Page type: lyric reference
Artist: C.W. McCall
Canonical path: /cw-mccall/the-gallopin-goose
Related lyric paths: 6
Video embedded: yes
Lyric guide
The Gallopin' Goose
Read The Gallopin' Goose lyrics by C.W. McCall on LyroVerse, with linked artist context and related song paths.
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Lyrics
The Gallopin' Goose
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On a cold November mornin'
Back in nineteen-thirty-seven
With an early snow a-fallin'
On the three-foot tracks at Ames
Came a mighty strange contraption
Known to trainmen as a motor
But to folks in Colorado
She was known by another name
Up the canyons south of Sawpit
Past the red Cathedral spires
'Cross the yellow mountain switchbacks
And the rapids far below
On the high and lofty trestles
Near the fabled mines of Ophir
In the silver San Juan Mountains
Came a goose a-plowin' snow
[Chorus]
With a Pierce-Arrow engine,
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came the Rio Grande Southern
The Gallopin' Goose
With a Pierce-Arrow engine
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came Number Five, The Gallopin' Goose
'Twas a four-door auto-mobile
On a dozen wheels of iron
Sixteen feet of rockin' boxcar
Spot-welded to her tail
Loaded down with mercantile
Ten bags a' high-grade ore
Two mothers nursin' babies
Seven miners an' the mail
Up the side a' Sunshine Mountain
By internal gas combustion
Eight Pierce-Arrow pistons pullin'
Fifteen thousand pounds a' lead
At the snowshed on the summit
The conductor said his prayers
He declared a busted driveshaft
On the pass at Lizard Head
[Chorus]
With a Pierce-Arrow engine
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came the Rio Grande Southern
The Gallopin' Goose
With a Pierce-Arrow engine
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came Number Five, The Gallopin' Goose
[Musical interlude here.]
Down the three-percent to Rico
In the valley of Dolores
They still talk about the Southern
An' her flock of flyin' geese
From the roundhouse at Ridgway
To the depot at Durango
All the tracks are gone for scrap iron
And the ganders rest in peace
Up the canyons south of Sawpit
Past the red Cathedral spires
'Cross the yellow mountain switchbacks
And the rapids far below
On the high and lofty trestles
Near the fabled mines of Ophir
In the silver San Juan Mountains
There's a legend in the snow
[Chorus]
With a Pierce-Arrow engine
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came the Rio Grande Southern
The Gallopin' Goose
With a Pierce-Arrow engine
Runnin' hot and on the loose
Came Number Five, The Gallopin' Goose
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Who performs "The Gallopin' Goose"?
C.W. McCall performs "The Gallopin' Goose", and this lyric page sits inside the C.W. McCall catalog on LyroVerse.
Are there related songs to explore after "The Gallopin' Goose"?
Yes. The related section below points to City Of New Orleans and Comin' Back For More with a short reason for opening each page next.
Where can I find more songs by C.W. McCall?
Use the artist link near the top of the page or the related paths section below to keep moving through C.W. McCall's lyric pages.
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