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The Crash
at Crush
by
The Last Texas Troubadour Brian Burns
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The
Crash at Crush - The Event Unfolding
Photo Courtesy: The Texas Collection, Baylor University |
Ragtime composer
Scott Joplin commemorated the Crash at Crush with "The Great Crush
Collision." It wasn't one of his most memorable tunes and it was left
out of the soundtrack for The Sting. Fortunately, though, contemporary
composer, singer and Last Texas Troubadour Brian Burns, was
inspired enough by the event to record his song about the collision
in 2001.
Mr. Burns unique specialty is blending Texas history and music. Playing
to schools (where he says the students inspire him as much as he inspires
them), events and venues, he leaves behind enthusiastic audiences
and a rapidly growing following.
The following lyrics are provided by permission of Mr. Burns: |
The Crash
At Crush
Brian Burns
- © 2001 - Brian Burns Music (BMI)
In
the year of 1896, when the Katy railroad was king,
and the fruits of farm and industry were carried by steel and steam,
the town of Crush was christened for a day, and folks came from
far and wide
to gather there in the sweltering heat and watch two trains collide.
Two locomotives, breathing steam, sat face-to-face on the track,
then slowly their wheels began to turn as the engineers throttled
them back.
Both climbed a grade leaving two miles between, on the hills they
drew to a hush,
and forty-thousand people waited down below to witness the crash
at Crush.
Clickety-clack, clickety-clack, wheels a-rumblin' on the railroad
track,
once they go they can't turn back, once they go they can't turn
back.
He locked the lever back to the second notch just after the signal
came,
he stayed on board for sixteen exhausts, and then he jumped off
of the train.
The young engineer watched her roar down the hill and a chill ran
through his soul,
for he knew that neither man nor God above could stop what would
now unfold.
The engines met in a thunderous crash and climbed each other toward
the sky,
the impact rattled the earth for miles around, and the twisted wreckage
did fly.
In a moment more the boilers exploded, and the steam blocked out
the sun,
some lost their lives while others lie bleeding, and the rest of
them could only run
Clickety-clack, clickety-clack, wheels a-rumblin' on the railroad
track,
once they go they can't turn back, once they go they can't turn
back.
In a cotton field near Waco, Texas between two peaceful hills
a sign reminds us to hold respect for the power of the beasts we
build,
and you and I in our lifetimes will never get to feel such a rush
as the people who saw and lived to tell of the awesome crash at
Crush.
Clickety-clack, clickety-clack, wheels a-rumblin' on the railroad
track,
once they go they can't turn back, once they go they can't turn
back.
For
more information, including scheduled appearances of Mr. Burns,
please visit his website: www.brianburnsmusic.com.
March 28, 2004
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