Any Major Dude With Half A Heart

In 1970, the folk singer-songwriter Steve Goodman took a long overnight train journey on the Illinois Central line that ran from Chicago to New Orleans. Goodman had recently been diagnosed with leukaemia, and friends later said the trip took on deeper meaning for him. The passing landscapes, his fellow travellers, the labourers at successive stations, and the fading romance of American rail travel all found their way into the lyrics.

Goodman reportedly wrote much of City Of New Orleans in one session after the journey, with the upbeat chorus: “Good morning America, how are you?” The train itself — the City of New Orleans — is a narrator, an actual setting and a metaphor for a country in transition.

Chicago-born Steve Goodman was a folk singer, guitarist and gifted songwriter known for his warm wit and storytelling. Though he never attained major commercial success, he was highly regarded among fellow musicians and by a loyal fan base. Besides City of New Orleans, he also wrote You Never Even Called Me by My Name (a country hit for David Allan Coe) and many songs set around Chicago life and baseball culture.

City Of New Orleans appeared on his debut album in 1971, produced by Kris Kristofferson, who also provided backing vocals. As did John Prine, who 27 years later featured on Randy Scruggs’ version of the song.

Goodman battled leukaemia for much of his adult life, performing and recording between treatments. His career was cut short when he died in 1984 at the age of 36.

Steve Goodman on April 30, 1983. (Photo: David Gans/ Creative Commons 2.0)

Soon after Goodman’s recording of City of New Orleans it was covered by John Denver on his Aerie album, but it was Arlo Guthrie who scored a huge hit with the song.

According to Goodman, he had relentlessly played the song for his friend Guthrie — at one point even performing it in Arlo’s kitchen. Eventually Guthrie agreed to record it for his 1972 album Hobo’s Lullaby. As a single, his version was a hit, first in the United States and then around the world. It is Guthrie’s recording that most people associate with the song.

City Of New Orleans has been covered many tines — the 50 versions here don’t represent an exhaustive list. It quickly became especially popular among country acts such as Hank Snow, Sammi Smith, Lynn Anderson, The Seldom Scene, Chet Atkins (in an instrumental), Jerry Reed and Johnny Cash, who recorded the song several times, first with June Carter.

In 1984, Willie Nelson recorded City Of New Orleans, and his version became a # 1 country hit in the US and won a Grammy for Best Country Song, awarded to Goodman posthumously as songwriter.

In Europe, the song also found success in translation. Joe Dassin was an early adopter in 1972, rendering it as Salut les amoureux (Hello Lovers), reworking the lyrics as a bittersweet farewell between lovers. In the Netherlands the following year, Gerard Cox topped the charts with ’t Is Weer Voorbij, Die Mooie Zomer (It’s over again, that beautiful summer).

In Germany, the summer theme was popular. A middle-aged chap called Ronny (who had a way of crooning about the Wild West and adventures at sea) took the cue from Cox with his Einmal vergeht der schönste Sommer (Every beautiful summer must end). Dutch entertainer Rudi Carrell, an all-time legend of German television, had a big hit in 1975 by sticking with a summer theme on his record Wann wird’s mal wieder richtig Sommer (When are we going to have a proper summer again), which expressed the timeless cliché of “in my day everything was better” by way of unintended reference to climate change. Much later there was a version in the Kölsch dialect of Cologne titled Wann ward dat Wäder wedder better (When will the weather get better) by De Plattfööt. Even by the loose measures of quality control in Song Swarms, I couldn’t get myself to force that on to you.

Before Rudi was bemoaning the early effects of climate change, the fairly recently late Jack White tried his hand, with less success and no great sparkle, at a more faithful translation, Der Zug genannt die ‘City of New Orleans’ (The train called the ‘City of New Orleans’). White, a former professional footballer, soon dropped his singing career to become a hugely successful producer.

