My engine was pumpin' the steam And I was grindin' out you hard and fast I was burnin' down the rails To heat the way Haulin' a** a-ridin' up the tracks And I laughed at the conductor Who was tellin' me my coal would never last When the fire in my boiler Up and quit before I came There ain't no empty cellar Need a gone dead train Once there was a time When I could mama shave'em dry And raise the fever ice-down chill Waitin' at the station with a heavy-loaded sack Savin' up and holdin' just to spill Shootin' my supply in my demon's eye Instead of waitin' for the time to go by, well When the fire in the boiler Up and quit before I came There ain' no empty cellar Need a gone dead train It's a gone dead train You gotta teach it to burn Yes, it's a gone dead train You gotta teach it to learn There ain't no easy way To run a down-hill pull
And there ain't no easy way Just wishin' for some jelly roll Ain't no switch been made To make your juicy lemon find A spring to run a dry well full 'Cause the fire in my boiler Up and quit before I came There ain't no empty cellar Need a gone dead train Yes, gone dead train You gotta teach it to burn Well, it's gone dead train You gotta teach it to learn My engine was pumpin' steam And I was grindin' at you hard and fast I was burnin' down the rails To heat the way Haulin' a** a-ridin' up the tracks And I laughed at the conductor Who was tellin' me my coal would never last When the fire in my boiler Up and quit before I came There ain't no empty cellar Need a gone dead train Yeah, gone dead train You gotta teach it to burn It's gone dead train You gotta teach to learn Baby it's a gone dead train