Rock Island Line (song)
Encyclopedia
"Rock Island Line" is an American
blues
/folk
song first recorded by John Lomax
in 1934 as sung by inmates in an Arkansas State Prison, and later popularized by Lead Belly. Many versions have been recorded by other artists, most significantly the world-wide hit version in the mid-1950s by Lonnie Donegan
. The song is ostensibly about the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad
.
The chorus to the old song reads:
The verses tell a humorous story about a train operator who smuggled pig iron
through a toll gate by claiming all he had on board was livestock
.
However, analysis of the card catalog at the American Folklife Center
at the Library of Congress
, where the Lomaxes' recordings reside, reveals that John A. Lomax first recorded the song the previous month, at another prison in Little Rock, Arkansas. (The Little Rock recording is dated September 1934, and the recording from Gould is dated October 1934.) This makes Alan Lomax's theory that Pace was the original composer of the song unlikely.
According to Harry Lewman Music,
George Harrison
and Paul Simon
- acoustic version performed during rehearsal for November 20, 1976 episode of Saturday Night Live
, which operated an extensive network across the central states of the USA, Chicago to Omaha NE, Chicago to Texas, and reached Minneapolis MN, Memphis TN, and other points. Contrary to the song, although a minor route penetrated northern Louisiana, it did not reach New Orleans. Like a number of railroads based in Chicago with lengthy formal names, it was generally known by a shortened nickname, the "Rock Island", which name was painted on the locomotives and elsewhere. Rock Island is a small town on the Illinois shore of the Mississippi river, and the initial rail route connected it across the state to Chicago. The railroad's ambition, from its name, to reach the Pacific was never even remotely attained. The Rock Island was a rail pioneer from the 1850s, and was long known for carrying on through financial adversity challenging better-structured rival companies in its territory. It finally went out of business in 1980. Some of its former routes were purchased and are now run by other rail companies.
Traditional Music and Spoken Word Catalog, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
blues
Blues
Blues is the name given to both a musical form and a music genre that originated in African-American communities of primarily the "Deep South" of the United States at the end of the 19th century from spirituals, work songs, field hollers, shouts and chants, and rhymed simple narrative ballads...
/folk
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
song first recorded by John Lomax
John Lomax
John Avery Lomax was an American teacher, a pioneering musicologist and folklorist who did much for the preservation of American folk songs...
in 1934 as sung by inmates in an Arkansas State Prison, and later popularized by Lead Belly. Many versions have been recorded by other artists, most significantly the world-wide hit version in the mid-1950s by Lonnie Donegan
Lonnie Donegan
Anthony James "Lonnie" Donegan MBE was a skiffle musician, with more than 20 UK Top 30 hits to his name. He is known as the "King of Skiffle" and is often cited as a large influence on the generation of British musicians who became famous in the 1960s...
. The song is ostensibly about the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad
Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad
The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock.-Incorporation:...
.
The chorus to the old song reads:
The Rock Island Line is a mighty good road
The Rock Island Line is the road to ride
The Rock Island Line is a mighty good road
If you want to ride you gotta ride it like you find it
Get your ticket at the station for the Rock Island Line
The verses tell a humorous story about a train operator who smuggled pig iron
Pig iron
Pig iron is the intermediate product of smelting iron ore with a high-carbon fuel such as coke, usually with limestone as a flux. Charcoal and anthracite have also been used as fuel...
through a toll gate by claiming all he had on board was livestock
Livestock
Livestock refers to one or more domesticated animals raised in an agricultural setting to produce commodities such as food, fiber and labor. The term "livestock" as used in this article does not include poultry or farmed fish; however the inclusion of these, especially poultry, within the meaning...
.
History
- In 1964, "The PenguinPenguinPenguins are a group of aquatic, flightless birds living almost exclusively in the southern hemisphere, especially in Antarctica. Highly adapted for life in the water, penguins have countershaded dark and white plumage, and their wings have become flippers...
Book Of American Folk Songs", compiled and edited, and with notes, by Alan LomaxAlan LomaxAlan Lomax was an American folklorist and ethnomusicologist. He was one of the great field collectors of folk music of the 20th century, recording thousands of songs in the United States, Great Britain, Ireland, the Caribbean, Italy, and Spain.In his later career, Lomax advanced his theories of...
