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lyrics

Whenever you see a train go by
Or hear an engine’s whistle cry
Think of the man on the old footplate
Shovelling coal, the driver’s mate

A loco fireman is my grade
Boiling water is my trade
The driver thinks he runs the show
But if I’m not there the train don’t go

Feeding coal to a hungry fire,
Sweating cobs to get steam higher
What the collier harvests, that I burn
With toil and sweat my wages earn

A loco fireman is my grade
Boiling water is my trade
The driver thinks he runs the show
But if I’m not there the train don’t go

The driver sits there like a god
A decent mate but an idle sod
Though I’ll be shovelling on my knees
Still he’ll sit there at his ease

A loco fireman is my grade
Boiling water is my trade
The driver thinks he runs the show
But if I’m not there the train don’t go

Pick and shovel are the tools of my trade
And two strong arms to swing the blade
Hands with palms as hard as leather
And nimble feet as light as a feather

A loco fireman is my grade
Boiling water is my trade
The driver thinks he runs the show
But if I’m not there the train don’t go

One day a driver I will be
Of the pick and shovel I’ll be free
Until that day I’ll shift the coal
Raising steam so the train can roll

A loco fireman is my grade
Boiling water is my trade
The driver thinks he runs the show
But if I’m not there the train don’t go

So whenever you see a train go by
Or hear an engine’s whistle cry
Think of the man on the old footplate
Shovelling coal, the driver’s mate

A loco fireman is my grade
Boiling water is my trade
The driver thinks he runs the show
But if I’m not there the train don’t go

credits

from Monkfish Mix​-​Up At Farmers' Market, released September 20, 2020
Lyrics and tune by Don Bilston ("The Fireman's Song").

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Paul Carbuncle Nottingham, UK

You can take the lad out of Pluckley but he'll still sing about hops.

Profile photo by Hugh Miller.

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