Wabash Cannonball

Common card · No. 311679

"The Great Rock Island Route" (Roud 4228), popularized as "Wabash Cannonball" and also known by various other titles, is a 19th-century American folk song that describes the scenic beauty and predicaments of a fictional train, the Wabash Cannonball Express, as it travels on the Chicago, Rock Island and Pacific Railroad. The song has become a country music and marching band staple. The only train to actually bear the name was created in response to the song's popularity; the Wabash Railroad renamed its daytime express service between Detroit and St. Louis the Wabash Cannon Ball from 1949 until its discontinuation in 1971 during the formation of Amtrak. The Carter Family made one of the first recordings of the song in 1929, though it was not released until 1932. Another popular version was recorded by Roy Acuff in 1936. The Acuff version is one of the fewer than forty singles to have ever sold 10 million physical copies worldwide. The tune is also famously associated with Kansas State University...

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