, was published in Britain; it was subsequently reprinted in 1966 and 1968. On page 128 it includes the song "Rock Island Line" with the following footnote: "John A. Lomax recorded this song at the Cumins State Prison farm, Gould, Arkansas, in 1934 from its convict composer, Kelly Pace. The Negro singer, Lead Belly, heard it, rearranged it in his own style, and made commercial phonograph recordings of it in the forties. One of these recordings was studied and imitated phrase by phrase, by a young English singer of American folk songs [referring to Lonnie DoneganLonnie DoneganAnthony James "Lonnie" Donegan MBE was a skiffle musician, with more than 20 UK Top 30 hits to his name. He is known as the "King of Skiffle" and is often cited as a large influence on the generation of British musicians who became famous in the 1960s...
], who subsequently recorded it for an English company. The record sold in the hundreds of thousands in the U.S. and England, and this Arkansas Negro convict song, as adapted by Leadbelly, was published as a personal copyright, words and music, by someone whose contact with the Rock Island Line was entirely through the grooves of a phonograph record."
However, analysis of the card catalog at the American Folklife Center
American Folklife Center
The American Folklife Center at the Library of Congress in Washington, DC was created by Congress in 1976 "to preserve and present American Folklife" . The center includes the Archive of Folk Culture, established at the Library in 1928 as a repository for American folk music...
at the Library of Congress
Library of Congress
The Library of Congress is the research library of the United States Congress, de facto national library of the United States, and the oldest federal cultural institution in the United States. Located in three buildings in Washington, D.C., it is the largest library in the world by shelf space and...
, where the Lomaxes' recordings reside, reveals that John A. Lomax first recorded the song the previous month, at another prison in Little Rock, Arkansas. (The Little Rock recording is dated September 1934, and the recording from Gould is dated October 1934.) This makes Alan Lomax's theory that Pace was the original composer of the song unlikely.
According to Harry Lewman Music,
- Lonnie DoneganLonnie DoneganAnthony James "Lonnie" Donegan MBE was a skiffle musician, with more than 20 UK Top 30 hits to his name. He is known as the "King of Skiffle" and is often cited as a large influence on the generation of British musicians who became famous in the 1960s...
's recording, released as a single in late 1955, signalled the start of the UK "skiffleSkiffleSkiffle is a type of popular music with jazz, blues, folk, roots and country influences, usually using homemade or improvised instruments. Originating as a term in the United States in the first half of the twentieth century, it became popular again in the UK in the 1950s, where it was mainly...
" craze. Donegan "did nothing to credit Lead Belly as the author, even though he simply copied Huddie's entire arrangement". This recording only featured Donegan, Chris Barber on double bass and washboardWashboardA washboard is a tool designed for hand washing clothing. With mechanized cleaning of clothing becoming more common by the end of the 20th century, the washboard has become better known for its originally subsidiary use as a musical instrument....
player (Beryl Bryden), but as it was part of a Chris Barber's Jazz Band session for Decca RecordsDecca RecordsDecca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
, Donegan received no royalties from Decca for record sales, beyond his original sessionSession musicianSession musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
fee. However, over the years, indeed until his death, Donegan received considerable music publishing royalties from "Rock Island" simply by claiming the British copyright on an unregistered song which was considered to be in the Public DomainPublic domainWorks are in the public domain if the intellectual property rights have expired, if the intellectual property rights are forfeited, or if they are not covered by intellectual property rights at all...
. This led to the peculiar situation that any coverCover versionIn popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
of "Rock Island Line" released on record in Britain from 1956 showed the song composition credited to Lonnie Donegan. Throughout his life, Donegan was fond of telling the story about how he only got a fixed fee from Decca Records for recording "Rock Island Line" (the stated sum varied between £3 and £10), despite it selling over one million copies world-wide, but he never told the story how he benefited greatly from music publishing royalties, a fact which considerably annoyed the likes of Alan LomaxAlan LomaxAlan Lomax was an American folklorist and ethnomusicologist. He was one of the great field collectors of folk music of the 20th century, recording thousands of songs in the United States, Great Britain, Ireland, the Caribbean, Italy, and Spain.In his later career, Lomax advanced his theories of...
and Pete SeegerPete SeegerPeter "Pete" Seeger is an American folk singer and was an iconic figure in the mid-twentieth century American folk music revival. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, most notably their recording of Lead...
in the USA.
