The definitive volume on railroads as reflected in the oral and recorded folk song traditions. Cohen spent nearly fifteen years researching, compiling and organizing the multitude of data for these songs. The bulk of the book provides discussions of eighty-five railroad songs, including music and text transcriptions and an elaborate biblio-discography for each. Among the selections are such classics as "The Midnight Special," "The Rock Island Line," "The Wabash Cannonball," "John Henry," "Casey Jones," "900 Miles," "Nine Pound Hammer," and "Working on the Railroad." Indispensable for scholars, musicians and railroad buffs.