Streamlined Cannon Ball
by Roy Acuff
"I wrote
'Streamlined Cannon Ball' when they had begun to do away
with the steam engine and were beginning to streamline
trains." —Roy Acuff
Streamlined Cannon Ball
A long steel rail, a short cross-tie
I'm on my way back home
I'm on a train, the king of them all
The Streamlined Cannon Ball.
She moves along like a cannon ball
Like a star in its heavenly flight
This lonesome sound from the whistle you love
As she travels through the night.
Her headlight gleams out in the night
The firebox flash you see
The blinds I ride, the life that I love
It's home, sweet home to me.
I can see the smile of the engineer
Although he's old and gray
A contented heart, he waits the call
Of the Streamlined Cannon Ball.
