Midnight train, roll on Midnight train, roll on

Clear them tracks and keep that whistle blowin
Take this stranger on to Santa Fe It seems like
romance and danger Follow this here tall dark
stranger all along the way

Well the train was rumblin through the night
heading south to Santa Fe And in a fancy car, with
a private bar, and a personal valet There was a
bunch of cold eyed men a sittin at a poker table
Bettin hot stakes all around

Ole Louisiana Lou had a knife in his shoe, was
dealin' a hand of cards And ole Stagger Lee
Crocket had a gun in his pocket, was sweatin
bettin hard And over in the corner this Mexican
guy with two gold teeth and a patch on his eye
Took a long hard look around

And then the door flew open, the stranger walked
in and said don't ya'll get excited I know
this here's a private game, and I know I
wasn't invited But I got a roll that'd choke a
mule I'm just about a big enough fool to lay it
all right down

And everybody nodded as the stranger took his seat
He knew this bunch of cutthroat's would be
mighty hard to beat As the stranger knew then the
toughest two by far were where he sat Was a pot
belly fellow from south Alabama, and a dude in a
black felt hat

Midnight Train, roll on Midnight Train, roll on

Well clear them tracks and keep that whistle
blowin Take this stranger on to Santa Fe It seems
like romance and danger Follow this here tall dark
stranger all along the way

Well the stranger sat down he looked around at all
them evil faces And the pot-belly fellow drew a
pair of queens, but the stranger he drew aces And
he kept on raising and pushin his luck, kept on
winning like a run away truck He was giving them a
beating

And the stakes got higher than a Chinese kite, the
stranger kept getting hot Till every cent
everybody had was lying out in that pot Then the
stranger threw down a royal flush, Somebody said
"Hey Man, that's enough friend I think
you've been cheatin"

And then the stranger picked the money up and said
"Boys I better run" And then the bot-bellyed
fella pulled a razor out and somebody pulled a gun
They said "You may think you're a sly old fox,
you're gonna leave here in a long pine box if
you don't leave that money alone"

Just about then the lights went out, and they all
started fussin And the lights came on, the
stranger was gone, they all started cussin And
they searched that train from front to rear The
stranger he done disappeared, and all their money
was gone

When the train pulled in the station, with the
whistle blowin loud A telegram was waitin, from
the stranger for the crowd Said "Thank you for
the money boys, but don't feel too outdone Cause
It takes a dog to know a dog I'm a howlin son of
a gun.

Midnight Train, roll on Midnight Train, roll on

Well clear them tracks and keep that whistle
blowin Take this stranger on to Santa Fe It seems
like romance and danger Follow this here tall dark
stranger all along the way