It was early in the fall and a-blowin' up a squall
  From the trestle you could hear the weirdest moans
  With a mighty lonesome cry came a whistle from the sky
  And it chilled the very marrow in my bones
  Then a loud, rushing roar, like you never heard before
  Turned the blood to icy water in my veins
  As I watched with rising fear, something strange was drawing near
  And I saw in the clouds ghost trains
  
  Ghost trains, ghost trains, what a fearful sight
  The Cannonball and Number Nine were racing thru the night
  Just as they passed me by, I heard the engineer cry
  Give her coal, give her coal, shovel it on
  You could see the fireman grinnin', in the engine that was winnin'
  But I knew before the finish they'd be gone
  But he knew before the finish they'd be gone
  
  You could see the driver's roll as they shoveled on the coal
  And the black smoke came pouring from the stacks
  As they thundered thru the sky, I am here to testify
  You could hear the wheels a-clickin' on the tracks
  Thru the smoke and the steam, you could see the headlights gleam
  Now I have no proof, but still the fact remains
  You may doubt it, but I swear, there were cinders in my hair
  When I saw in the clouds ghost trains
  
  Ghost trains, ghost trains, what a fearful sight
  The Cannonball and Number Nine were racing thru the night
  Just as they passed me by, I heard the engineer cry
  Give her coal, give her coal, shovel it on
  You could see the fireman grinnin', in the engine that was winnin'
  As I watched I saw them fade into the dawn
  As he watched he saw them fade into the dawn