- Pete SeegerPete SeegerPeter "Pete" Seeger is an American folk singer and was an iconic figure in the mid-twentieth century American folk music revival. A fixture on nationwide radio in the 1940s, he also had a string of hit records during the early 1950s as a member of The Weavers, most notably their recording of Lead...
recorded a version a cappellaA cappellaA cappella music is specifically solo or group singing without instrumental sound, or a piece intended to be performed in this way. It is the opposite of cantata, which is accompanied singing. A cappella was originally intended to differentiate between Renaissance polyphony and Baroque concertato...
while he was chopping woodWoodWood is a hard, fibrous tissue found in many trees. It has been used for hundreds of thousands of years for both fuel and as a construction material. It is an organic material, a natural composite of cellulose fibers embedded in a matrix of lignin which resists compression...
, to demonstrate its origins.
1930s – 40s
- John LomaxJohn LomaxJohn Avery Lomax was an American teacher, a pioneering musicologist and folklorist who did much for the preservation of American folk songs...
recorded "Rock Island Line" sung by prisoners in Arkansas twice in 1934. The October 1934 recording, by Kelly Pace and a group of convicts was released on the compilation CD A Treasury of Library of Congress Field Recordings (Released 1997)
- Lead Belly recorded the song at Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C.Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly referred to as Washington, "the District", or simply D.C., is the capital of the United States. On July 16, 1790, the United States Congress approved the creation of a permanent national capital as permitted by the U.S. Constitution....
on June 22, 1937, the first of many recordings of it he made during his career, the last being live at the University of TexasUniversity of Texas at AustinThe University of Texas at Austin is a state research university located in Austin, Texas, USA, and is the flagship institution of the The University of Texas System. Founded in 1883, its campus is located approximately from the Texas State Capitol in Austin...
on June 15, 1949.
"Rock Island Line" appears in the Lead Belly compilationCompilation albumA compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
Rock Island Line: Original 1935-1943 Recordings (released 2003 []), among many others.
- John LomaxJohn LomaxJohn Avery Lomax was an American teacher, a pioneering musicologist and folklorist who did much for the preservation of American folk songs...
recorded "Rock Island Line" sung by prisoners in Arkansas in 1939. It is included in the recordings made during his 1939 Southern States Recording Trip.
1950s
- George MellyGeorge MellyAlan George Heywood Melly was an English jazz and blues singer, critic, writer and lecturer. From 1965 to 1973 he was a film and television critic for The Observer and lectured on art history, with an emphasis on surrealism.-Early life and career:He was born in Liverpool and was educated at Stowe...
- single (1951)
-
- Recorded for the small British Jazz label TempoTempoIn musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
(which was subsequently acquired by DeccaDecca RecordsDecca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
) under the name "The George Melly Trio", and featuring Johnny ParkerJohnny Parker (jazz pianist)Johnny Parker was a British jazz pianist.- Early life :Parker was born in Beckenham, Kent. In 1940, his family moved to Wiltshire where Parker was exposed to American Forces Network broadcasts, and first heard boogie-woogie piano at a US Air Force base...
on piano and Norman Dodsworth on drums (both members of Mick MulliganMick MulliganPeter Sidney "Mick" Mulligan was an English jazz trumpeter and bandleader, best known for his presence on the trad jazz scene....
's Magnolia Jazz Band with whom Melly was the singer). Although lyrically similar, Melly's version of "Rock Island Line" is very different to any version by Leadbelly, or indeed any other version.
- Recorded for the small British Jazz label Tempo
- OdettaOdettaOdetta Holmes, known as Odetta, was an American singer, actress, guitarist, songwriter, and a human rights activist, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement". Her musical repertoire consisted largely of American folk music, blues, jazz, and spirituals...
as part of the duo Odetta and Larry The Tin AngelThe Tin AngelThe Tin Angel is now the common name for Odetta & Larry's only album, a collection of all their recordings, originally released in 1954 as "Odetta And Larry".- Background :...
1954
- Lonnie DoneganLonnie DoneganAnthony James "Lonnie" Donegan MBE was a skiffle musician, with more than 20 UK Top 30 hits to his name. He is known as the "King of Skiffle" and is often cited as a large influence on the generation of British musicians who became famous in the 1960s...
