Ten Train Songs

This article is a collection of ten train songs I chose. I want to clarify that these are not songs by the band Train. They are songs involving trains. Trains are referred to literally, metaphorically or both. All but one of them have the word train in the song title. We’ll start with a song from 55 years ago.

Whisky Train - Procol Harum (1970)

This song is written by guitarist Robin Trower and lyricist Keith Reid. It’s led by the guitars. Lead singer and pianist Gary Brooker’s piano supports Robin’s guitars well. The piano notes going back and forth on a loop are so simple yet so effective. Gary sings aggressively. The lyrics are referring to alcoholism. B.J. Wilson gives great rock drumming. Near the end of the song, we get Robin’s powerful guitar solo. Whisky Train has amazing energy. I love its hard rock sound.

Long Twin Silver Line - Bob Seger (1980)

This rock song is about a train with the lyrics talking about where the train is going. Bob recorded it with the Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section. He sings vigorously. Barry Beckett plays amazing rock and roll piano. Pete Carr has an aggressive guitar solo which Barry supports well. I like how Bob mentions American places in his song which are the cities Chicago, LA, Denver & Salt Lake City and the states Kansas, Nevada & California. This is a fun Bob Seger rocker from the peak of his career.

Keep This Train a-Rollin’ - The Doobie Brothers (1980)

A fun piece of soul influenced soft rock written and sung by Michael McDonald. It opens with organ, then it’s solely Bobby LaKind’s congas which is soon joined by Michael’s piano. Michael's vocals and piano playing are great and energetic. Horns have a good presence including a nice saxophone solo. I love how this song has multiple keyboard parts which include acoustic piano, electric piano, synth, organ and clavinet. Michael seems to be singing about life using a train as a metaphor.

Trains - Al Stewart (1993)

This is an epic eight minute song. Al sings about trains tying it into history and geography. He starts off referring to his experiences growing up in post World War 2 England, discusses 20th century European history and towards the end of the song talks of trains in 1990s America based on his experiences. We get an acoustic guitar solo.There is a great relaxing piano throughout the song. The accordion has a good presence. Al gives us with this song his creative ability to write a melodic ballad dealing with historical topics.

This Train Won’t Stop - Traffic (1994)

This is a melodic mid-tempo rock song from English rock band Traffic’s final album. The final version of Traffic was Steve Winwood and Jim Capaldi, who both wrote this song. Steve plays multiple instruments including piano, organ and guitar. The song is led well by the piano. Steve sings powerfully in his soulful voice and gives a creative guitar solo. It’s good to hear what seems to be a reference to Steve’s solo hit “Higher Love”. Jim provides a good beat with his drums. Steve is singing about life. In the chorus, he sings “this train won’t stop” repeatedly and ends it with “till we reach the end of the line”. The train seems to refer to our lives. I love this kind of piano driven rock.

This Train Don’t Stop There Anymore - Elton John (2001)

Here’s a powerful ballad by Elton John. The instruments are piano, bass, drums and an orchestra arranged by Paul Buckmaster. Elton is using the train metaphor to reflect and look back on his career. Matt Chamberlain drums intensely in a modern way. We get the feel of ballads pre-dating Elton’s music with this song. There is a powerful moment where one of the choruses goes to just Elton & his piano which is soon joined by the other instruments. I like how the backing vocalists sing “don’t stop”.

From a Train - Michael Stanley (2003)

This is a piano ballad somewhat similar to the previous song. The song seems to be about a man who watched a lady he was in love with go away on a train. The train setting is used to explore their relationship issues. Michael’s long-time keyboardist Bob Pelander’s piano gives a relaxing atmosphere. There is a subtle acoustic guitar and synth strings which comes in and out of the song. Michael sings warmly in an intimate way. I like the reference to “Spanish Nights” which must be referring to Michael’s previous song “Spanish Nights” from the Michael Stanley Band. Halfway through the song, gentle drums come in which add a new dimension to the song.

