Hedy West "500 Miles"

The song “500 Miles”, or “The Railroaders Lament”, was written in the early 1960s by Hedy West, an American folk singer from South Georgia. She lived for several years in London and was part of the folk revival of the 1960s. On the surface the song is about a railroader who rides far away and falls into poverty and is too ashamed to go home.

However there is a contradiction between the need and wish to go home and the shame of his poverty that prevents him going home. This is at the heart of the song, but I feel the song moves us because it is an allegory of something much deeper.

The first line "If you miss the train I'm on, you will know that I am gone" is obscure, but if you think of the train as a symbol of a journey through life, then if a loved one misses the train you are on it means they have not understood the direction your life is going in, and they have not seen you are moving away, further and further away.

Next “You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles”. This means that the signs were there, you could hear it from a hundred miles. But you did not hear it.

Following on, there is a line that brings in the conflict and hesitation: "If my honey said so... I would sidetrack my engine and go home". Think of the engine as the thing that drives us, the thing that moves us along, and the awareness that if the loved one says come back home, then I am ready to put my wish to leave aside and to put my engine aside and return.

But then the fundamental statement "You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles", which means the signs were there, you just did not hear them, you did not hear the whistle blow, even though you could hear it for a hundred miles.

The main chorus "Lord I'm one, Lord I'm two, Lord I'm three, Lord I'm four, Lord I'm five hundreds miles from my home" expresses the growing distance, emotional distance, that can never be gone back on.

Then you get "My clothes are all worn and my shoes are all torn" meaning I am in a bad state and I want to come home, but cannot, I cannot face going back.

More contradictions emerge with the line "I am coming down the line on Number Nine...", which suggests I want to come back on Number Nine but in the end "I can't go a'home this a'way" Meaning it is just not possible because I am on a new direction, moving on a different track even though that leaves me in a miserable state.

It ends with the repetition "You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles" Suggesting you should have known I was moving away.

In short, it is an allegory of lost love and the difficulty of understanding the need for moving on and all the contradictions that involves. It is about the deeper meaning within railroad folk songs.

Here is a link to the song:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5SJDeVVBmJI

The Lyrics:

If you miss the train I'm on

You will know that I am gone

You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles!

A hundred miles

You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles!

Lord, I'm one,

Lord, I'm two

Lord, I'm three,

Lord, I'm four

Lord, I'm five hundred miles away from home!

Away from home

Lord, I'm five hundred miles away from home!

If my honey said so

I'd railroad no more

I'd sidetrack my engine and go home!

And go home

I'd sidetrack my engine and go home!
Not a shirt on my back

Not a penny to my name

Lord, I can't make a living this a-way!

This-a way

Lord, I can't make a living this a-way!

I told my little letter

Just as plain as I could tell her

She'd better come along and go with me!

Go with me

She'd better come along and go with me!

My shoes are all worn

My clothes are all torn

Lord I can't go back home this a-way!

This-a way

Lord I can't go back home this a-way!
If this train runs me right

I'll be back tomorrow night

I'm coming down the line on number nine!

Number nine

I'm coming down the line on number nine!
If you miss the train I'm on

You will know that I am gone

You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles!

A hundred miles

You can hear the whistle blow a hundred miles!

Hedy West performing at the Newport Festival, 1964.

The Grey Willow: a History Site

Hedy West "500 Miles"

Hedy West "500 Miles"