Midnight Train

Midnight train, roll on Midnight train, roll on

Clear them tracks and keep that whistle blowin

Take this stranger on to Santa Fe It seems like

romance and danger Follow this here tall dark

stranger all along the way

Well the train was rumblin through the night

heading south to Santa Fe And in a fancy car, with

a private bar, and a personal valet There was a

bunch of cold eyed men a sittin at a poker table

Bettin hot stakes all around

Ole Louisiana Lou had a knife in his shoe, was

dealin' a hand of cards And ole Stagger Lee

Crocket had a gun in his pocket, was sweatin

bettin hard And over in the corner this Mexican

guy with two gold teeth and a patch on his eye

Took a long hard look around

And then the door flew open, the stranger walked

in and said don't ya'll get excited I know

this here's a private game, and I know I

wasn't invited But I got a roll that'd choke a

mule I'm just about a big enough fool to lay it

all right down

And everybody nodded as the stranger took his seat

He knew this bunch of cutthroat's would be

mighty hard to beat As the stranger knew then the

toughest two by far were where he sat Was a pot

belly fellow from south Alabama, and a dude in a

black felt hat

Midnight Train, roll on Midnight Train, roll on

Well clear them tracks and keep that whistle

blowin Take this stranger on to Santa Fe It seems

like romance and danger Follow this here tall dark

stranger all along the way

Well the stranger sat down he looked around at all

them evil faces And the pot-belly fellow drew a

pair of queens, but the stranger he drew aces And

he kept on raising and pushin his luck, kept on

winning like a run away truck He was giving them a

beating

And the stakes got higher than a Chinese kite, the

stranger kept getting hot Till every cent

everybody had was lying out in that pot Then the

stranger threw down a royal flush, Somebody said

"Hey Man, that's enough friend I think

you've been cheatin"

And then the stranger picked the money up and said

"Boys I better run" And then the bot-bellyed

fella pulled a razor out and somebody pulled a gun

They said "You may think you're a sly old fox,

you're gonna leave here in a long pine box if

you don't leave that money alone"

Just about then the lights went out, and they all

started fussin And the lights came on, the

stranger was gone, they all started cussin And

they searched that train from front to rear The

stranger he done disappeared, and all their money

was gone

When the train pulled in the station, with the

whistle blowin loud A telegram was waitin, from

the stranger for the crowd Said "Thank you for

the money boys, but don't feel too outdone Cause

It takes a dog to know a dog I'm a howlin son of

a gun.

Midnight Train, roll on Midnight Train, roll on

Well clear them tracks and keep that whistle

blowin Take this stranger on to Santa Fe It seems

like romance and danger Follow this here tall dark

stranger all along the way