Freight Train Blues
Bob Dylan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Just a little shanty by the railroad track
Freight train was, it taught me how to cry
Hummin' of the driver was my lullaby
I got the freight train blues
Oh Lord mama, I got them in the bottom of my rambling shoes
And when the whistle blows, I gotta go baby, don't you know
Well, it looks like I'm never gonna lose the freight train blues
Well, my daddy was a fireman and my old ma here
She was the only daughter of the engineer
My sweetheart loved a brakeman and it ain't no joke
It's a shame the way she keeps a good man broke
I got the freight train blues
Oh Lord mama, I got them in the bottom of my rambling shoes
And when the whistle blows I gotta go oh mama, don't you know
Well, it looks like I'm never gonna lose the freight train blues
Well, the only thing that makes me laugh again
Is a southbound whistle on a southbound train
Every place I want to go
I never can go, because you know
I got the freight train blues
Oh Lord mama, I got them in the bottom of my rambling shoes
In Bob Dylan's song Freight Train Blues, the singer is reminiscing about his upbringing near the railroad tracks. He was born in a simple shack in Dixie, and the constant hum of the passing trains became his comfort, even as he cried from the sound. His family was intimately connected to the railroad industry as his father was a fireman and his mother was the daughter of an engineer. However, despite this connection, the singer is plagued with restlessness, unable to settle down in one place. He feels the burden of the "freight train blues" in the bottom of his rambling shoes and is always ready to go when the whistle blows.
The lyrics in this song are symbolic of the American folk tradition that celebrates the beauty of transience and the search for freedom. The constant motion of the train represents the desire to move on and explore, while the reference to the brakeman and engineer are nostalgic reminders of old-fashioned industry and technology. Additionally, the figure of the singer's mother is a reminder of the role that women played in supporting their families during historic times of economic upheaval.
Overall, Bob Dylan's Freight Train Blues captures the nostalgia of the American road, the romance of the railroad, and the emotional turmoil that comes with the search for something more. The song speaks to the hearts of compulsive travellers and those who long for adventure and freedom.
Line by Line Meaning
I was born in Dixie in a boomer shack
I was born in southern United States in a very small, makeshift home.
Just a little shanty by the railroad track
The home I was born in was located right beside the railway tracks in a small and shoddy structure.
Freight train was, it taught me how to cry
The sound of freight trains passing by my home was so loud that it would often make me cry.
Hummin' of the driver was my lullaby
The constant humming sound of the train driver's engine was comforting and soothing to me, putting me to sleep each night.
I got the freight train blues
I feel a sense of sadness and restlessness due to my constant exposure to the sound of passing freight trains.
Oh Lord mama, I got them in the bottom of my rambling shoes
These feelings of sadness are deeply ingrained within me and can never be fully shaken off.
And when the whistle blows, I gotta go baby, don't you know
Whenever I hear the train's whistle, it reminds me of the constant moving that comes with the railroad lifestyle.
Well, it looks like I'm never gonna lose the freight train blues
This constant restlessness will never fully leave me, as it is an integral part of who I am now.
Well, my daddy was a fireman and my old ma here
My father worked as a fireman for the train, and my mother was the daughter of someone who worked on the railway.
She was the only daughter of the engineer
My mother's father was the chief engineer in charge of the train operations in our area.
My sweetheart loved a brakeman and it ain't no joke
The woman I loved was with a brakeman who also worked with the train, and it was no laughing matter.
It's a shame the way she keeps a good man broke
My lover has caused the brakeman to lose all his money, and it's a sad state of affairs.
Well, the only thing that makes me laugh again
The only thing that brings me happiness in life is to hear the train's southbound whistle once again.
Is a southbound whistle on a southbound train
When a train is headed south, the sound of the whistle makes me feel alive again, if only for a little while.
Every place I want to go
No matter where I dream of going, the sound of the freight train always follows me, reminding me of my past.
