Intro (Instrumental — 8 bars) (Banjo kicks it off with a rolling G-major lick. Mandolin chop comes in. Bass and guitar join. Sets the rhythm — you can hear the train starting to move.) Verse 1 — Bluefield (G major) (Spoken-sung, conversational, like you're telling this story around a campfire.) "Grew up in Bluefield, West Virginia town Where the coal trains rolled but the work shut down Granddaddy ran freight for Norfolk Southern line Daddy did the same, said 'Son, you'll do just fine' Learned every engine by the sound it made SD70, Dash 9, the whole parade Coal trains endless, hundred-forty cars long Daddy said 'Railroad don't care, son — just move it along'" (Banjo break — 8 bars, rolling and rhythmic) Verse 2 — Mile Marker 247 (G major, shifts to C for tension) "Nineteen years old, first real railroad job Night shift conductor, coal train to the port Mile marker 247, radio crackled through ‘All traffic hold — emergency on the passenger route' Amtrak stopped dead, ambulance on the road Nineteen thousand tons of coal, we just slowed Dutch said 'Someone got sick, heart attack I'd bet' ‘Passenger trains stop for people — we stop for freight'" (Guitar takes a short break here — 4 bars, then back to vocal) "Fifteen minutes, idling in the dark Watched that ambulance fade, just a distant spark Dutch throttled up, said 'People matter more than coal' But I saw that train stopped — and it shook my soul" *(Mandolin and banjo trade licks — 8 bars) --- Chorus (G → C → G → D → G) (Full band, tight harmonies, anthemic but grounded.) "Coal keeps the lights on But people matter when the lights go out Tonnage is patient But humans can't wait You need the coal train running You need the souls getting home Build a railroad That carries both, carries both" (Fiddle doubles the melody, banjo rolls underneath, mandolin chops hard) --- Verse 3 — Chicago (G major, building energy) “Left Norfolk Southern, went to Virginia Tech Studied rail logistics, quantum system checks Professors said 'Interesting, but it won't ever fly' I said 'Watch me build a railroad where both trains get by'” Chicago called me, 'L' system in a mess Delays and signal failures, commuters under stress I brought 'em freight logistics with a human priority twist Efficiency AND care — quantum states coexist" (Fiddle break — 16 bars, soaring and emotional, building toward the climax) --- Verse 4 — Heartland Line (G major, triumphant) Three hundred forty students ride the rails today Converted freight cars, Wi-Fi all the way Gary to Chicago, Milwaukee to the school High-priority freight — but the cargo's living souls Train is never late, 'cause the system's built right Coal moves in the morning, kids move in the daylight Jake Morrison's vision, from Bluefield to the 'L' Treating people like they matter — and it's working well" (Banjo and mandolin trade fast licks — 8 bars) Bridge (Tempo slows slightly, reflective — Em → C → G → D) (Vocals drop to just lead, intimate, almost whispered.) “Got a photo in my office, Union Station wall Amtrak stopped at Mile 247, coal train in a stall Both matter, don't you see? It's not one or the other Build the system right — and the trains serve each other" (Pause — just bass and quiet mandolin, then the band crashes back in) Final Chorus (Key change to A major — lifts the energy) (Everyone singing, full harmonies, triumphant.) "Coal keeps the lights on But people matter when the lights go out Tonnage is patient But humans can't wait You need the coal train running You need the souls getting home Build a railroad That carries both, carries both” (Repeat chorus once more, with fiddle and banjo trading solos over the top) --- Outro (Instrumental — A major, fading like a train disappearing) (Banjo rolls out, mandolin chops fade, bass walks it down. Ends on a single strum of the A chord — clean, resolved.)
