Chris Foster - The Last train to paradise lyrics

The Last train to Paradise Words and Music Chris Foster copyright 2003 Chris Foster Music Publishing What was known as a modern day marvel A great railroad that crossed over sea It defied all the whitecaps and the deep coral bed And linked the whole world to the keys Who should take on this lofty endeavor? But a man who they said was obsessed Who'd made millions of dollars refining crude oil Now his focus was on reaching Key West Skeptics and cynics who used pens as their lances Took cheap shots at him and asked what were the chances That the railroad you're building make good on the quest Of rolling over the ocean right into Key West? The Last train to paradise They'd dubbed Flagler's folly for the use of a knife Undeterred by their antics Henry went on with life And drew up the plans for the last train to paradise. It all started when he first came to Florida His friends told him that he should retire You could live off your wealth till the end of your days But inside Henry still had his fire. He said this place aint what it could be With the weather so nice all year round So I'll buy up the Halifax/ Jacksonville rail And track it south from town to town. We'll track over rivers and track over streams We'll track over farmland and other mans dreams We'll track it through mangroves and track it through the fields And were we can't track we will dredge for the fill We'll build the last train to paradise New towns and new hotels where the weather is nice Right on to Fort Dallas where they suffer no ice He continued to build the last train to paradise. When the railroad got as far south as Homestead. They thought Henry, had then done his best But in the back of his brain a notion remained To take the railroad right on to Key West. Where Deep water awaited the liners and shipping trades to the can*l. But what stood in his way was the great Biscayne bay And an inlet that spanned 7 miles. Faced with the fact that he had to cross ocean He put all his engineers minds into motion Devising a plan to extend the great line By building a sea bridge one arch at a time. The last train to paradise Rolled over the ocean against all advice Almost in defiance he didn't think twice He had completed the last train to paradise. Mother nature had dealt him some losses Hurricanes in 0 6 9 and 10 But his vision stayed strong and he vowed to go on In the memory of the losses men After 7 long years to completion He rolled south in his car 91 He enjoyed every mile with a big eager smile Because impossible things had been done And the skeptics and cynics who had used pens as their lances Were in awe of the man who had met their advances Henry answered all questions and pa**ed all the test When the conductor yelled now arriving key west The last train to paradise Built with muscle and sweat and a vision precise Unparalleled by what he accomplished in life A divine inspiration. The Last train to paradise