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Canadian Railroad Trilogy Lyrics
There was a time in this fair land when the railroad did not run.
When the wild, majestic mountains stood alone against the sun,
Long before the white man, and long before the wheel,
When the green, dark forest was too silent to be real.
But time has no beginnings, and the history has no bounds,
As to this burdened country they came from all around.
They sailed upon her waterways, and they walked the forests tall,
Built the mines, the mills, and the factories for the good of us all.
And when the young man stands, he had turned into the spring,
The railroad men grew restless for to hear the hammers ring.
Their minds were overflowing with the visions of their day,
With many a fortune won and lost, and many a debt to pay.
For they looked in the future,
And what did they see?
They saw an iron road running
From the sea to the sea.
Bringing the goods to a young, growing land
All up from the seaboards and into their hands.
"Look away," said they, "Across this mighty land,
From the eastern shore, to the western strand.
Bring in the workers, and bring up the rails,
We gotta lay down the tracks
And tear up the trails.
Open her heart, let the lifeblood flow,
Gotta get on our way, coz' we're moving too slow.
Bring in the workers, and bring up the rails,
We gotta lay down the tracks
And tear up the trails.
Open her heart, let the lifeblood flow,
Gotta get on our way, coz' we're moving too slow.
Get on our way, coz' we're moving too slow.
Behind the blue Rockies, the sun is declinin'
The stars, they come stealin' at the close of the day.
Across the wide prairie, our loved ones lie sleeping,
Beyond the dark oceans, in a place far away.
We are the navvies who work upon the railway.
Swingin' our hammers in the bright, blazin' sun.
Livin' on stew, and drinking bad whiskey,
Bending our backs, till the long days are done.
We are the navvies who work upon the railway.
Swingin' our hammers in the bright, blazin' sun.
Layin' down track, and building the bridges,
Bending our backs, till the railroad is done.
So, over the mountains and over the plains,
Into the moskeg and into the rain,
Up the St. Lawrence, all the way to Gaspee,
Swingin' our hammers, and drawing our pay.
Drivin' 'em in and tyin' 'em down,
Away to the boathouse, and into the town.
A dollar a day, and a place for my head
A drink to the living, a toast to the dead.
Oh, the song of the future have been sung,
All the battles have been won.
On the mountaintops we stand,
All the world at our command.
We have opened up the soil,
With our teardrops and our toil.
There was a time in this fair land when the railroad did not run.
When the wild, majestic mountains stood alone against the sun,
Long before the white man, and long before the wheel,
When the green, dark forest was too silent to be real.
When the green, dark forest was too silent to be real.
And many are the dead men too silent to be real.
When the wild, majestic mountains stood alone against the sun,
Long before the white man, and long before the wheel,
When the green, dark forest was too silent to be real.
As to this burdened country they came from all around.
They sailed upon her waterways, and they walked the forests tall,
Built the mines, the mills, and the factories for the good of us all.
The railroad men grew restless for to hear the hammers ring.
Their minds were overflowing with the visions of their day,
With many a fortune won and lost, and many a debt to pay.
And what did they see?
They saw an iron road running
From the sea to the sea.
Bringing the goods to a young, growing land
All up from the seaboards and into their hands.
From the eastern shore, to the western strand.
Bring in the workers, and bring up the rails,
We gotta lay down the tracks
And tear up the trails.
Open her heart, let the lifeblood flow,
Gotta get on our way, coz' we're moving too slow.
Bring in the workers, and bring up the rails,
We gotta lay down the tracks
And tear up the trails.
Open her heart, let the lifeblood flow,
Gotta get on our way, coz' we're moving too slow.
Get on our way, coz' we're moving too slow.
The stars, they come stealin' at the close of the day.
Across the wide prairie, our loved ones lie sleeping,
Beyond the dark oceans, in a place far away.
Swingin' our hammers in the bright, blazin' sun.
Livin' on stew, and drinking bad whiskey,
Bending our backs, till the long days are done.
We are the navvies who work upon the railway.
Swingin' our hammers in the bright, blazin' sun.
Layin' down track, and building the bridges,
Bending our backs, till the railroad is done.
Into the moskeg and into the rain,
Up the St. Lawrence, all the way to Gaspee,
Swingin' our hammers, and drawing our pay.
Drivin' 'em in and tyin' 'em down,
Away to the boathouse, and into the town.
A dollar a day, and a place for my head
A drink to the living, a toast to the dead.
Oh, the song of the future have been sung,
All the battles have been won.
On the mountaintops we stand,
All the world at our command.
We have opened up the soil,
With our teardrops and our toil.
When the wild, majestic mountains stood alone against the sun,
Long before the white man, and long before the wheel,
When the green, dark forest was too silent to be real.
When the green, dark forest was too silent to be real.
