As a young railfan, the second book I bought was Frank Rowsome, Jr.'s TrolleyCar Treasury.
It contains a poem that I’ve always enjoyed because it captures the flavor of the early 1900’s and because its words and meter almost make me feel as if I’m riding a trolley car myself. It’s author was Roy L. McCardell (1870 - 1940).
When I searched for it on Google I couldn’t find but a small exerpt, so my hope is that many of you here have never read and enjoyed it…until now.
The Song of the Trolley
I am coming, I am coming, hark you hear my motor humming,
For the trolley’s come to conquer, so you cannot keep it back;
And “Zip”! the sparks are flashing, as the car goes onward dashing
While the wheels are whirring smoothly along a perfect track.
‘Tis vain then to delay me, for you cannot stop or stay me,
It reminds me a bit of the old Civil War era hymn “Hold The Fort, For I Am Coming,” so I looked up the same to see if the music from one would fit the other. No dice, the meter’s completely different. Oh well.
Here’s a trolley song I’ve posted before, but won’t hurt to post again, “On A Good Old Trolley Ride.”
Yeah, you beat me to the comment. Probably at the HorseShoe Tavern, Toronto, but it makes no difference where. You can’t even smoke outside on the patios anymore in Toronto. A Blues/Jazz club without the haze? Good grief.
Watching those NASA clips from the moon landings and several planetary exploration craft landings and a whole whack of those scientists and engineers sitting behind control panels in that big mission center and they are smoking away at their stations like mad! Oh the horrors!
Now social engineers busy editing out all those clips and from old movies too! Didn’t happen, nothing to see here folks, move on.
The song certainly does capture the flavor of the early 1990’s. Also very much reminds me of the opening for Middleton’s “The Interurban Era”, along with several other books on interurbans.
Not to change the subject to smoking, but when I moved to Toronto in 1995, the amount of smoke in bars was astonishing! In New York, it was going away but here? I’d go home reeking of cigarettes and not only that, Canadian cigarettes smell very harsh, unlike the sort-of sweetness of a Marlboro. That bar with Stompin’ Tom was likely the Horseshoe which started up in 1947 and is one of the diminishing rank of live music venues here in Toronto. It also has the best bartender in Toronto, one Teddy Fury who remembers the last drink you had even though it was five years since you were last in the place. And, the Queen streetcar stops just outside the door and the Spadina line is only 100 feet away.
OK, so this one isn’t about streetcars, but it is about the Spadina Bus which last ran in 1998 and was replaced by the streetcar. The Shuffle Demons are still around and I see them whenever I get the chance, but the GM New Looks are long gone.
Best bus tune ever. Glad to hear the Shuffle Demons are still around doing their thing. Used to go to Spadina just for a superb bowl of Matzo Ball soup, then spend the day exploring around all the vendors and jobbers. Toms Place in the Kensington market for suits!
On the follow up video that popped up on my U Tube the Shuffle Demons perform a redo years and years later. The TTC provided the bus as it is now streetcars.
Of course, like ourselves they are considerably ‘thicker’, a few Buddha bellies, and their attire has got considerably worse. Oh well they are entertainers so crazy attire is expected.
You know how women don’t seem to like “The Three Stooges?” It’s the same with the Demons- the last time we went to see them several of the guys brought their wives and they all hated them. We thought that was funny but we didn’t tell them that. Discretion, you know?
If they took out all the smoking from old movies, Bette Davis pictures wouldn’t make any sense!
Speical bonus track! It’s not about trains or buses, but it is about something we use every day!
Oh brother Mod-man, I listened to that “peace dividend” killer and almost threw the headset across the room! Talk about a harbinger of a Western Civilization melt-down!
“The Simpsons” in Spanish! The only thing missing was Homer saying "Ohhhhhh, churrrrroooooos…"
