Podcast Episode 85: Trains and Train Wrecks
 | August 15, 2014 |  |
In this episode, you'll hear five songs from the early 1900s about trains and train wrecks. The songs are "Choo Choo" by Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra, "Hiawatha" by the Columbia Orchestra, "The Wreck of the Old Southern 97" by Ernest Thompson, "The Wreck of Number Nine" by Vernon Dalhart, and "Casey Jones" by Billy Murray and Chorus.
Play MP3 (or right click to download)
Songs
- Choo Choo by Paul Whiteman and his Orchestra
- Part 1 of the Complete Paul Whiteman Collection
- More info on Paul Whiteman
- A video of "Choo Choo" with old train movie clips
- Hiawatha by the Columbia Orchestra
- The Wreck of the Old Southern 97 by Ernest Thompson
- "The Wreck of the Old 97" on Wikipedia
- The Blue Ridge Institute's page on "The Wreck of the Ol' 97"
- Episode 7 of 5 Song Set for those of you who want to hear "Charlie on the MTA"
- The Wreck of Number Nine by Vernon Dalhart
- "The Wreck of the Number Nine on Wikipedia
- The Wikipedia bio for Carson Robison
- The Bristol Sessions
- Casey Jones by Billy Murray and Chorus
- Two YouTube videos with this song: this one uses old film footage and this one shows the original cylinder recording playing.
- Despite the really crappy things the song has to say about Casey Jones's wife, the Wikipedia page about him says, "Jones' wife said she never had any thought of remarrying. She wore black nearly every day for the rest of her life."
- Here is some information about the song, The Ballad of Casey Jones, on Wikipedia.
Additional Songs You Might Want To Check Out
- Emry Arthur - Ramblin' Hobo Blues from the 1930s
- Virginians - Choo Choo Blues from 1922
- Johnny Mercer, The Pied Pipers - On the Atchison, Topeka & Santa Fe on YouTube
- Glenn Miller Orchestra - Chattanooga Choo Choo on YouTube
- Arlo Guthrie - City of New Orleans on YouTube
Other Additional Information
- Songs of Hoboes and Riding the Rails by Utah Phillips (February 7, 1977)
- A List of songs About trains on Wikipedia
- Another list of songs about trains
- Long Steel Rail: The Railroad in American Folksong by Norm Cohen on Amazon and on Google Books