Streamline Cannonball

Roy Acuff

 
It's a long steel rail and a short cross tie.
I'm on my way back home.
I'm on that train, the king of them all,
That Streamline Cannonball.

Chorus:
She moves along like a cannonball,
Like a star in it's heavenly flight.
The lonesome sound of the whistle you love
As she travels through the night.

I can see a smile on the engineer's face,
And although he's old and gray,
A contented heart, he waits for his call
On the Streamline Cannonball.

Chorus

The headlight beams out in the night,
And the firebox flash you can see.
I ride the blinds.  It's the life that I love.
Lord, it's home sweet home to me.
 

Notes:

Arrangement above attributed to Doc Watson.

Alternate 1st and 3rd verses attributed to Lester Flatt and
the Nashville Grass:

1st:
It's a long steel rail and a short cross tie.
I'm on my way back home.
Riding the rails on the trail that I love,
She's the Streamline Cannonball.

3rd:
The headlight beam shines through the night,
The firebox flash can be seen.
I ride the blinds.  It's the life that I love.
For it seems like home to me.