Cash released her first single in 1979, a duet with Bobby Bare called "We Don't Need No Memories Hangin' 'Round". Two years later, she had her first country No. 1 (and the biggest commercial hit of her career), "Seven Year Ache". Although Cash was a prominent country star throughout the '80s, alongside fellow decade-defining artists Emmylou Harris, Juice Newton, and Dolly Parton, her music was anything but traditional: She topped the charts with songs written not only by herself, but by her father ("Tennessee Flat Top Box"), John Hiatt ("The Way We Make a Broken Heart"), Tom Petty ("Never Be You") and the Beatles ("I Don't Want to Spoil the Party"), "I Don't Know Why You Don't Want Me", which won her a Grammy in 1985, and "It's Such a Small World", a 1987 duet with Rodney Crowell on his album Diamonds & Dirt, provided further hits. A sampling of these songs and more are included on the compilation Hits 1979-1989. In 1979, she married Rodney Crowell, who was to produce most of her hit records. Their stormy marriage lasted until 1992; its break-up is chronicled in Cash's Interiors and in Crowell's album Life Is Messy. Cash later married John Leventhal, who produced her albums The Wheel, 10 Song Demo, Rules of Travel, and Black Cadillac.
To date, Cash has had more than twenty top 40 country singles, including eleven chart-toppers, but none since 1990, and she has left Nashville in both spirit and body to pursue her artistic vision. Although she had recorded all of her hits for Columbia Records' Nashville division, she released 10 Song Demo for the pop division of Capitol. Cash resurfaced in 2003 with Rules of Travel. The album features guest appearances by Sheryl Crow and Steve Earle, as well as a tune penned by Joe Henry and the Wallflowers' Jakob Dylan. Cash's latest album, entitled Black Cadillac, was released by Capitol Records in January 2006 to critical acclaim. Many of the songs were written by Cash and address the losses (within a 24-month span) of her step-mother, her father, her step-sister (Rosey Nix Adams) and then finally her mother on Cash's fiftieth birthday.
RUNAWAY TRAIN
Rosanne Cash Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
About you,
I'm worried about me
The curves around
Midnight aren't easy to see
Flashing red warnings unseen in the rain
This thing has turned
Into a runaway train
Long-distance phone calls, a voice on the line
Electrical miles that soften the time
The dynamite, too, is hooked on the wire
And so are the rails of American Flyers
Blind boys and gamblers, they invented the blues
Will pay up in blood when this marker comes due
To try to get off now, it's about as insane
As those who wave lanterns at runaway trains
Steel rails and hard lives are always in twos
I have been here before this and now it's with you
I'm worried about you, I'm worried about me
We're lighting the fuses and counting to three
And what are the choices for those who remain
The sign of the cross on a runaway train
This thing has turned into a runaway train
This thing has turned into a runaway train
Our love has turned into a runaway train
In Rosanne Cash's song Runaway Train, the singer expresses her worry about her relationship with her lover. She feels that the uncertain future of their relationship is like driving through curves around midnight, where warnings are flashing but unseen. She is concerned that they have no control over what will happen next. She uses the metaphor of a runaway train to describe how their love has turned into something out of their control.
The song discusses long-distance relationships, where phone calls become lifelines that can soften the distance. However, the singer is aware that a connection like this can be explosive, and the markers of running trains, like blind boys and gamblers, will eventually have to pay in blood. The song ends with the idea that the love between the two has become a runaway train, and it seems as though there is no way to get off of it. Rather than finding a solution, the singer describes the despair of counting down the time to the train's collision.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm worried
The singer is feeling anxious and uneasy.
About you,
The singer is concerned about the well-being of someone they care about.
I'm worried about me
The singer is also concerned about their own well-being in the situation.
The curves around
Referring to difficult or uncertain situations.
Midnight aren't easy to see
The situation at hand is unclear and difficult to understand.
Flashing red warnings unseen in the rain
There are warning signs, but they are not visible or easy to distinguish.
This thing has turned
Referring to the situation, which has become dangerous and out of control.
Into a runaway train
The situation has become unstoppable, like a train that has gone off its tracks.
(Long-distance)
Referring to the distance between people involved in the situation.
Long-distance phone calls, a voice on the line
Describing the communication method between people who are far apart.
Electrical miles that soften the time
The use of technology to communicate over long distances, which can make time feel less distant.
The dynamite, too, is hooked on the wire
Referring to an explosive or dangerous aspect of the situation that is connected to the means of communication.
And so are the rails of American Flyers
The transportation system and infrastructure within the country is also implicated in the situation.
Blind boys and gamblers, they invented the blues
Describing the origins of the blues, which often come from a place of struggle and loss.
Will pay up in blood when this marker comes due
The debt owed will be paid with significant suffering, similar to the consequence of gambling.
To try to get off now, it's about as insane
Trying to step away from the situation now seems impossible or irrational.
As those who wave lanterns at runaway trains
Referring to the old practice of using lanterns to signal to train conductors, and the futility of trying to stop a train that is out of control.
Steel rails and hard lives are always in twos
The harsh reality of life and the gritty infrastructure of transportation often go hand in hand.
I have been here before this and now it's with you
The singer has experienced similar situations before, but now it involves someone else they care about.
We're lighting the fuses and counting to three
The situation is becoming increasingly explosive, and people involved are waiting for the inevitable disaster.
And what are the choices for those who remain
There are limited options left for those who are still involved in the situation.
The sign of the cross on a runaway train
A final, ominous image of a religious symbol on a train that cannot be stopped.
This thing has turned into a runaway train
The situation has escalated to a dangerous level, like a train that has gone out of control.
This thing has turned into a runaway train
Repetition of the previous line to further emphasize the severity of the situation.
Our love has turned into a runaway train
The specific situation involves a romantic relationship that has become uncontrollable and dangerous.
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management
Written by: John C Stewart
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@jimchalker1672
I have a real problem with this song. Once I start listening to it, I can't stop. I just listen to it over and over for hours on end. It's addictive as hell!
@julieprice3160
Same. I heard it on Sirius XM a few weeks ago and have played on here several times since.
@janices.5436
Wow. I don't think of this song for awhile. Then I hear it again, it really hits home. The video has an impact that makes the song even more powerful. Where are things like that these days?
@BrandXSports
It's the drumbeat I think that does it
@kookykathy7199
It touches you and others... Rosanne imo was very underrated!
@marielangley8032
I agree. Its the same for me. This song and Tennessee Flat Top Box.
@daver8521
One of the most underrated singers ever.
@PBMASON
The guy who wrote this song is one of the most underated songwriters on the planet. John Stewart
@laurielynn8288
So true
@cjcarp9438
I don't think she's underrated. She had a bunch of hits... I think she falls in the same category as Emmylou Harris or L. Williams. Don't think they really care about the fame just like to make great music... Plus come on Shes Johnny's Daughter and was married to one of the greatest Songwriters ever....