The Train Don’t Stop Here Anymore - Benny Mardones (2006)

I think that this song was influenced or is a response to Elton’s song on this list. Both songs are piano ballads looking back to the past of their careers. Benny sings “I used to be the man” and Elton sings “I used to be the main express”. Benny sings powerfully. This song is led by a mix of electric and acoustic pianos. We hear some other keyboards. Benny sings about his lover he’s no longer with who he misses. I wonder if “the train don’t stop here anymore” is his way of expressing his sadness that they’re no longer together. In the last quarter of the song, there is a train sound which is nice to hear.

Train To Nowhere - Eric Clapton, Mark Knopfler & Don White (2014)

This song was written by J.J. Cale is from Eric Clapton & Friends’ tribute album to J.J. Cale. Mark sings the first two verses, Don sings the third and they sing the fourth one together. Eric sings the choruses. It’s creative how this song uses the voices of three very different singers. Both Eric and Mark play good guitar parts. The song is underpinned well by piano. J.J. seems to be writing about life with the train to nowhere metaphor. This song is a relaxing mid-tempo americana themed rock song.

Sound of a Train - Marc Lee Shannon (2018)

I get similar musical vibes from the previous song. Marc was the guitarist to Michael Stanley featured above. Marc and Michael wrote this song together with Michael’s version released first in 2015. The song opens with drums, Marc sings with guitar coming in and out of the song. Piano follows in a similar fashion to the guitar and it soon has a full band sound. Marc sings with passion. Marc is singing about his lover that he misses. The chorus mentions both the sound of a train and the sound of her voice. This song has a good mix of piano, acoustic and electric guitars.

That was my selection of train songs. There are some common lyrical themes among them. I like how these songs are musically diverse ranging from slow ballads to hard rock.

The Global South & Dictatorships

 

"Earth - Africa, Middle East and Europe" by Kevin M. Gill is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

I have noticed that there is a concerning viewpoint in my country Sri Lanka to downplay and normalise the evils of dictators. This stems from an over critical view of the West. It’s my understanding these views are a viewpoint prevalent in the Global South which Sri Lanka is part of. The Global South tends to refer to poor countries while the Global North refers to rich countries. I’m writing this article to present my view that the foreign policies of the West don’t make dictators decent leaders worthy of respect. In this article I’m focusing specifically on the Middle Eastern region.

I’ll begin with a terrible action initiated by the US, which was the Iraq War in 2003. This was an unjust war based on a lie that Iraq stored weapons of mass destruction. Saddam Hussein was a dictator who ruled oppressively in Iraq. His sons were dangerous criminals who terrorised people. While this war succeeded in getting rid of Saddam Hussein, it brought misery, deaths and suffering to the people of Iraq and resulted in the barbaric terrorist group ISIS being formed. This war destabilised Iraq and the Middle Eastern region.

In 2011, the US & NATO intervened in Libya. They said they were getting involved to protect civilians. Some people equate this involvement in the same league as that of the Iraq War. While it’s true that the state of Libya after this conflict has serious problems, I disagree with this assessment. Libya’s dictator Muammar Gaddafi really was responsible for the deaths of his own people. This military operation was much smaller in scale than in Iraq. Many in the Global South dismissed the West’s narrative out of hand. I’m not saying this is a just war that the US & NATO were absolutely right to be involved in. It’s true that the West has their own agendas and the real reason for involvement could be different to the official narrative. My point is that in cases like this there can be valid reasons behind it.

Even if you make a compelling case against the West’s involvement in Libya, that does not invalidate the problems Libyans faced under Muammar Gaddafi’s dictatorship. He had been connected to terrorism and is alleged to have been involved in or masterminded the Lockerbie bombing in the 1980s. There are similarities between the Gaddafi family of Libya and the Rajapaksa family of Sri Lanka. Both are despotic political families which caused damage to their countries. While nowhere near the same scale, you can also see some similarities between Saddam Hussein’s sons and Malaka Silva, the son of former politician Mervyn Silva in Mahinda Rajapaksa’s government. While Libya tragically fell into a state of civil war post-Gaddafi, the movement to establish a stable democratic government in Libya was a just one.