- single (1955)
-
- In July 1954, Donegan recorded this fast-tempoTempoIn musical terminology, tempo is the speed or pace of a given piece. Tempo is a crucial element of any musical composition, as it can affect the mood and difficulty of a piece.-Measuring tempo:...
ed version of "Rock Island Line", with Chris BarberChris BarberDonald Christopher 'Chris' Barber is best known as a jazz trombonist. As well as scoring a UK top twenty trad jazz hit he helped the careers of many musicians, notably the blues singer Ottilie Patterson, who was at one time his wife, and vocalist/banjoist Lonnie Donegan, whose appearances with...
's Jazz Band, featuring "John HenryJohn Henry (folklore)John Henry is an American folk hero and tall tale. Henry worked as a "steel-driver"—a man tasked with hammering and chiseling rock in the construction of tunnels for railroad tracks. In the legend, John Henry's prowess as a steel-driver was measured in a race against a steam powered hammer,...
" on the B-side. It was the first debut record to go gold in BritainUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
, and reached the top ten in the United StatesUnited StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
- In July 1954, Donegan recorded this fast-tempo
- Bobby DarinBobby DarinBobby Darin , born Walden Robert Cassotto, was an American singer, actor and musician.Darin performed in a range of music genres, including pop, rock, jazz, folk and country...
- single (1956)
-
- Bobby Darin's debut single was a 1956 recording of "Rock Island Line", with 'rhythm accompaniment directed by Jack Pleis', featuring "Timber" (written by Darin, Don KirshnerDon KirshnerDon Kirshner , known as "The Man With the Golden Ear", was an American song publisher and rock producer who is best known for managing songwriting talent as well as successful pop groups, such as The Monkees, Kansas and The Archies.-Early life:Don Kirshner was born to Gilbert Kirshner, a tailor,...
and George M. Shaw) on the B-side. It was released on the Decca RecordsDecca RecordsDecca Records began as a British record label established in 1929 by Edward Lewis. Its U.S. label was established in late 1934; however, owing to World War II, the link with the British company was broken for several decades....
label. For his first television performance (on Stage ShowStage ShowStage Show was a popular music variety series on American television originally hosted on alternate weeks by big band leaders and brothers Tommy and Jimmy Dorsey. Produced by Jackie Gleason, the CBS-TV show included the first national television appearances by Elvis Presley.The series began as a...
), he sang this song with the lyrics written on the palms of his hands as there were no cue cards provided for him.
- Bobby Darin's debut single was a 1956 recording of "Rock Island Line", with 'rhythm accompaniment directed by Jack Pleis', featuring "Timber" (written by Darin, Don Kirshner
- Don CornellDon CornellDon Cornell was an American singer prominent mainly in the 1940s and 1950s noted for his smooth but robust baritone voice....
- single (1956)
-
- Recorded for CoralCoralCorals are marine animals in class Anthozoa of phylum Cnidaria typically living in compact colonies of many identical individual "polyps". The group includes the important reef builders that inhabit tropical oceans and secrete calcium carbonate to form a hard skeleton.A coral "head" is a colony of...
, an early American cover version following the success of Lonnie Donegan's record in the US charts. Whilst on tour in Britain in 1956, Cornell and Donegan met, with the result that Cornell's manager became Donegan's American representative.
- Recorded for Coral
- Stan FrebergStan FrebergStanley Victor "Stan" Freberg is an American author, recording artist, animation voice actor, comedian, radio personality, puppeteer, and advertising creative director whose career began in 1944...
- single (1956)
-
- This was a typical Freberg "send up" of Lonnie Donegan's "Rock Island Line", following the latter's chart success in the USA. Issued on CapitolCapitol RecordsCapitol Records is a major United States based record label, formerly located in Los Angeles, but operating in New York City as part of Capitol Music Group. Its former headquarters building, the Capitol Tower, is a major landmark near the corner of Hollywood and Vine...
, it was the B-side to Freberg's parody of Elvis PresleyElvis PresleyElvis Aaron Presley was one of the most popular American singers of the 20th century. A cultural icon, he is widely known by the single name Elvis. He is often referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll" or simply "the King"....
's "Heartbreak HotelHeartbreak Hotel"Heartbreak Hotel" is a song recorded by American rock and roll musician Elvis Presley. It was released as a single on January 27, 1956, Presley's first on his new record label RCA Victor. His first number-one pop record, "Heartbreak Hotel" topped Billboards Top 100 chart, became his first...
", which became an American chart hit.
