I remember a cold winter day early in 1970 when I was asked to write an advertising campaign proposal to Union Pacific. I started thinking about what might get UP's attention. I noted that 1969 was the 100th anniversary of the Golden Spike. Wow ... what history! What a great big American railroad story! I thought a song just might be in order. So, I scribbled a few words on a scratch-pad that went like this ... "we're a great big railroad that everybody knows" ... I thought about that ... then, I added the word "rolling" and dropped the "g." Two verses and a chorus later, plus some hand-clapping, foot-stomping music to go with it, I walked into a UP conference room and sang it for the first time ...He worked with Chip Davis, who also went on to musical fame with Mannheim Steamroller.
Here's the song.
Bill Fries, best known as CW McCall for his songs "Old Home Filler-Up & Keep On Truckin' Cafe" and "Convoy", passed away at age 93. His first song was an advertising jingle he wrote in 1970 for Union Pacific called "Great Big Rollin' Railroad." Read more: https://t.co/wRPJfKqxl9 pic.twitter.com/kinQhevt5e
— Union Pacific (@UnionPacific) April 6, 2022
May all the lights be green, C. W. R. I. P.
4 comments:
Ukraine-related railway question: If worst comes to (almost) worst and Ukraine loses access to the sea...what do you think of rail as an alternative to grain shipments by water? Looks like there might be a route to Poland and from there either to the Black Sea or the Med, or north to the Baltic. Surely not as economical as direct-to-water, but maybe better than nothing.
There are rail routes, and the Ukrainians are still working at keeping them open. Whether there is sufficient capacity for the grain trains on tracks that in the neighboring countries are configured more for lightweight and frequent passenger trains is another matter. If the harvests are destined for Africa, a little precision scheduled railroading could get the stuff to Mediterranean ports and to Africa faster than an all water route via the Dardanelles.
Back in vinyl records day they sold a 45 of “Great Big Rollin Railroad” in the UP company store in the old HQ building.
Hm,wonder if that $% turns up at railroadiana shows west of the Missouri.
One followup on grain trains out of Ukraine, there is the problem of the gauges. Ukraine still on Soviet 1524 mm standard, but Poland and I think Hungary and Slovakia are on the Stephenson 1435 mm gauge.
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