I’ll now move onto Syria. Syria has been in a state of civil war since the early 2010s. In December 2024, Syrian president Bashar al-Assad gave up power and went to Russia. The origins of the Syrian Civil War began with him using force on pro-democracy protests in 2011. His dictatorship and oppressive rule resulted in over half a million deaths in Syria’s civil war. It’s tragic how there are so many factions fighting each other. There was distressing sectarian violence occurring earlier this month. This shows that despite Assad’s exit from power, the Syrian Civil War is still ongoing.

There are some in the Global South who will point out that the West had previously engaged diplomatically with Assad, portraying the West as hypocritical and trying to delegitimise Western criticism of Assad. I don’t agree with this view. Irrespective of whether Western foreign policy towards Syria is sensible or not, they were rightly against the catastrophic governance of Assad. In regard to their previous engagement with the Syrian government, governments change their policies with time. In my view, they made the correct decision to stop engaging with Assad.

Western hypocrisy really does exist and there are instances where it’s wise to call it out. The problem I have is when the Western hypocrisy narrative is used to dismiss valid Western criticisms against crimes and misdemeanours committed by certain governments. Sometimes the global political situation is grey in that while a particular government is involved in Western hypocrisy, they are also spot-on in their condemnation of a dictator.

Regarding Syria, I don’t know what the future of that country holds. My knowledge of their current provisional government is minimal and I don’t have a high regard for them. I hope that with Assad gone, they will be able to come out of the mess they are in and democratically elect a decent government.

To conclude, I will point out ways I think all three sides can contribute regarding the Middle Eastern region. The Global South who has experienced bad governance and corruption can look at the similarities of Middle Eastern dictators and their own governance. Support and understanding can be given to the people of the Middle East. The West would be wise not to focus on a military interventionist approach in dealing with these dictators. It’s important to have policies that help people in this region which would result in Middle Easterners having a more positive view of Western governments. This should include win-win policies which are good for both Middle Eastern people and the security of the West. The Middle Eastern people should not abandon movements for democratic governance. This movement should take a stand against violence & extremism and inspire people for a peaceful and stable Middle East.

Ten Songs Featuring Elton John Sidemen Vol. 2

This article is a collection of ten songs I like featuring musicians from the Elton John Band. The Elton John Band is the backing band Elton John uses. This is the second volume as I previously wrote “Ten Songs Featuring Elton John Sidemen”. This article features a new set of songs. I’m beginning with a popular Elton John hit.

Honky Cat by Elton John - Elton John Band (1972)

This comes from the “Honky Château” album recorded with the original Elton John Band of Davey Johnstone, Nigel Olsson and Dee Murray. Davey plays banjo instead of guitar giving a folksy americana vibe. Dee Murray’s bass supports the song well with its deep notes. Drummer Nigel Olsson provides a good beat. Elton plays both acoustic and electric pianos with his electric piano notes adding to the song. Elton’s band supports his music with their superb playing. The horns offer a good presence on this New Orleans influenced pop rock song.

Just Keep Playing by Michael Stanley - Kenny Passarelli on Bass (1973)

This melodic song by Michael Stanley in his early career has both a gentle and rock feel. It sounds like it would fit on Elton John’s “Honky Château” album the previous song comes from. Paul Harris is on piano and organ. His piano part reminds me of “Amy” from that album. Paul gives a jolly piano solo. Paul plays the same instruments on Bob Seger’s iconic hit “Against the Wind”. Kenny Passarelli’s bass is soft, but you can feel his notes which support the song suitably. This was a few years before Kenny joined the Elton John Band.

A Man for All Seasons by Al Stewart - Tim Renwick on Guitar (1978)

This midtempo rock song sounds like an Elton John song as it’s piano driven. The piano is similar to Elton’s playing and rocks in sections. There is a nice organ which has a light presence throughout the song. Tim Renwick gives a gentle guitar solo which matches well with the piano. Tim was also the main guitarist on Elton’s album “A Single Man” released around the same time and would join Elton’s band in a few years. The song reflects the songwriting strength of Al Stewart as it’s an epic song of nearly six minutes in length.

