Phantom 309
Ferlin Husky Lyrics

I was out on the West Coast, tryin' to make a buck
The singer was on the West Coast, trying to earn some money

And things didn't work out, I was down on my luck
However, things didn't go as planned and he was unsuccessful

Got tired a-roamin' and bummin' around
The singer was getting tired of travelling and wandering without any direction

So I started thumbin' back East, toward my home town
He started travelling east, with the intention of returning to his hometown

Made a lot of miles, the first two days
The artist covered a lot of distance in the first two days

And I figured I'd be home in week, if my luck held out this way
He expected to reach home within a week, provided there were no obstacles in his way

But, the third night I got stranded, way out of town
Unfortunately, on the third night, he got stuck far away from the town

At a cold, lonely crossroads, rain was pourin' down
In a desolate area at an intersection, it was raining heavily

I was hungry and freezin', done caught a chill
Due to the harsh weather, he was both hungry and cold, and even caught a cold

When the lights of a big semi topped the hill
Suddenly, he saw the lights of a large semi-truck approaching him

Lord, I sure was glad to hear them air brakes come on
The singer was overjoyed to hear the sound of the air brakes

And I climbed in that cab, where I knew it'd be warm
He hopped into the vehicle, knowing that it would be a warm place to shelter from the cold

At the wheel sit a big man, he weighed about two-ten
The man driving the truck was huge, weighing approximately 210 pounds

He stuck out his hand and said with a grin
The driver shook his hand and spoke with a smile on his face

"Big Joe's the name", I told him mine
The driver introduced himself as Big Joe, while the singer shared his own name

And he said: "The name of my rig is Phantom 309
Big Joe's truck was identified as Phantom 309

I asked him why he called his rig such a name
The artist inquired as to why Big Joe dubbed his vehicle Phantom 309

He said: "Son, this old Mack can put 'em all to shame
Joe believed his Mack truck could outperform all the other vehicles on the road

There ain't a driver, or a rig, a-runnin' any line
He claimed no driver or truck running anywhere could match his own

Ain't seen nothin' but taillights from Phantom 309
According to him, other drivers only saw the taillights of Phantom 309

Well, we rode and talked the better part of the night
They spent most of the night riding and conversing

When the lights of a truck stop came in sight
Upon seeing the lights of a truck stop, they neared their destination

He said: "I'm sorry son, this is as far as you go
Unfortunately, they reached the end of their shared journey here

'Cause, I gotta make a turn, just on up the road
Joe had to turn off the upcoming road, hence the end of the ride

Well, he tossed me a dime as he pulled her in low
Before leaving, he handed the singer a dime

And said: "Have yourself a cup on old Big Joe
He offered the singer a drink on his behalf

When Joe and his rig roared out in the night
As Joe and his truck departed into the night

In nothin' flat, he was clean out of sight
He vanished from the artist's sight in an instant

Well, I went inside and ordered me a cup
He then entered the truck stop to order a drink...

Told the waiter Big Joe was settin' me up
...and revealed that Big Joe treated him earlier

Aw!, you coulda heard a pin drop, it got deathly quiet
The entire location fell silent at the mention of Big Joe's name

And the waiter's face turned kinda white
The waiter also seemed perturbed at the mere mention of Big Joe

Well, did I say something wrong? I said with a halfway grin
The artist attempted to lighten the mood with a joke...

He said: "Naw, this happens every now and then
...but the waiter reassured him that such reactions from other drivers were common

Ever' driver in here knows Big Joe
The singer learned that every driver at this truck stop knew Big Joe

But son, let me tell you what happened about ten years ago
However, the waiter then revealed a story about something that occurred a decade prior

At the crossroads tonight, where you flagged him down
He described the same intersection where the singer met Big Joe

There was a bus load of kids, comin' from town
A bus full of children from a town was also present at that time

And they were right in the middle, when Big Joe topped the hill
When Big Joe arrived over the hill, the bus was in the middle of the intersection

It could have been slaughter, but he turned his wheel
He could have easily hit the bus, but instead swerved the truck

Well, Joe lost control, went into a skid
Unfortunately, he wasn't able to regain control after doing so

And gave his life to save that bunch-a kids
In the process of saving the bus and those within it, Big Joe lost his own life

And there at that crossroads, was the end of the line
That intersection became the final resting place of Big Joe and Phantom 309

But, every now and then, some hiker'll come by
However, similar to the artist, hikers occasionally meet Big Joe

And like you, Big Joe'll give 'em a ride
Joe is more than happy to offer them a ride, just like he did with the artist

Here, have another cup and forget about the dime
Finally, the artist was offered another drink and told to keep the dime as sincere remembrance

Keep it as a souvenir, from Big Joe and Phantom 309
From both Big Joe and his truck, Phantom 309, the dime was offered as a memento