Downbound Train
Bruce Springsteen
Originally recorded in 1982 for the Nebraska Album, this solo version is a haunting ballad that is almost the
same as the rocking version [some lyrical differences] recorded for the Born In The U.S.A. album later that
year.
G
I had a job, I had a girl
D G
I had something going mister in this world
G
I got laid off down at the auto yard
D G
Our love went bad, times got hard
C
Now I work down at the carwash
G
Where all it does is rain
G D G
Sometimes you feel like you're a rider, baby, on a downbound train
G
She just said "Joe I gotta go
D G
We had it once we ain't got it any more"
G
She packed her bags left me behind
D G
She bought a ticket on the Central Line
C
Nights as I sleep, I still hear the whistle whining
G
I feel her soft kiss in the misty morning rain
G D G
Sometimes don't you feel like you're a rider, baby, on a downbound train
G / C / G / D / G
Hahhhhhh [repeat as chords go on]
G
Last night I heard her voice
D G
You were crying, crying, you were so alone
G
You said your love had never died
D G
And you were waiting for me at home
C
Well I put on my jacket, I ran through the woods
G
I ran till I thought my chest would explode
G
There in the clearing, beyond the highway
G D G
In the moonlight, our wedding house shone
G C
I rushed through the yard, I burst through the front door
G
And then up the stairs I climbed
G
The room was dark, our bed was empty
D G
And then I heard that long whistle whine
D G
And then I dropped to my knees, hung my head and cried
C
Well now I swing a sledge hammer on a railroad gang
G
Knocking down them cross ties, working in the rain
D G
Sometimes don't it feel like you're a rider, baby, on a downbound train
[outro]
G / D / C / G /
C / G / C / G / C / G [repeat until end]
Hahhhhhh [this part is sung along with the above chords]
Hoooo hoo-hoo-hoo
Hahhh hoo-hoo-hoo-hoo
Hoooo hoo-hoo-hoo