I never can go, because you know
No matter how far I travel, the freight train blues will always be with me.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: Elizabeth Cotten
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@juancamacho5746
I was born in Dixie in a boomer shack
Just a little shanty by the railroad track
Freight train was, it taught me how to cry
Hummin' of the driver was my lullaby
I got the freight train blues
Oh Lord mama, I got them in the bottom of my rambling shoes
And when the whistle blows, I gotta go baby, don't you know
Well, it looks like I'm never gonna lose the freight train blues
Well, my daddy was a fireman and my old ma here
She was the only daughter of the engineer
My sweetheart loved a brakeman and it ain't no joke
It's a shame the way she keeps a good man broke
I got the freight train blues
Oh Lord mama, I got them in the bottom of my rambling shoes
And when the whistle blows I gotta go oh mama, don't you know
Well, it looks like I'm never gonna lose the freight train blues
Well, the only thing that makes me laugh again
Is a southbound whistle on a southbound train
Every place I want to go
I never can go, because you know
I got the freight train blues
Oh Lord mama, I got them in the bottom of my rambling shoes
@edwardlouisbernays2469
Highway 51 was created during the 1926 Arkansas state highway numbering as a route between US 67 and Arkadelphia in Clark County.[1]
Bridge that formerly carried Highway 51 over the Ouachita River
Near Berine, a former alignment now bears the Clark County Road 12 designation. Along the former alignment, the McNeely Creek Bridge is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. To the east of Arkadelphia, Highway 51 formerly crossed the Ouachita River on a historic truss bridge.[11] The bridge was closed to vehicular traffic in 2018 upon the opening of a new bridge.[12]
Arkansas 51, Old, Curtis to Gum Springs
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Old Arkansas 51, Curtis to Gum Springs.JPG
Historic section of Highway 51
Area 9.5 acres (3.8 ha)
Built 1931
Built by D.H. Dalton Co.
MPS Arkansas Highway History and Architecture MPS
NRHP reference No. 03001457[13]
Added to NRHP January 21, 2004
Between Curtis and Gum Springs, a four-mile-long (6.4 km) stretch of concrete pavement built in 1931 remains intact. Part of the original Highway 51 alignment between Little Rock with Texarkana, the pavement was used until the present section of US 67 was built in 1965.[14] The road section was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2004.[13]
@1DaTJo
If you only heard his voice on this record you’d think Bob was a hundred years old. If you only saw his album cover photo you’d think he was fourteen.
He was keeping people guessing even back then when he was only twenty. What a great album!
@martha_m6933
What good ol´ Bob does on the harmonica is sheer incredible!!
@user_22359
I get freight train Bluuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuu ha hi hues
@desallen2174
Anybody who says Dylan can't sing should listen to this.
@sammcbride2149
The early Dylan stuff is always great to hear. Before all the many layers and changes of his career get piled on.
@paulstuart551
Dylan plagiarised from others even from the first album stating with Guthrie & black singers, sometimes not even changing the song title (or just a little). This is a hybrid from Guthrie's song Railroad Blues & the song of the same name by Mississippi Fred McDowell (an old blues singer). Dylan continued plagiarising at his most popular. Becoming more sophisticated he cast his net wider to more obscure songs not even changing a note of the melody eg Hard Rain is Lord Randal, a Celtic ballad. God On Our Side is Patriot Game, a folk song about the troubles in Northern Ireland. There are many more I could list, he even takes some lyrics from some. Dylan stole shamelessly from older songs & repackaged them. To give him some credit, he did learn to write good lyrics.
@loveace2430
@@paulstuart551 Oh uh, by the way nobody fucking cares, you wrote that for nothing. Have a good one.
@kainezillah
@@paulstuart551 That's why these songs are called "covers", and on the album the original writers are given credit. They're only two Bob Dylan originals on the first album, as is customary that most folk singers, and musicians in general, start playing other people's stuff before writing their own. You're just braindead.
@nonpungent8609
@@paulstuart551 that’s how folk music works. New lyrics for old melodies. Rewriting old songs for new purposes. Playing a song but adding a verse or two. It’s not plagiarism. The songs he borrowed from often borrowed from even older tunes and Dylan wasn’t the only one to be inspired by them. Hardly anyone’s ever done anything really new, it’s all recycled
@robinrobyn1714
@@paulstuart551 And that's all Elvis ever did- sing someone else's songs. Huge difference is that Bob Dylan actually had talent and could write his own songs. Songs which are to this day considered part of American History ( " Times they are a changin'" was an instrumental song during the Civil Rights era, for example)