The canon of American railroad songs is so rich, so vast that it would be impossible to do little more than just skim the surface of the genre in two compact discs. Leave it to Rounder Records, the respected label of roots and acoustic music, to do the impossible with this pair of anthologies of country and bluegrass recordings. The charm of this set is the way the producers have mixed classic recordings from country stalwarts with material from contemporary artists . . . This compilation listens like a connoisseur's who's who of country's finest. . . . It's very refreshing to hear stuff by these artists that hasn't been played to death.
Every cut is a gem. . . .
Extensive liner notes by historian Norm Cohen supply lots of tidbits about song origins and artists. We all fly, but since they took away our meals there's no romance left, it's just a way to get there. Rounder Records' collection of train songs reminds you why trains, especially steam locomotives, loom so large in our minds. . . . The 28 tunes are full of rhythms . . . The notes that accompany the music are themselves worth the price of the CDs.