And many are the dead men too silent to be real.
Song Info
Submitted by
irishred516 On Oct 14, 2002
More Gordon Lightfoot
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This song should be Canada's second national anthem.
Seriously, I can't believe only one other person has commented about this song. To me, living in America but having strong Canadian roots, this is like Canada saying, "Hey, I may not be America, but I've done some pretty f**king great things in my life too. Look at what we've gained, and look what we've given up for it."
I don't think anyone will ever write a song quite like this again.
This song is a Masterpiece and I agree, should be Canada's second national anthem.....Gordon weaves his words and music into a Majestic Tapestry telling the story of Canada and the building of the Canadian Pacific Railroad.....Open 'er heart and let the life blood flow.....to me symbolizes the progress of the construction of the railroad as it reaches the center of Canada, the Prairies, the heart of our country, opening the way to move grain and goods across the land.......the lyrics paint a beautiful picture, but the music, done in 3 distinct styles as the progress of the railway travels from the Eastern Shores, to the Prairies and then through the Rockies to the Pacific Coast is a marvel in itself.....listen closely and you will hear how the guitar music mimics the rhythms of the train & the speed of the travel which comes to an abrupt stop at the Rocky Mtns... the point of the song where "across the blue Rockies our loved ones are sleeping".....the verse continues to tell the tale of the Navvies work & sacrifices on the railroad, which is solemn & slower during the verse to reflect the slow speed of working to lay down the tracks & the back breaking work of the Navvies. At the point where the song comes to the end of the line, Bending our backs til the railroad is done', the music again switches, again mimicking the sound of a train, slowly at first & then gains in speed as the lyrics retrace the course of the railroad, going back to where it began "Over the mountains and over the plains, into the Muskeg & into the rain, Up the St Lawrence and down to Gaspe".....from the Pacific to the East Coast. The railroad is built, their work is done.....it truly is a remarkable music composition on it's own. Combine it with the well chosen lyrics and it's probably the best song ever written,certainly Mr Lightfoot's best, and without question the greatest song to ever come out of Canada. Commissioned by the CBC to commemorate Canada's Centennial in 1967, it is truly a Canadian standard, written and performed by the best song writer Canada ever produced, a man we Canadians are so very proud of......
It was actually commissioned by the CBC to commemorate Canada's centennial.
This song is a Masterpiece and I agree, should be Canada's second national anthem.....Gordon weaves his words and music into a Majestic Tapestry telling the story of Canada and the building of the Canadian Pacific Railroad.....Open 'er heart and let the life blood flow.....to me symbolizes the progress of the construction of the railroad as it reaches the center of Canada, the Prairies, the heart of our country, opening the way to move grain and goods across the land.......the lyrics paint a beautiful picture, but the music, done in 3 distinct styles as the progress of the railway travels from the Eastern Shores, to the Prairies and then through the Rockies to the Pacific Coast is a marvel in itself.....listen closely and you will hear how the guitar music mimics the rhythms of the train & the speed of the travel which comes to an abrupt stop at the Rocky Mtns... the point of the song where "across the blue Rockies our loved ones are sleeping".....the verse continues to tell the tale of the Navvies work & sacrifices on the railroad, which is solemn & slower during the verse to reflect the slow speed of working to lay down the tracks & the back breaking work of the Navvies. At the point where the song comes to the end of the line, Bending our backs til the railroad is done', the music again switches, again mimicking the sound of a train, slowly at first & then gains in speed as the lyrics retrace the course of the railroad, going back to where it began "Over the mountains and over the plains, into the Muskeg & into the rain, Up the St Lawrence and down to Gaspe".....from the Pacific to the East Coast. The railroad is built, their work is done.....it truly is a remarkable music composition on it's own. Combine it with the well chosen lyrics and it's probably the best song ever written,certainly Mr Lightfoot's best, and without question the greatest song to ever come out of Canada. Commissioned by the CBC to commemorate Canada's Centennial in 1967, it is truly a Canadian standard, written and performed by the best song writer Canada ever produced, a man we Canadians are so very proud of......
This song is about progress, and the cost of it, using the trans-canadian railroad as the basis for comparison.
Well, this song is definately about building railroads in Canada and my impression is that it's a tribute to the people who helped build the railroad. The one line "open her heart, let her lifeblood flow" sounds like he's saying that by using the earth's resources to bring life they're kind of paying tribute to her in a way. I mean what's the point of all the metals and foodstuffs if it just sits there? That's the sort of thing this makes me think of.
gordon is one of the greats
Simply a romantic portayal of the dreams and labors of all who built the Canadian Pacific.
Sorry I don't know why I got more than one post...... :(
@Alek Bunny It was certainly worth repeating. Excellent summary of an excellent song.
@Alek Bunny It was certainly worth repeating. Excellent summary of an excellent song.