- This was a typical Freberg "send up" of Lonnie Donegan's "Rock Island Line", following the latter's chart success in the USA. Issued on Capitol
- The WeaversThe WeaversThe Weavers were an American folk music quartet based in the Greenwich Village area of New York City. They sang traditional folk songs from around the world, as well as blues, gospel music, children's songs, labor songs, and American ballads, and selling millions of records at the height of their...
- The Weavers' Greatest Hits (1957) []
- Johnny CashJohnny CashJohn R. "Johnny" Cash was an American singer-songwriter, actor, and author, who has been called one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century...
- Johnny Cash with His Hot and Blue GuitarJohnny Cash with His Hot and Blue GuitarJohnny Cash with His Hot and Blue Guitar is the debut album of country singer Johnny Cash, released on October 11, 1957. The album contained four of his hit singles: "I Walk the Line," "Cry! Cry! Cry!," "So Doggone Lonesome," and "Folsom Prison Blues." It was re-issued on July 23, 2002) as an...
(1957)
- Milt OkunMilt OkunMilton "Milt" Okun is an American arranger and record producer and founder of Cherry Lane Music Publishing Company, Inc. Okun transformed the careers of a dozen or more major U.S. artists who under Okun's tutelage became some of the most successful musical acts of the 1950s, '60s, and '70s...
- America's Best Loved Folk Songs - Baton BL1203 (1957)
- Johnny HortonJohnny HortonJohn Gale "Johnny" Horton was an American country music and rockabilly singer most famous for his semi-folk, so-called "saga songs" which began the "historical ballad" craze of the late 1950s and early 1960s...
- 1956–1960 (1957) []
-
- Recorded in 1957, released posthumously.
1960s
- The Brothers FourThe Brothers FourThe Brothers Four are an American folk singing group, founded in 1957 in Seattle, Washington, known for their 1960 hit song "Greenfields".-History:...
- The Brothers Four Song Book CS8497 (1961)
- Ramblin Jack Elliot - "Young Brigham" (1968)
1970s
- Harry BelafonteHarry BelafonteHarold George "Harry" Belafonte, Jr. is an American singer, songwriter, actor and social activist. He was dubbed the "King of Calypso" for popularizing the Caribbean musical style with an international audience in the 1950s...
on the LP 11-7701 which was later released on the CDs "All Time Greatest Hits Vol. 3" (07863-59771-2) and "36 All-Time Greatest Hits" (1130-15250-2). - Johnny Cash - single on the album Rock Island LineRock Island Line (Johnny Cash album)Rock Island Line is an album by Johnny Cash on vinyl format, later released on CD, with a few train and fun songs included of which some were from different albums before.-Tracklisting:#Rock Island Line-2:02#Hey Porter-2:37...
(1970) [], see image
-
- This singleSingle (music)In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
reached #93 (US Singles Chart), and #35 (US Country chartHot Country SongsHot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by Billboard magazine in the United States.This 60-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly mostly by airplay and occasionally commercial sales...
).- John LennonJohn LennonJohn Winston Lennon, MBE was an English musician and singer-songwriter who rose to worldwide fame as one of the founding members of The Beatles, one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed acts in the history of popular music...
- acoustic and unreleased version found on the bootleg, The Lost Lennon Tapes.
- John Lennon
- This single
George Harrison
George Harrison
George Harrison, MBE was an English musician, guitarist, singer-songwriter, actor and film producer who achieved international fame as lead guitarist of The Beatles. Often referred to as "the quiet Beatle", Harrison became over time an admirer of Indian mysticism, and introduced it to the other...
and Paul Simon
Paul Simon
Paul Frederic Simon is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist.Simon is best known for his success, beginning in 1965, as part of the duo Simon & Garfunkel, with musical partner Art Garfunkel. Simon wrote most of the pair's songs, including three that reached number one on the US singles...
- acoustic version performed during rehearsal for November 20, 1976 episode of Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live
Saturday Night Live is a live American late-night television sketch comedy and variety show developed by Lorne Michaels and Dick Ebersol. The show premiered on NBC on October 11, 1975, under the original title of NBC's Saturday Night.The show's sketches often parody contemporary American culture...
1980s
- The KnittersThe KnittersThe Knitters are a Los Angeles-based band who play country, rockabilly and folk music. At the time of their formation they were pioneers of country punk, cowpunk or folk punk, the genre which gradually evolved into alternative country...
