One sultry summer morning in the year of 19-18
Three hundred men with ebony skin pulled out of Union Station
Headed out of Nashville for western Tennessee
Homeward bound cause Uncle Sam closed down the munitions factory
At that very moment on the Cheatham County line
Old No 1 train from Memphis was runnin' way behind
Buck in the smokey club car a Memphis gamblin' man
Said gentlemen I'm foldin' these cards cause I drew a dead man's hand

A young man in a milk truck out near Dutchman's Grade
Said my God two trains one track then he closed his eyes and he prayed
A sister from the orphan's home made a cross upon her chest
Cause a one iron beast was comin' from the east
And another one was comin' from the west
The birds flew from the treetops as the impact shook the ground
The scaming wheels and the grinding steel could be hard for miles around
The birds flew from the treetops...

Now every July 9th a few miles west of town
To this day some folks will say you can hear that mournful sound
One sultry summer morning in the year of 19-18
Three hundred men with ebony skin pulled out of Union Station