Lyrics: Brian Brown/Kelly Warner
Music: Brian Brown/Kelly Warner
My grandpops was a man of respect, had to sweat
Just to cash checks, workin' from sunrise to set
Every day, he'd get challenged, no trades or talents
Barely scraped by, he found faith to balance
The straight line and pace, feelin' worn and grey
Poor with four seeds, one more on the way
It was hard days indeed, all work and no play
He made sure things on the surface were okay
But something disturbin' within his mind was lurkin'
A slight twilight breeze would ease in through the curtains at night
It's like the sermon of a twisted apparition
Was urgin' him to listen to the train in the distance
At first, it wasn't intense, just one little instance
Sure, it didn't occur, he turned to resist it
As if it wasn't much more than just a figment
Of his imagination, but for days, it was persistent
And it went, "Follow me, follow me
Follow me, follow me"
Then it got louder, "Follow me, follow me
I have something to show you"
With time, people noticed he was actin' berserk
Granny got a call sayin' he was absent from work
And that was a first, she ran to the pastor at church
To ask him what was up with this disastrous curse
But bad went to worse, he came back three days after
No money in his wallet and his shirt on backwards
Stumblin', walked awkward, he called out for his daughter
Right before he split, the last lesson he taught her was this
"If you ever have a son let him know that his granddad loves him
But by the time that he's grown
Be sure this seed is sown deep down into his dome
Don't ever, ever walk to the train tracks alone"
With that, he backed up, reached out for his jacket
Told her not to act up, and cracked up laughin'
After all that happened, he left, never to be seen
15 years later is when my mother had me
Her dad lived a life people can't understand
Went from a family man to ramblin' man
A gamblin' man that burned both ends of the candle
Folded his hand in, it was too hot to handle
Sittin' on the tracks, waitin' for the night train
Lookin' down the road, ain't never gonna go back
Listen for the whistle through the wind and raindrop
Who's gonna ride the devil's train tonight?
Sittin' on the tracks, waitin' for the night train
Lookin' down the road, ain't never gonna go back
Listen for the whistle through the wind and raindrop
Who's gonna ride the devil's train tonight?
When I was a tot, my mom dropped fables and stories
To warn me of the dangers that were layin' before me
To keep it interestin', she would hide the lesson
To guide my direction, provide the right message
In time, I developed a sense of her embellishment
Since I was rebellious against what she was tellin' me
When I was a teen, I pretended that my demons were friends
I defended the place, yo, and that was the case
Slurred speech drippin' off of my face
The world creeped as I slipped to the awfulest place
You could imagine, not the average things you'd see on acid
My granddad bloody, hoverin' on a speaker cabinet
Laughin' in a rasp, he turned covered in maggots
That snacked on his ass with a bone, I couldn't grasp it
Did a double dismount off of the couch, flipped out
Broke the closest window I found, then I dipped out
Suddenly, I discovered little voices mumblin' up in my head
It had me wonderin', "What was it my mother said
Back when I was younger?" It had my brain ragged
As I stumbled off of the night towards the train tracks
Sittin' on the tracks, waitin' for the night train
Lookin' down the road, ain't never gonna go back
Listen for the whistle through the wind and raindrop
Who's gonna ride the devil's train tonight?
Sittin' on the tracks, waitin' for the night train
Lookin' down the road, ain't never gonna go back
Listen for the whistle through the wind and raindrop
Who's gonna ride the devil's train tonight?
So there I was, stalkin' through the dark with a buzz
I figured I should walk, that'll ease me off of these drugs
It's like a shark, had to keep movin', it's that or be ruined
If I sat still, I was doomed, and that wasn't doin'
So I marched through the park, slow gone like Donnie Darko
The sparkle of the starlight glowed like charcoal
Despite my demeanor, the night seemed more serene
Than a morphine fiend in a morgue scene, like I lost it
That was when my grandpops carcass emerged from the dark
Gurglin' his words of carnage, but he couldn't talk
Something about the birth of sadness
I scurried off, I was on the verge of madness
I raced fast, pace in the landscape was strange
Like a plane parallel to this one but rearranged
Came to a slope, to a steep, beggin' for sleep
As I climbed up, takin' my focus off of the creeps
Within the foggy distance, I saw a silhouette
That got bigger as I stepped, the train tracks were wet
I saw a shiny grin from afar, like it was happy
This is what he said as he started to walk passed me
"It's a nice night for a walk, would ya mind if I joined you?
Do what you wanna do"
"Well, that's great 'cause I'm goin' to"
"And not to annoy you, but see, I really have to ask
What a young dude like you's doin' out by the tracks
You waitin' on a train?"
"Nah, man, let me explain (alright)
I'm mindin' my business, so maybe you should do the same
I just been a witness to something sick and sadistic
So twistedly disgustin', you should feel real lucky you missed it"
Said, "Easy with the tongue, son, try to listen carefully
What you seen's scary, but nothing when compared to me
I could show you things to paint all your dreams haunted
And I could make you scream if I wanted
Or I can be the bee in your body, your best friend forever
The peas in a pod, ****in' like birds in a feather
And you never have a need to beg, work, or steal
If all this sounds worth it, then let's make a deal
All you want in life for price of your soul
All the money you can fold, power that you can hold
I'll put you in control, only if you're down to roll
Down these train tracks tonight" ("But where are we gonna go?")
Sittin' on the tracks, waitin' for the night train
Lookin' down the road, ain't never gonna go back
Listen for the whistle through the wind and raindrop
Who's gonna ride the devil's train tonight?
Sittin' on the tracks, waitin' for the night train
Lookin' down the road, ain't never gonna go back
Listen for the whistle through the wind and raindrop
Who's gonna ride the devil's train tonight?
End.