the last hobo riding the last boxcar on the last freight train leaving here. We hardly ever see him, once or twice and he would stay a day or two. He'd ask about Ramona, then he'd say that he was only passing through. Now he knows every railroad bull along the right of way, and every hobo jungle from New York to Santa Fe. He's looked for his Ramona on the far side of the hill, now his sun is sinking lower and he's looking for her still. Still he's the last hobo riding the last boxcar on the last freight train leaving here. Now he's the last hobo riding the last boxcar on the last freight train leaving here. Last Train Done Gone Down (Rowan) That last train done gone down, that last train done gone down. I heard the whistle moaning low, that last train done gone down. My sweet baby's on that train, my sweet baby's on that train. I wonder if I will see her again, that last train done gone down. I heard that whistle moaning low, I heard that whistle moaning low. I'm begging and pleading, please don't go. That last train done gone down. I'm sorry for what I've done, I'm sorry for what I've done. Too late, goodbye, my sweet baby cried. That last train done gone down. That last train done gone down, that last train done gone down. I heard the whistle moaning low, that last train done gone down. Lining Track (Ledbetter) Oh, boys, is you right, done got it right. All I hate about lining track, these old boys gonna break my back. Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). See, Eloise, gonna line 'em track. Down in the holler, below the field, angels working on the chariot wheel. Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). See, Eloise, gonna line 'em track. Mary and the babe was a sitting in the shade, thinking on the money I ain't made. Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). See, Eloise, gonna line 'em track. Moses stood on the Red Sea shore, gonna batten down the waves with a 2 by 4. Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). See, Eloise, gonna line 'em track. Now, if I could, I surely would stand on the rock where Moses stood. Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). See, Eloise, gonna line 'em track. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, all them disciples dead and gone. Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). See, Eloise, gonna line 'em track. Oh, boys, is you right, done got it right. All I hate about lining track, these old boys gonna break my back. Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). Ho boys, can't cha line 'em track (a lack). See, Eloise, gonna line 'em track. Old Train (Pedersen/Pederden) Old train, I can hear your whistle blow and I want to be jumping on again. Old train, I've been everywhere you go and I know what lies beyond each bend. Old train, each time you pass you're older than the last, and it seems, I'm too old for running. I hear your rusty wheels grate against the rails, they cry with every mile, and I think I'll stay awhile. Old train, I grow weary at the miles and I miss the freedom that was mine. Old train, just to think about those times, I'll smile when you're highballing by. Old train, each time you pass you're older than the last, and it seems, I'm too old for running. I hear your rusty wheels grate against the rails, they cry with every mile, and I think I'll stay awhile. On The Atchison, Topeka And The Santa Fe (Mercer/Warren) Do you hear that whistle down the line, I figure that it's Engine #49, She's the only one that'll sound that way on The Atchison, Topeka and The Santa Fe. See the old smoke rising round the bend, I reckon that she knows she's gonna meet a friend. Folks around these parts set the time of day From on The Atchison, Topeka and The Santa Fe. Here she comes, whoo oo oo oo, hey Jim, you better get the rig. Whoo oo oo oo, she's got a list of passengers that's pretty big. And they'll all want a lift to Brown's Hotel, 'cause lots of them been traveling for quite a spell all the way from Philadelphia on The Atchison, Topeka and The Santa Fe. All aboard, all aboard, oo oo oo. Let her rip, let her rip, Mr. Engineer, Gotta go, gotta go far away from here. While the man at the fire shovels in the coals, stick your head out the cab and watch the drivers roll. See the towns and the roads go a whizzing by, Fare thee well Laramie and Rocky Mountain High, Yes sirree, here we are, going all the way, mustn't quit till we hit California. See the old smoke rising round the bend, I reckon that she knows she's gonna meet a friend. Folks around these parts set the time of day From on The Atchison, Topeka and The Santa Fe. People Get Ready (Mayfield) People get ready, there's a train a-coming. You don't need no baggage, you just get on board. All you need is faith to hear those diesels humming. You don't need no ticket, you just thank the Lord. People get ready for the train to Jordan, picking up passengers from coast-to-coast. Faith is key, open up the doors and board them. There's hope for all among the loved the most. But there ain't no room for the hopeless sinner who would hurt all mankind to save his own. Have pity on those whose choices grow thinner. There's no hiding place from the kingdom's throne. People get ready, there's a train a-coming. You don't need no baggage, you just get on board. All you need is faith to hear those diesels humming. You don't need no ticket, you just thank the Lord, thank the Lord. Steel Rails (Branscomb) Steel rails, chasing sunshine around the bend, Winding through the trees like a ribbon in the wind. I don't mind not knowing what lies down the track 'cause I'm looking out ahead to keep my mind from turning back. It's not the first time I find myself alone at dawn. If I really had you once, I still have you when I'm gone. Whistle blowing, blowing lonesome in my mind, Calling me along that never-ending double line. Steel rails, chasing sunshine around the bend, Winding through the trees like a ribbon in the wind. I don't mind not knowing what lies down the track 'cause I'm looking out ahead to keep my mind from turning back. The sun is shining through the open boxcar door, Lying in my mind with the things I've known before. And I've lost count of the hours, days and time. Just the rhythm of the rails keeps the motion in my mind.. Steel rails, chasing sunshine around the bend, Winding through the trees like a ribbon in the wind. I don't mind not knowing what lies down the track 'cause I'm looking out ahead to keep my mind from turning back. 'Cause I'm looking out ahead to keep my mind from turning back. The Little Engine That Could (May/Foster) There was a little railroad train with loads and loads of toys, all starting out to find a home with little girls and boys. And as that little railroad train began to move along, the little engine up in front was heard to sing this song: Choo choo choo choo, choo choo choo choo, I feel so good today. Oh, hear the track, oh clickity clack, I'll go my merry way. The little train went rousing on so fast it seemed to fly. Until it reached a mountain that went almost to the sky. The little engine moaned and groaned and huffed and puffed away, but halfway to the top it gave just gave up and seemed to say I can't go on, I can't go on, I'm weary as can be. I can't go on, I can't go on, this job is not for me. The toys got out to push, but all in vain alas, alack. And then a great big engine came a-whistling down the track. They asked if it would kindly pull them up the mountainside, but with a high and mighty sneer, it scornfully replied don't bother me, don't bother me to pull the likes of you, don't bother me, don't bother me, I've better things to do. The toys all started crying cause that engine was so mean. And then there cam another one, the smallest ever seen. And though it seemed that she could hardly pull herself along, she hitched on to the front and as she pulled and sang this song, I think I can, I think I can, I think I have a plan, and I can do most anything if I only think I can. Then up that great big mountain with the cars all full of toys, and soon they reached the waiting arms of little girls and boys. And though that ends the story, it will do you lots of good to take a lesson from the little engine that could. Just think you can, just think you can and have that understood, and very soon you'll start to say I always knew I could. I knew I could, I knew I could, I knew I could, I knew I could. Waiting For A Train (Rodgers) All around the water tower, waiting for a train. A thousand miles away from home, sleeping in the rain. I walked up to a brakeman just to give him a line of talk, He said if you've got money, I'll see that you don't walk. Well, I haven't got a nickel, not a penny can I show. Get off, get off, you railroad bum, and he slammed that boxcar door. Well, he put me off in Texas, a state I dearly love. The wide open spaces all round me, the moon and stars up above. Nobody seems to want me nor to lend me a helping hand. I'm on my way from 'Frisco, going back to Dixieland. My pocketbook is empty, my heart is full of pain. I'm a thousand miles away from home, just waiting for a train. |
| All Aboard! |