Tom Rush Follow

Panama Limited

This is a song about a train; It’s called the Panama Limited
The Panama limited is a train run from Washington DC down on to New Orleans
That train she’s a Special Streamline y’know
And she’s fast
That train’s so fast the hobos don’t mess with that train
They just stand by the track with their hat in their hand

I had a girl she was leaving one morning on that train
She got up singing and crying
She said Daddy Hey n’I hate to go; Hey, Hey, Hey

We were walking on down the Union Depot
Way off in the distance she heard a train whistle blow 'n' she asked me “Is that the Panama Limited?”
I said “no babe that’s a local freight”
She said “How can you tell?”
I said “well - they blow a little bit different; Local freight she blows like this………….
Panama Limited she blows a little more lonesome – blows a little bit like this”……….

She said what time is train time?” I said, “I don’t know anything about train time babe – I’m just hanging round here trying to make a few dimes”
She got up singing and crying
She said “Daddy, alright the way you turn me down; Hey Mama ain’t got a dime”

She went running on ahead down Union Depot, and I went running after her to beg forgiveness for the words I’d said. I got down the bottom the Union Depot steps, I looked up ahead and there she was all the way up on top of the steps and I called her name. When she heard me call her name she turned back and she called back to me over her left shoulder.
She said, “Too late, too late, too late, Hey - Mama gonna leave you now”.

Just then, just then you hear the Panama Limited blowing 36 miles out of Memphis Tennessee
She went running up the Depot Agent She asked him what time train time was. He said “you go and lay your head down on the track babe and when you hear the rail popping you know train time wont be long”. She went over and she leant her head down against the cold steel rail and she heard the Panama Limited coming in.

She got up singing and crying
She said Daddy, “I hate to leave my home
Hey n’ I believe I’ll lose my mind”

I went over to her you know and put my arms around her

We stood there for a while n’ pretty soon the Panama Limited she’s out on the edge of town.
All the way in Union Depot you can hear it when the engineer’s coming down, coming down on the crossin’. He cuts down on the airbrakes, sounds like this……..

My girl she’s up singing and crying; she says “Daddy, I may never see your face no more, hey Mama ain’t got a home”

Pretty soon the Panama Limited she’s coming on in the station, engineer, he’s bringing her in fast but, he’s slowing down
He’s sitting way up high there in the peak seat, he keeps pulling on the bell rope, the bell keeps on tolling, sounds like this………..

She’s gone everywhere but home.