In 1963, he formed the Paul Butterfield Blues Band, who recorded several successful albums and were a popular fixture on the late-1960s concert and festival circuit, with performances at the Fillmores, Monterey Pop Festival, and Woodstock. They became known for combining electric Chicago blues with a rock urgency as well as their pioneering jazz fusion performances and recordings. After the breakup of the group in 1971, Butterfield continued to tour and record in a variety of settings, including with Paul Butterfield's Better Days, his mentor Muddy Waters, and members of the roots-rock group the Band.
While still recording and performing, but in poor health, Butterfield died in 1987 at age 44. Music critics have acknowledged his development of an original approach that places him among the best-known blues harp players. The Paul Butterfield Blues Band was nominated for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and he was inducted into the Blues Hall of Fame, both who noted his harmonica skills as well as his contributions to bringing blues-style music to a younger and broader audience.
Read more here: Paul Butterfield - Wikipedia
Mystery Train
The Butterfield Blues Band Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Train arrive, it's sixteen coaches long
Well, that long black train take my baby and gone
Mystery train, rollin' down the track
Mystery train, rollin' down the track
Well, it took my baby, people it won't be coming back
Train, train, rollin' 'round the bend
Well, it took my baby, people it won't be back again
Train arrive, it's sixteen coaches long
Train arrive, it's sixteen coaches long
Well, that long black train take my baby and gone
The Butterfield Blues Band's song "Mystery Train" is a mournful blues ballad about the loss of a loved one. The lyrics describe a train – a long, black mystery train – that arrives and takes away the singer's baby, never to return. The repetition of the phrase "train arrive, it's sixteen coaches long" creates a sense of inevitability and finality, emphasizing the singer's helplessness in the face of this loss.
The train itself becomes a symbol of death, rolling down the track and taking the singer's baby with it. The repeated use of the word "mystery" underscores the unknown and unknowable nature of death, adding to the sense of sadness and despair. The final repetition of the lyrics brings the song full circle, and we are left with the haunting image of the long black train disappearing into the distance, carrying the singer's baby away forever.
Overall, "Mystery Train" is a powerful and emotional song that speaks to the universal experience of grief and loss.
Line by Line Meaning
Train arrive, it's sixteen coaches long
The train has arrived and it's a big one with sixteen coaches
Train arrive, it's sixteen coaches long
The same train arrives again and it's still a big one with sixteen coaches
Well, that long black train take my baby and gone
My significant other was taken away by the big black train and isn't coming back
Mystery train, rollin' down the track
An unknown train is travelling along the rails
Mystery train, rollin' down the track
The same unknown train is still travelling down the rails
Well, it took my baby, people it won't be coming back
The mysterious train took my loved one and it's unlikely that they'll ever return
Train, train, rollin' 'round the bend
Another train is following the tracks and heading towards a bend
Train, train, rollin' 'round the bend
The same train is getting closer to the bend
Well, it took my baby, people it won't be back again
The second train also took my loved one and it's unlikely that they'll ever come back
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Herman Parker Jr., Sam Phillips
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@zenzen1916
Paul was getting well in 87, as we had invisioned raising our son, Justin, together. .not everyone was on our side..Paul was happy..Justin was seven when Paul died..love and miss him more than I can say..Horn from the Heart is full of lies 🥀💔
@DuneAquaViva
The Golden Retriever I had for 11 1/2 years was named Butter for my dear old departed friend!
@salspataro9389
Paul Butterfield sings this song with The Band on The Last Waltz. Best version I have ever heard...
@GAMakin
Saw Butterfield in Denver, maybe Winter/Spring 1987, not long before his death, opening act at an intimate venue on Broadway (Broadway Joe's). Played a 15 minute solo on his harp, while walking up and down the aisles of folding chairs. Absolutely BLEW ME AWAY. Thought I'd heard harmonica before. Uh-uh... Ab-soul-lootly STELLAR. People were weeping and cheering and he kept right on playing, every riff in variation that his classical training brought to mind. I can't even remember the name of the tune. My wife's favorite Blues artist/band since she was 16 and running off from East Long Island to the Fillmore. His performance was even more significant when we'd heard that he'd passed.
Saw Robert Cray at the same venue before he hit. "Bad Influence" LOL great guitar...
@michaelobrien8219
i saw them Mar.14, 1969 at the PNE Gardens in Vancouver, BC - a powerhouse group! very tight - very professional.
@kevanceniceros6395
Amagine hearing this before the age of ten, you want to imagine you're ripping it up with the band as a drummer so l sought to be, yes l heard the train coming in this composition positioned me in the 👉right direction, thankyou very much.
@TheVatonaught
My college roommate back in the 60's brought this album home and I played the grooves off it. It still stands up tall.
@bluesjack
Oh yeah 50 years later and the 1st Butterfield album still kicks ass
@Msboboliciios
I can't understand why Paul Butterfield is not in the hall of fame.....crazy. love him, gone too soon.
@bev.prescott6755
Stephanie Paolinelli