Foley was born in Blue Lick, Kentucky. He began playing the guitar and the harmonica as a young boy and at age seventeen he won first prize in a statewide talent show. Ultimately he signed with Decca Records in 1941. His hit songs include Chattanoogie Shoe Shine Boy, Old Shep, Sugarfoot Rag, and Tennessee Saturday Night. Peace in the Valley, backed up by The Sunshine Boys, in 1951 became the first gospel record to sell a million copies, and One By One, a duet with Kitty Wells, became a chart topper in 1954.
For more than two decades, Foley was a major star of country music, selling in excess of twenty-five million records. During 1962-63, Foley was a regular cast member along with Fess Parker in the television series, Mr. Smith Goes to Washington.
Red Foley was elected to the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1967. For his contribution to the music industry, Red Foley also has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame at 6225 Hollywood Blvd.
He died unexpectedly in 1968 in Fort Wayne, Indiana at the age of fifty-eight from a heart attack. He is interred in the Woodlawn Memorial Park Cemetery in Nashville, Tennessee.
His daughter from his second marriage to Judy Martin (nee: Eva Alaine Overstake) is Shirley Lee Foley who is married to singer Pat Boone. His granddaughter is singer Debby Boone.
Freight Train Boogie
Red Foley Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
But now he's resting in the promised land
The kind of music he could understand
Was an eight wheel driver under his command
He made the freight train boogie
All the time
He made the freight train boogie
When the fireman started ringing the bell
Everybody hung around to tell
Casey Jones was a coming to town, on a six
Eight wheeler that was flat on the ground
The song "Freight Train Boogie" by Red Foley pays tribute to the legendary railroad engineer Casey Jones, who died in 1900 while trying to save his passengers from a collision. Jones was known for his skill in handling trains and his love for music, both of which are referenced in the song's lyrics. The song describes Jones as a mighty man who was able to control the eight wheel driver locomotive he commanded, and who could appreciate the rhythm of the train's movement as it "boogied" down the line.
Line by Line Meaning
Casey Jones he was a mighty man
Casey Jones was a powerful and respected train conductor
But now he's resting in the promised land
Casey Jones has passed away and is now in the afterlife
The kind of music he could understand
Casey Jones appreciated the sound of a powerful locomotive
Was an eight wheel driver under his command
The train engine under his control had eight wheels and was powerful
He made the freight train boogie
Casey Jones made the train move at a fast pace
All the time
He was always in control of the train's speed and movement
He made the freight train boogie
He had a talent for making the train move with a rhythmical sound
As he rolled down the line
As he drove the train down the tracks
When the fireman started ringing the bell
When the assistant to the engineer began using the train whistle
Everybody hung around to tell
People gathered to watch the train and cheer it on
Casey Jones was a coming to town, on a six
Casey Jones was approaching the nearby town on a fast train
Eight wheeler that was flat on the ground
The train had eight wheels and was very low to the ground
Contributed by Lucas V. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
monty mcintyre
Grady Martin playing guitar on "El Paso" is great. Helps Marty Robbins sound terrific
ThumbinRadio
Grady Martin on the double-neck like it's nothing. Thanks for posting this!
jsilence418
Grady Martin is a new guitar God for me !!
rockabillybyron
old time classic!!!!! i love it
Kittra Moore
Wow. This is fabulous! Bob Moore (Bass) Billy Burke (Accordian) and Bud Isaacs (steel guitar) are all alive and well.
dkfelix
Grady Martin sure helped birth Rock 'n' Roll - playing with Johnny Caroll, Don Woody, Bobby Helms,Roy Hall, Marty Robbins. I even saw him playing fiddle on an Hank Williams TV-appearance!!
David Christian
I watched Burlison play live with the Memphis AllStars, he sure played Train Kept a Rollin and all the other songs associated with him that Martin's fans say he couldn't have played. Grady Martin was a top notch studio and concert guitarist, that doesn't mean Paul wasn't as or nearly as good.
Swingin Music
The great Grady Martin!
sanQ
So I had a hunch that Grady was playing on the song Midnight by Red Foley. And I was right! Damn that is magical guitar work on that song. It actually sounds as midnight should sound. Midnight being one of the last, if not the last, song that Hank Williams Sr. sang in the car before he died.
hillbillyboy77
AND I LOVE IT SO MUCH!!!