The best of the quartet of German versions here is more recent. Veteran German country singer Tom Astor in 2013 returned the song to its original spirit on Hallo Old Germany, wie geht’s dir (Hello Old Germany, how are you), with the singer taking to the Autobahn instead of the Eisenbahn. Finnish band Karma did something similar in 1976 with Hyvää huomenta Suomi (Good Morning Finland), as did Norwegian singer Lillian Askeland in 1984 with her less than brilliant Hei Mamma Norge (Hello, Mother Norway).

In 1976, Icelandic rock band Brimkló covered the song to good effect as Síðasta sjóferðin, which I invite you to say fast four times in a row. The title means The Last Voyage. Their version is very good.

In 1981, Czech crooner Karel Gott released an album of covers of country songs, performed in Czech. It included a version of City Of New Orleans under the title Vstávej, ty tuláku (quickly, five times in a row), which means “Get up, you vagabond”. Gott — whose name must have seemed ironic in aggressively atheistic Czechoslovakia — was hugely popular in Germany, but he decided to re-record his country set in English.

Polish band Lonstar just sang the song in English in 1999, seven years before Texan country band Lonestar got around to it.

Of the foreign languages on show, other than Dassin’s French, I think Icelandic has the nicest sound for this song, though German suits the chugging rhythm of the song. And let’s say that Czech is not the perfect tongue for folk-rock.

City Of New Orleans has invited no soul covers and little attention from rock acts. The closest to rock we get here is an irreverent hard rock take by Me First And The Gimme Gimmes. And while soul ignored the song, there were a couple of early reggae versions, with Byron Lee transferring the setting to Jamaica. Commendably, he gave himself no writer’s credit for the switcheroo. The other reggae version here is by Hopeton Lewis, who used to be a singer with Byron Lee’s Dragonaires.  Also unusual is the Dixieland jazz treatment by the Fourth Street Five Jazz Band.

More recently, covers of City Of New Orleans have come from the Americana and alt.country genre. But the whole thing ends with a celtic take on the City Of New Orleans.

So, here are 50 different versions of Steve Goodman’s song.  A PDF of the text above is included.

1971:  Steve Goodman, John Denver • 1972: Arlo Guthrie, The Seldom Scene, Byron Lee & The Dragonaires (as Good Morning Jamaica), Joe Dassin as (Salut les amoureux), Kirk Felix • 1973: Lynn Anderson, Johnny Cash & June Carter Cash, Chet Atkins, Sammi Smith, Hank Snow, Hopeton Lewis, Gerard Cox (as ‘t Is Weer Voorbij, Die Mooie Zomer), Jack White (as Der Zug genannt die ‘City of New Orleans’), Lisle, Le Grand Orchestre De Paul Mauriat (as Salut les amoureux), Bluegrass Alliance • 1974: Ronny (as Einmal vergeht der schönste Sommer) • 1975: Johnny Cash, Judy Collins, Jerry Reed, Pete Seeger & Arlo Guthrie, Rudi Carrell (as Wann wird’s mal wieder richtig Sommer) • 1976: Brimkló (as Síðasta sjóferðin), Karma (as Hyvää huomenta Suomi) • 1981: Karel Gott (as Vstávej, ty tuláku) • 1982: Karel Gott. 1984: Willie Nelson, Lillian Askeland (as Hei Mamma Norge) • 1987: Suzanne Klee & Harry Shannon, The Country Gentlemen • 1988: Richard Clayderman • 1989: Lloyd Mabrey • 1998: Randy Scruggs with John Prine • 1999: Lonstar • 2002: Willie Nelson & Sheryl Crow • 2003: Fourth Street Five Jazz Band • 2004: David Hasselhoff • 2006: Jimmy Buffett, Lonestar, Luther Wright & The Wrongs, Mary-Lou • 2007: Me First And The Gimme Gimmes • 2008: Roch Voisine • 2012: Moon Dancer, Sarah Maisel • 2013: Tom Astor (as Hallo Old Germany, wie geht’s dir?) • 2014: Chuck Potthast & Lynne Jones • 2018: Derek Warfield & The Young Wolfe Tones

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