Dancin’ Shoes by Nigel Olsson - Nigel Olsson on Drums (1978)

This is a solo song recorded by Elton’s drummer Nigel Olsson which was a US Top 20 hit for him. It’s produced by singer Paul Davis who had the memorable hit song “I Go Crazy”. The song opens with just Nigel and piano and soon the whole band comes in during the chorus. I like Nigel’s singing voice, who sings expressively. There is a nice guitar solo. The album “Nigel” it’s from credits Nigel Olsson as one of three drummers on the album as well as Elton John Band members Ray Cooper and Richie Zito. I don’t know if Nigel, Ray and/or Richie played on this song. This sounds like a soft rock song Elton would feature on his album “21 at 33” a few years later which Nigel was involved in.

Wouldn’t It Be Good by Nik Kershaw - Charlie Morgan on Drums (1984)

Nik Kershaw sings great in this melodic and catchy song. He brings a rock feel with his guitar playing. There is creative synth work in this song. Drummer Charlie Morgan who joined Elton’s band the following year provides a strong beat. There are horns arranged by Jerry Hey which come in around the two-thirds mark which add to the song. This song is both pop rock and new wave. Elton’s album “Ice on Fire” the following year used those two genres. Nik played on that album including on a similar song “Satellite”. Nik would write & record the duet “Old Friend” with Elton in 1993.

The Loving Cup by Dan Fogelberg - Kenny Passarelli on Bass (1984)

This song has a good rock feel. Mike Hanna’s piano has a prominent part in this song. Mike also plays electric piano and synth. The mix of these three instruments are similarly used in some Elton songs. Kenny Passarelli’s bass gives the same approach he did on Michael Stanley’s “Just Keep Playing” as featured above. Dan Fogelberg plays all the guitars and gives aggressive playing at the end.

She’s Waiting by Eric Clapton - Ray Cooper on Percussion (1985)

The song opens with guitar and is soon joined by all instruments. Eric sings aggressively in this song he wrote with Peter Robinson who plays synth on this song. I can hear Elton’s original percussionist Ray Cooper play a tambourine including his signature shake. Ray’s percussion sounds good on this song. Eric offers a nice relaxing guitar solo. There is good snare drumming at the end by Phil Collins. This pop rock song has a good mix of guitar and keyboards. It’s similar to Elton’s 1983 song “Kiss the Bride”.

Just Another Night by Jude Cole - James Newton Howard on Keyboards (1992) 

This song rocks so well. The powerful backing vocals are effective. Jude Cole sings soulfully and plays the guitar. He gives a good guitar solo. Keyboardist and film composer James Newton Howard is credited with keyboards which includes piano. James’ piano holds the song together. He gives rock piano playing reminiscent of Elton. James was in Elton’s band in the mid 70s and early 80s. Mike Finnigan plays a bright organ part.

When a Woman Cries by Joshua Kadison - Tim Renwick on Guitar (1993)

Joshua Kadison, like Elton, plays the piano and sings. There is a great organ presence in this song. Tim Renwick supports the song well with his subtle guitar playing. This ballad has a gospel influence reminding me of some Elton songs as he’s also influenced by that genre. One Elton song I find it similar to is “Man” released a few years later as that song also has piano, organ and strings. Joshua who’s American recorded this song in England, which is the inverse of Elton who’s English and has recorded some songs in America.

Some Things Happen by Boz Scaggs - Curt Bisquera on Drums (1996)

I like the jazzy soft rock feel this song has. Randy Kerber’s piano leads the song well and gives a nice piano solo. Curt Bisquera offers strong drumming with his drums giving a good sound. Curt would join the Elton John Band four years later for a brief stint. Boz Scaggs sings in his signature soulful way. Lisa Frazier supports him well on backing vocals. Despite the tempo differences, I’m reminded of the Elton John song “Give Me the Love”.

