City of New Orleans [C]
Arlo Guthrie
[Intro] [C]
[C]Riding on the [G]City of New [C]Orleans
[Am]Illinois Central [F]Monday morning [C]rail
[C]Fifteen cars and [G]fifteen restless [C]riders
[Am]Three conductors and [G]twenty-five sacks of [C]mail
All a[Am]long the southbound odyssey… the [Em]train pulls out of Kankakee
[G]Rolls along past houses farms and [D]fields
[Am]Passing trains that have no name… [Em]freight yards of old black men
And the [G]graveyards… of the [G7]rusted automo[C]biles[C7]
[Chorus 1]
[F]Good morning [G]America how [C]are you?
Say [Am]don’t you know me [F]I’m your native [C]son
(G – 1 strum) I’m the [C]train they call the [G]City of New [Am]Orleans [F]
I’ll be [Bb]gone five [Am]hundred [G]miles when the day is [C]done
Dealing [C]card games with the [G]old men in the [C]club car
[Am]Penny a point ain’t [F]no one keeping [C]score
[C]Pass the paper [G]bag that holds the [C]bottle
[Am]Feel the wheels [G]rumbling ‘neath the [C]floor
And the [Am]sons of Pullman porters… and the [Em]sons of engineers
Ride their [G]father’s magic carpets made of [D]steel
[Am]Mothers with their babes asleep [Em]rocking to the gentle beat
And the [G]rhythm of the [G7]rails is all they [C]feel[C7]
[Chorus 1]
[C]Night time in the [G]City of New [C]Orleans
[Am]Changing cars in [F]Memphis, Tenne[C]ssee
[C]Half way home… [G]we’ll be there by [C]morning
Through the [Am]Mississippi darkness [G]rolling down to the [C]sea
But [Am]all the towns and people seem to [Em]fade into a bad dream
And the [G]steel rail… still ain’t heard the [D]news
The con[Am]ductor sings his songs again… the [Em]passengers will please refrain
This [G]train’s got the disapp[G7]earing railroad [C]blues[C7]
[Chorus 2]
[F]Good night [G]America how [C]are you?
Say [Am]don’t you know me [F]I’m your native [C]son
(G – 1 strum)I’m the [C]train they call the [G]City of New [Am]Orleans [F]
I’ll be [Bb]gone five [Am]hundred [G]miles when the day is [C]done
[Chorus 2]
I’ll be [Bb]gone five [Am]hundred [G]miles when the day is [C]done