Verse 1 Way up on Brush Mountain, the rails curve round and wide, “Rails roll on, lads, rails roll on!” Iron snakes on rocky slopes, where the Alleghenies hide. “Strike the spikes, strike the spikes!” Steam and steel, the spikes ring out, the whistle cuts the sky, “Chug along, boys, chug along!” Men with hands and grit and hearts, lay the line where eagles fly. Verse 2 Ghosts of Irish laborers whisper in the wind, “Heave and pull, lads, heave and pull!” Stories of the winters cold, the work that never ends. Trains roll past in endless line, with coal and steel and grain, “Roll the rails, roll the rails!” Through the fog, the whistle cries, echoing like the rain. Chorus Chugging through the Horseshoe, hear the engines roar, “Ho! Ho! Ho!” Hammering the mountain, hear the steel strike the floor. “Strike it down, strike it down!” Through the curve and over the ridge, past the tales untold, “Rails of iron, rails of gold!” We ride the rails of history, through the iron and the gold. Verse 3 Brakes and throttle in my hands, a loaded train I steer, “Full steam on, full steam on!” Circus wagons, freight, and men, all drawing near. Legends say the saboteurs once eyed this hallowed track, But every rail, every spike, brought the devil’s plan back. “Rails hold strong, boys, rails hold strong!” Bridge Phantom lanterns on the slope, whispers in the night, “Hush now, hush now!” Stories of the runaway trains, and crews who fled in fright. Yet every dawn the Curve stands proud, the steel still gleams, A monument of sweat and dreams, and America’s steam. “Steam and sweat, lads, steam and sweat!” Chorus Chugging through the Horseshoe, hear the engines roar, “Ho! Ho! Ho!” Hammering the mountain, hear the steel strike the floor. “Strike it down, strike it down!” Through the curve and over the ridge, past the tales untold, “Rails of iron, rails of gold!” We ride the rails of history, through the iron and the gold. “Chug-chug! Ho-ho!” “Strike it down!” “Chug-chug! Ho-ho!” “Strike it down!” Outro Chugging through the Horseshoe, hear the engines roar, “Ho! Ho! Ho!” Hammering the mountain, hear the steel strike the floor. “Strike it down, strike it down!” Through the curve and over the ridge, past the tales untold, “Rails of iron, rails of gold!” We ride the rails of history, through the iron and the gold.