- Poor Little Critter on the Road (1985) - The Washington Squares - The Washington Squares (1987)
- Mano NegraMano NegraMano Negra was a music band in France, during 1987–1995, fronted by Manu Chao.The band, founded in 1987 by Chao, his brother Antoine, and his cousin Santiago Casariego in Paris, France, was very influential in Europe during the early 1990s. Although it reached mainstream success in countries...
- PatchankaPatchankaPatchanka is the debut album of the multiracial band Mano Negra, released in 1988.-Track listing:#"Mano Negra" – 1:44#"Ronde De Nuit" – 2:55#"Baby You're Mine" – 2:55#"Indios De Barcelona" – 2:34#"Rock Island Line" – 3:03...
(1988) - Little RichardLittle RichardRichard Wayne Penniman , known by the stage name Little Richard, is an American singer, songwriter, musician, recording artist, and actor, considered key in the transition from rhythm and blues to rock and roll in the 1950s. He was also the first artist to put the funk in the rock and roll beat and...
& FishboneFishboneFishbone is a U.S. alternative rock band formed in 1979 in Los Angeles, California, which plays a fusion of ska, punk rock, funk, hard rock and soul. Critics have noted of the band: "Fishbone was one of the most distinctive and eclectic alternative rock bands of the late '80s...
- Folkways: A Vision Shared—A Tribute To Woody Guthrie And Leadbelly (1988)
1990s
- Devil in a WoodpileDevil in a WoodpileDevil in a Woodpile is a band from Chicago, Illinois. Although they routinely give a fresh sound to 80-year old songs, their repertoire and instrumentation categorizes them as a country blues or jug band.-History:...
(with Jane Baxter Miller) - single (1999)
-
- On the album Poor Little Knitter on the Road - A Tribute to the Knitters.
2000s
- Scott H. BiramScott H. BiramScott H. Biram, aka Scott Biram, SHB, Hiram Biram, or The Dirty Old One Man Band is an American blues, punk and country music musician, based in Austin, Texas.-Biography:...
- This is Kingsbury? (2000) http://scottbiram.com/discography/ - OdettaOdettaOdetta Holmes, known as Odetta, was an American singer, actress, guitarist, songwriter, and a human rights activist, often referred to as "The Voice of the Civil Rights Movement". Her musical repertoire consisted largely of American folk music, blues, jazz, and spirituals...
- Looking for a Home (2001) [] - Dan ZanesDan ZanesDan Zanes was a member of the popular 1980s band The Del Fuegos and is currently the front man of the Grammy-winning group Dan Zanes and Friends.-History:...
and Friends - Family Dance (2001) [] - Chris Thomas KingChris Thomas KingChris Thomas King is an American New Orleans, Louisiana-based blues musician and actor.-History:King was born in Baton Rouge, Louisiana, United States. He is the son of blues musician Tabby Thomas. He has won awards including "Album of the Year" for both Grammy Award and Country Music Awards. King...
- Johnny's Blues: A Tribute To Johnny CashJohnny's Blues: A Tribute To Johnny CashJohnny's Blues: A Tribute To Johnny Cash is a 2003 compilation album, released by Northern Blues Music, of blues-oriented songs made popular by Johnny Cash, sung by various Canadian and American performers.- Track listing :...
(2003) - Bethany Yarrow - Rock Island (2003) []
- Eleven Hundred SpringsEleven Hundred SpringsEleven Hundred Springs is a Texas Country rock band from Texas. Their influences include Willie Nelson, Buck Owens and Doug Sahm. They are known as one of the few remaining outlaw country bands....
- Bandwagon (2004) [] - Peter Donegan Band - Live at the Elephant (2006) []
- Kickin Grass - On The Short Rows (2006) [ ]
- The Reverend Peyton's Big Damn BandThe Reverend Peyton's Big Damn BandThe Reverend Peyton's Big Damn Band is a three-piece American country blues band from Brown County, Indiana. They play more than 250 dates per year at venues ranging from bars to festivals. To date, they have released seven albums, the most recent is Peyton on Patton a tribute to blues pioneer...
- The Gospel Album (2007) - The Yorkshire TeabagsThe Yorkshire TeabagsThe Yorkshire Teabags are a Skiffle group, who play a broad range of popular songs in the style of the skiffle groups of the 1950s and are based in the Sheffield area....
