Alan Jackson’s lyrics to Freight Train touch upon a wide range of topics and uses imagery throughout the song. Despite the song’s popularity and recent praise, there are some aspects of the lyrics that have yet to be analyzed, which I will address in this essay.
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Freight Train Lyrics
I just came down from Chippewa
Had as station wagon and a hundred dollars
Thinking about the girl I’d lost a year before
I hadn’t seen her for some time
Thought I might go on by when your memory came flooding in and you closed that door.
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a diesel locomotive
I’d come whistling down your track crashing in your door.
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it didn’t have a heart
You need a shovel for the coal just to get me started
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a freight train.
Well every time I talk to you I hear your jealous lines
I feel like I’ve been left abandoned on some old railway side
And every time I hear your voice my water just gets cold
My stoker will not stoke and my boiler will not boil.
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a diesel locomotive
I’d come whistling down your track crashing in your door.
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it didn’t have a heart
You need a shovel for the coal just to get me started
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a freight train.
Well every time I fell behind I could not get ahead
I wish someone would pull the lever and give me a little sand
And every time I slip behind even further back
I wish some switch man would come out of the fog and change my track.
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a diesel locomotive
I’d come whistling down your track crashing in your door.
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it didn’t have a heart
You need a shovel for the coal just to get me started
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a freight train.
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a diesel locomotive
I’d come whistling down your track crashing in your door.
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it didn’t have a heart
You need a shovel for the coal just to get me started
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a freight train baby
Wish it was a freight train
Who is Alan Jackson?
Alan Jackson is an American country music singer-songwriter known for his popularity in the 1990s. He has recorded 16 studio albums and 4 compilation albums for the Arista Nashville label. His style is often considered traditional country, especially when compared to other artists on the label. Jackson has received many awards, including two Grammys, 17 Country Music Association Awards, 13 Academy of Country Music Awards, and a host of others.
Jackson was born December 17, 1958, in Newnan, Georgia. He grew up in Florida and Alabama before moving to Nashville when he was 19 years old. He attended Vanderbilt University for three years before dropping out to pursue a career in music full-time.
Wrapping it up
Freight Train is a relatable song told using imagery and metaphor. The story of the song is crystal clear and includes conflict (which moves the plot along), one major and one minor character (the protagonist and antagonist), and a setting. Alan Jackson wrote a very compelling narrative with this song, but it doesn’t end abruptly. Instead, the story leads listeners to its conclusion with ease by introducing an ambiguity (e.g., What will happen?) that later gets resolved. In short, Freight Train lyrics shows that a great narrative can be straightforward—all you need is an exciting idea, a beginning, and an end.