I’ve traveled through this country
And I’ll tell you what I’ve seen

A million yellow ribbons
And I wonder what they mean
It’s love and hope and sympathy
For those who’ve gone to fight
But still I know that none of them
Can make the killing right

When we see two children fighting
Don’t we try to come between

Get ‘em both to talk
Instead of acting rough and mean
We give ‘em love and limits
Say now try to get along
Then we tell ‘em it’s alright to kill
To prove that killing’s wrong

Sometimes your yellow ribbon
Tries to make me feel ashamed

Tells me I’m a traitor
That somehow it’s me to blame
But I can’t hide behind it
Just to prove that I belong
And I won’t be an accomplice
To a thing I know is wrong

But I’d wear a yellow ribbon
For the peace that’s in my heart

I’d wear it for the loved ones
That should never have to part
I’d wear it for the wasted lives
No matter friend or foe
And I’d wear it for the children
If they never had to go

Yes, I’ve seen your yellow ribbons
Hanging up all over town

But I don’t think they’ll ever buy
The peace we’ve never found

Oh, the guns will all be silent
And the battle flags all furled
When we tie a yellow ribbon
‘Round the world
Yes, the guns will all be silent
And the battle flags all furled
When we tie a yellow ribbon
‘Round the world

Queen Of The Rails
Utah Phillips
Starlight On The Rails
Banjo tuned E, Capo 3, Key of D

QUEEN OF THE RAILS
(Bruce Phillips)
I guess his name was Boomer Bill
If that won’t do another will
A hobo doesn’t need a name
“Cause he gets no mail
And the only friend old Boomer had
To ride with him thru good and bad
Was a shaggy little mongrel
He called Queen of the Rails

Chorus:
The black smoke choo choo’s gone away
Bumming, it’s just not the same
Dreams are few and far between
But mem’ries seldom fail
Waiting down there by the track
For her master to come back
You can count on seeing that old dog
Called Queen of the Rails

Boomer roamed the Rio Grande,
The Santa Fe, and never planned
On where he’d be from day to day,
The jungle or the jail.
But when the snow was falling down
He’d catch a California bound
With that little dog to keep him warm.
Old “Queen of the Rails”.

Chorus:

One day he went to get a bone
And left his little pal alone,
He crossed the coupling joints of a
Train that blocked the yard
They switched a reefer off the main
And humped it into Boomer’s train
He fell and died beneath the iron wheels so cold and hard.

The black smoke choo-choo’a gone away.
Bummin’ it’s just not the same;
Dreams are few and far between but
memories seldom fail.
If there’s a place for some old friend
Who waits until the journey’s end,
Then Boomer he’ll be glad to see old
“Queen of the Rails”.