I've been a railroad buff all of my life and am old enough to remember passenger "brass" on America's railroads.

This song, well done by Arlo Guthrie, was written by Steve Goodman, no doubt, the progeny of a multi-generational railroad family, who understood that he was witnessing both the end of an era and of a way of life.

Though I cannot take credit for it, the line: "[A]nd the sons of Pullman porters and the sons of engineers ride their fathers' magic carpets made of steel" is, indeed, worthy of Shakespeare.

• Gone With The Wind

We are a train family too. Grandpa Rushford worked every line from New York to Montana. He was a roadmaster for the Oregon Short Line on the track between Salt Lake and Great Falls during the years before he died; run over by a train, decapitating him. We suspect he was down watching his track when something from the train hit nim and knocked him under the wheels. When I was a kid, we used to take the Sacramento Daylight to LA to see my mom's family every summer. Those were the days of great dining on China and white linen tablecloths. Still take the train down to Paso Robles once in a while to see our daughter. Great way to travel.

Arlo Guthrie also had a song, about 18 or more minutes, called Alice's Restaurant, that was a view of the late 60s, early 70s culture. Arlo's dad was a well known folk singer, Woody Guthrie.

My mother was afraid of flying after a near miss, so we always took the train from DC to SW Virginia, where her family was. The old Southern Railway. It was swank in comparison to today's rail travel with dining cars where food was served on china, with silverware, and cloth napkins. There was a club car where adults could enjoy adult beverages. It was a great way to travel.