This is the selection of songs I made. I wanted them all to have something in common with Elton’s music, so piano is featured in most of them. These songs are a 50/50 mix of British and American artists. They reflect the great musicianship of Elton John's sidemen.

Virtual Views of Ten Sri Lankan Buildings

 

Sysco LABS building as featured in my previous blog post “Diverse Views of Sri Lanka”.

I love buildings, so I decided to write a blog post embedding virtual views of Sri Lankan buildings from Google Street View. This is a personal selection that I made. I feature the most buildings from Colombo as that’s my hometown. I also include some structures which are not traditional buildings like lighthouses and clock towers. You can explore the areas in the Google Street View embedded sections. There is also a “View on Google Maps” button enabling you to explore it in a larger size in another window. This is also useful if the embedded content does not load.

This is Independence Memorial Hall in Independence Square. It’s an important symbol of Sri Lanka’s independence from colonialism.

Here’s the Dutch Hospital Shopping Precinct. One of the places seen is the Java Lounge. I enjoyed having something sweet there in 2017.

Here’s the Christian church Christ Church, Galle Face. It’s in the centre. It’s nice to see palm trees on its property. Skyscrapers around it offer a nice contrast of traditional and modern architecture.

A modern building by SLTMobitel.

The cool Sysco LABS building. I like its use of blue and palm trees at the front.

We’re now moving far away to the Point Pedro Lighthouse in the North.

In the same region, we’re looking at the Jaffna Post Office. I like its colourful look.

This is the iconic Galle Fort Clock Tower.

This is the edge of the Kandy City Centre, a 21st century shopping complex in Kandy that’s both modern and influenced by traditional Kandyan architecture.  

We’re now moving to another shopping complex, this time the Colombo City Centre. These kinds of modern buildings are my favourite type of architecture. It’s awesome that it says “I Love CMB” at the front as I love Colombo.

I hope you enjoyed the selection of Sri Lankan buildings featured. I tried to feature a mix of both modern and traditional architecture throughout Sri Lanka.

Great Elton John Keyboard Performances

Elton John is very skilled as a piano player. It’s not so well known, but he has also played other keyboard instruments on some of his albums. I decided to write about his keyboard playing where I write about a selection of songs where he plays keyboards. On most of these songs, he plays both piano and keyboards.

We’re starting with his non-album single “Lady Samantha” from 1969. This is a great rock song where Elton plays electric piano and organ. Elton’s organ has a good presence including prominent parts in the chorus. There is a great balance between Elton’s keyboards and Caleb Quaye’s guitars. Caleb also plays guitars on the next two songs. From Elton’s debut album “Empty Sky” released later the same year, he plays piano and organ on “Western Ford Gateway”. Elton’s piano forms the base of the song and his organ leads the song well musically. This song has the guitar in a more supportive role. Elton plays the same instruments on “Amoreena” released a year later. Amoreena is driven by the piano, with the organ and guitar playing a supportive role. The three instruments are mixed well together.

Lady Samantha (1969)

We’re now featuring two hit singles from 1973’s “Don’t Shoot Me I’m Only The Piano Player” album. Elton plays both electric piano and the keyboard instrument mellotron on “Daniel”. Elton’s mellotron gives a nice sound like a flute. It’s credited as a ‘flute’ mellotron. The mellotron only appears in certain sections, but is very noticeable when it does. On “Crocodile Rock”, Elton plays both piano and farfisa organ. The organ has a good presence and it is a memorable part of the song. Elton is paying tribute to rock & roll music from the 1950s on this tune. Davey Johnstone’s rocking guitars go well with Elton’s keyboards.

Crocodile Rock (1972)

An interesting song is the satirical ballad “This Song Has No Title”. It’s a solo song featuring just Elton on piano, farfisa organ, mellotron and electric piano. The organ gives a great presence on the chorus. The mellotron is used for both the flute sound and the string sound. On “Your Sister Can’t Twist (But She Can Rock ’n Roll”, Elton plays the piano/farfisa organ combination on a rock & roll song similar to “Crocodile Rock”. The organ has a fun jolly feel including a good solo augmented by backing vocals.