- Have a Cup of Skiffle! (2007)
In popular culture
- Lonnie DoneganLonnie DoneganAnthony James "Lonnie" Donegan MBE was a skiffle musician, with more than 20 UK Top 30 hits to his name. He is known as the "King of Skiffle" and is often cited as a large influence on the generation of British musicians who became famous in the 1960s...
's recording of "Rock Island Line" was featured in an advert for the VauxhallVauxhall MotorsVauxhall Motors is a British automotive company owned by General Motors and headquartered in Luton. It was founded in 1857 as a pump and marine engine manufacturer, began manufacturing cars in 1903 and was acquired by GM in 1925. It has been the second-largest selling car brand in the UK for...
Astra Twintop and Tigra in 2006 in the UKUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
.
- The 2005 computer game Civilization IVCivilization IVSid Meier's Civilization IV is a turn-based strategy, 4X computer game released in 2005 and developed by lead designer Soren Johnson under the direction of Sid Meier and Meier's studio Firaxis Games. It is the fourth installment of the Civilization series...
uses the lyric "I fooled you, I fooled you, I got pig iron, I got pig iron, I got all pig iron." when a player successfully gains the Railroad technology; the line is read by Leonard NimoyLeonard NimoyLeonard Simon Nimoy is an American actor, film director, poet, musician and photographer. Nimoy's most famous role is that of Spock in the original Star Trek series , multiple films, television and video game sequels....
.
- The 19991999 in filmThe year 1999 in film involved several noteworthy events and has been called "The Year That Changed Movies". Several significant feature films, including Stanley Kubrick's final film Eyes Wide Shut, Pedro Almodóvar's first Oscar-winning film All About My Mother, science fiction The Matrix, Deep...
film The General's DaughterThe General's DaughterThe General's Daughter is a 1999 murder mystery film starring John Travolta. The plot concerns the mysterious death of the daughter of a prominent general. The movie is based on the novel by the same name written in 1992 by Nelson DeMille, and was directed by Simon West...
featured the song in the closing credits.
- There is a book written by Ricky TomlinsonRicky TomlinsonEric Tomlinson , known by his stage name Ricky Tomlinson, is an English actor and comedian, best known for his roles as Bobby Grant in Brookside, DCI Charlie Wise in Cracker and James "Jim" Royle in The Royle Family....
called Reading My Arse!: Searching for the Rock Island Line.
- Kevin SpaceyKevin SpaceyKevin Spacey, CBE is an American actor, director, screenwriter, producer, and crooner. He grew up in California, and began his career as a stage actor during the 1980s, before being cast in supporting roles in film and television...
sings a version of "Rock Island Line" in his 2004 Bobby DarinBobby DarinBobby Darin , born Walden Robert Cassotto, was an American singer, actor and musician.Darin performed in a range of music genres, including pop, rock, jazz, folk and country...
biopic, Beyond the SeaBeyond the Sea (film)Beyond the Sea is a 2004 biographical film based on the life of singer/actor Bobby Darin. Kevin Spacey, who stars in the lead role and used his own singing voice for the musical numbers, co-wrote, directed, and co-produced the film, which takes its title from the Darin song of the same name...
.
Railroad associations
The song is based on the name of the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific RailroadChicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad
The Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad was a Class I railroad in the United States. It was also known as the Rock Island Line, or, in its final years, The Rock.-Incorporation:...
, which operated an extensive network across the central states of the USA, Chicago to Omaha NE, Chicago to Texas, and reached Minneapolis MN, Memphis TN, and other points. Contrary to the song, although a minor route penetrated northern Louisiana, it did not reach New Orleans. Like a number of railroads based in Chicago with lengthy formal names, it was generally known by a shortened nickname, the "Rock Island", which name was painted on the locomotives and elsewhere. Rock Island is a small town on the Illinois shore of the Mississippi river, and the initial rail route connected it across the state to Chicago. The railroad's ambition, from its name, to reach the Pacific was never even remotely attained. The Rock Island was a rail pioneer from the 1850s, and was long known for carrying on through financial adversity challenging better-structured rival companies in its territory. It finally went out of business in 1980. Some of its former routes were purchased and are now run by other rail companies.
External links
- "Rock Island Line" on Allmusic
- Oldielyrics.com, Lonnie Donegan's version of "Rock Island Line"
- A Mighty Good Road: Minnesota Public Radio
Traditional Music and Spoken Word Catalog, American Folklife Center, Library of Congress