Songs For National Train Day

All 'BOARD!

In honor of National Train Day next Saturday, I thought I would rattle off 14 of my favorite tracks about riding the rail.

Mystery Train - Junior Parker or Elvis Presley
Last of the Steam Powered Trains - The Kinks
One After 909 - The Beatles
Subway - Bee Gees
Night Train - James Brown
Ghost Train - Gorillaz
Love Train - O'Jays
It Takes a Lot to Laugh, It Takes A Train to Cry - Bob Dylan
Midnight Train to Georgia - Gladys Knight and the Pips
The Day We Caught The Train - Ocean Colour Scene
The Loco-Motion - Grand Funk Railroad
The Last Train To Clarksville - The Monkees
Downtown Train - Tom Waits
I've Been Working on the Railroad - Pete Seeger

Mystery Train is hands down the best; and you can flip a coin for which version.

What Am I Doin' Hangin' Round? by the Monkees is another one I love, but the train is in the lyric not the title. Train in Vain by the Clash is a heavy favorite, but the lyric is not about trains. And Grand Funk gets the nod over Little Eva today because RR is in their name.

I've performed one of these with some frequency: Love Train. It's just a great song and recording. O'Jays just nailed it. I'm sure there are more songs you could add. Nilsson's Nobody Cares About the Railroad Anymore immediately springs to mind. Well, gimme yours and we'll hop a freight car with the Urbane Hobos!

#NationalTrainDay
#Trains
#MysteryTrain
#ElvisPresley
#TheBeatles
#TheKinks
#TheMonkees
#LoveTrain

Comments

Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins (Review)

I'm just in from the world premiere of Welcome Home, Roscoe Jenkins . WHRJ is the new comedy starring Martin Lawrence, directed by Malcolm Lee ( Roll Bounce ; Undercover Brother both underrated and well-worth your time) . It's the story of a Hollywood hotshot who takes his new fiancee and his son to his parents' 50 th wedding anniversary/family reunion. Mr. Lawrence as usual shows off his comedic genius. He has steadily become a sure bet in Hollywood. This time Lawrence is flanked by a cast of stars that at times threaten to steal the movie. Mike Epps (Reggie, a straight-up fool) and Mo'Nique (Betty) in particular shine in their roles as cousins to Lawrence's talk show king, RJ Stevens aka Roscoe Jenkins. The gift of gab runs deep in this family. Michael Clarke Duncan has never made me laugh so hard as Otis, Roscoe's unlikely little brother. Anytime the three of them were on screen the audience's laughter drowned out the dialogue. Watch for the softba...

Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air - Book Review

“The Murderous Haircut of the Mayor of Bel Air” is a trippy new mystery novel from Phillip Mottaz. It captures the grit and gilt of the City of Angels with the flair of a contemporary Raymond Chandler. The brisk pace and wit are reminiscent of Douglas Adams’s entries in the detective game. Flourishes of Fletch and “Medium” also spring to mind. However, Mottaz has added a psychic/mutant/superhuman touch and his own comedic voice, structure and internal monologues to the proceedings that help the author announce his own style and the arrival of a literary heroine for a new generation. Hairstylist and budding private investigator, Danica Luman is the perfect character to convey the irony, angst and sarcasm needed to tell a 21st century L.A. crime story. Danica also represents anyone who thought it would be neat to get tangled up in a mystery and the darkly comic cautionary tale that follows. The genre is recognizable, but Mottaz offers a fresh take on the not-ready-for-prime-ti...

My Grammy Moment

This year's 50th Grammy Celebration was so superior to last year's awards ceremonies that I can barely contain my thoughts as I type. So many highlights. So many great moments. I hope you had a chance to watch the show. In case you didn't here's a bit of what you really missed out on from my seats in the 200 level: The Time reunited to perform "Jungle Love." Flat out fun. They had the Staples Center grooving. Rihanna joined them half-way through to perform her hits "Umbrella" and "Don't Stop The Music." What became abundantly apparent was how superior the Time's nearly 25 year old song was. Rihanna's performance was helped by being backed by one of the premier funk outfits of all time. Morris Day and Jerome still have the moves and the comedy timing down! Aretha Franklin and Co. ran through gospel hits ancient and new. They brought Cherch to the show like never before. And when the choir and 'Retha finished with "the...

Norman's Rockwell

Search This Blog