On “Tell Me When the Whistle Blows”, Elton plays electric piano and clavinet. The clavinet is an electric keyboard instrument that uses guitar strings. On this mid-tempo song with rock and soul elements, Elton’s clavinet comes in and out of the song giving a quirky feel. It matches well with Davey’s guitar. On “(Gotta Get A) Meal Ticket”, Elton plays clavinet with acoustic piano. This rock song is driven by Davey’s guitar. The clavinet has a supportive role. Elton is using his skills as a rock musician with these two keyboards. On the ballad “We All Fall In Love Sometimes”, Elton plays piano, mellotron and harpsichord. The mellotron gives warm soothing notes. The harpsichord has a minimal role with it heard nicely in the second half of the song.

On “Theme from a Non-Existent TV Series”, Elton plays electric harpsichord with his then keyboardist James Newton Howard playing electric piano and synth. I like this instrumental song which really sounds like the theme to a 1970s TV series. Elton’s electric harpsichord is behind James Newton Howard’s keyboards. A few years later, Elton had the mostly instrumental hit “Song for Guy” featuring a mix of piano, keyboard, percussion and bass. Elton is on piano, mellotron and synth. He plays two types of synth: polymoog and salena string. Song for Guy is led by piano. Elton gives atmospheric effects with his keyboards which come in and out of the song. He’s enhancing his piano playing with the keyboard parts.

Song for Guy (1978)

A Single Man, the same album as “Song for Guy” has the gospel themed song “Georgia” about the US State. Elton plays piano, church organ and harmonium. The church organ is present in much of the song, contributing to the full band sound. There’s an instrumental outtake from that album’s sessions “Earn While You Learn” which emerged as a B-Side in 1983. The song rocks well with Elton playing piano and multiple keyboards. His organ has memorable parts throughout the song. He also plays the familiar mellotron parts and seems to play an electric piano. Elton’s keyboards and Tim Renwick’s guitars wonderfully lead the sound of this song.

In Elton’s 1983 “Too Low for Zero”, he played all the keyboards including a lot of synth. I’m mentioning two songs from it. These are the first songs in this article not to feature any piano. On the minor hit “Kiss the Bride”, Elton’s synths go well with Davey’s guitars. This is an intense pop rocker. The synths give off a 1980s sound. Elton does something similar on “Whipping Boy” which is also a guitar driven rocker. I’m assuming Elton’s keyboards are synths. They can be heard more than the previous track. I get vibes from organic keyboards Elton has played like harpsichord and harmonium.

Kiss the Bride (1983)

On the pop song “Satellite”, Elton plays synths. Elton’s then keyboardist Fred Mandel plays keyboards and guitarist Davey Johnstone is credited with synth/guitar. While Davey could be playing synth and guitar, it’s more likely he’s playing synth guitar as he played that instrument on the same album. I’m not sure which keyboard parts are Elton. There is a light keyboard part sounding similar to an electric piano. I suspect Elton is playing this. There are nice atmospheric synth effects.

Satellite (1985)

Elton plays piano and organ on the blues rocker “Runaway Train”, a duet with Eric Clapton. Elton’s piano is low in the mix. Following Eric’s guitar solo, Elton unleashes an organ solo. His solo is really good which contrasts well with Eric’s guitar. It’s even more impressive that he’s able to do a solo like this as organ is not his main instrument. There are other similar organ sounds on the song. I’m not sure if Elton is playing them.

These songs are a selection of Elton’s keyboard playing. While Elton’s skills on other keyboards aren’t on the same level as his piano playing, he can play the keyboard well. He used his keyboard skills to augment his piano playing and in rare cases when there’s no piano as an alternative. The songs featured cover Elton’s strengths on ballads, rock songs and those in between.