Jim Croce

When I was a boy in the days of the train
Id sit by the tracks on a long summer day
And Id wave at the brakesman
And hed wave back at me
While the thunderclouds rolled
Out of East Tennessee
But the dreams of a boy disappear when youre grown
And though I may dream, the railroads are gone
The ties they are rotten
And the tracks shot to hell
Along with my dreams and the old railroad bell
In my dreams I ride the rails to California
Workin diners and farms along the way
Or Id hop a ride to hide across the border
With a black eyed girl beside me all the way
Now the mountains are silent
And the railroads are gone
And the coal towns no longer hear the miners at dawn
But the train whistle shrills out her memories to me
While the thunderclouds roll out of East Tennessee
In my dreams I ride the rails to California
Workin diners and farms along the way
Or Id hop a ride to hide across the border
With a black eyed girl beside me all the way
Now the mountains are silent
And the railroads are gone
And the coal towns no longer hear the miners at dawn
But the train whistle shrills out her memories to me
While the thunderclouds roll out of East Tennessee
[ Railroad Song Lyrics ]