VA - All Aboard! 25 Train Tracks Calling At All Musical Stations

There've been plenty of songs about cars, several songs about planes, and a fair share about trucks, but perhaps the vehicles that inspire the most tunes are trains. Certainly, Ace's 2015 compilation All Aboard! 25 Train Tracks Calling at All Musical Stations suggests as much, containing 25 train-besotted tracks from every style of popular song. The earliest song here is Cliff Carlisle's blues "Pan American Man," dating all the way back to 1937 when trains were still a major mode of transportation in the U.S., and the latest comes from 2012, when Norton Records' Daddy Long Legs delve into the frenzied raunch of "Death Train Blues." Mostly, these cuts date from the '60s and contain a blend of tight, funky soul and R&B, ska, and reggae, plus a bit of rock & roll and the odd pop tune. In the case of Neil Sedaka's "One Way Ticket (To the Blues)," it's truly odd -- his smiling delivery creates eerie cognitive dissonance with the minor-key melody -- but usually this either runs to a cool groove like Sharon Tandy's "Hurry Hurry Choo Choo," tight Southern vamps, or train-track rhythms reminiscent of Johnny Cash. It's a fun cross-section of the sounds and iconic railway imagery that fueled mid-century Americana (with just a hint of Jamaica).

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1.Harold Jackson & The Jackson Brothers - The Freedom Riders (2:23)

2.Rufus Thomas - The Memphis Train (2:31)

3.Cyril Davies & His Rhythm & Blues All Stars - Country Line Special (2:17)

4.Keith & Tex - Stop That Train (3:14)

5.Virgil Holmes - Ghost Train (2:06)

6.Peggy Lee With Dave Barbour & His Orchestra - It Takes A Long Long Train With A Red Caboose (To Carry My Blues Away) (3:05)

7.Dusty Springfield - Won't Be Long (3:15)

8.James Carr - Freedom Train (2:16)

9.Tarheel Slim - Number 9 Train (2:57)

10.Cliff Carlisle - Pan American Man (2:12)

11.Johnny Duncan & The Blue Grass Boys - Last Train To San Fernando (2:29)

12.The Shangri-Las - The Train From Kansas City (3:18)

13.Chuck Berry - The Downbound Train (2:48)

14.Luther Ingram - Ghetto Train (3:46)

15.Sister Rosetta Tharpe - This Train (2:48)

16.Neil Sedaka - One Way Ticket (To The Blues) (2:21)

17.Derrick Harriott & The Chosen Few - Pyschedelic Train (2:47)

18.Sharon Tandy - Hurry Hurry Choo Choo (2:56)

19.Bobby Wayne - Big Train (1:46)

20.Little Walter - Up The Line (2:03)

21.James Brown & The Famous Flames - Night Train (3:39)

22.Caroline Day - Steam (2:08)

23.The Ethiopians - Train To Skaville (2:54)

24.Jackie Paine - Go Go Train (2:31)

25.Daddy Long Legs - Death Train Blues (2:57)

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