Inexcusable SCA behavior!!!!!

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JayPea

JayPea

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I may never ride Amtrak again after the behavior of our SCA today. :angry: As part of two large AGR trips I, my uncle, and his two granddaughters traveled from Champaign to Chicago in roommates. While waiting to back into Union Station, the SCA played a song over the PA that he said was appropriate. Which he did: The City of New Orleans. What was so egregious, so inexcusable about this was he played Johnny Cash's version instead of Arlo Guthrie's. Totally outrageous! Boardman's gonna hear about this, I tells ya! :angry: :p : ;) :lol:

Seriously, what with amenities cutbacks and all, personal touches like help make up for amenity cutbacks IMHO. He also urged us to contact our Congresspersons regarding Amtrak funding. I've never heard any SCA do this before.

Am relaxing in the Metropolitan Lounge in Chicago waiting for the SWC to board and being treated to a loud story by some guy telling how he dropped his phone in the toilet, didn't know it, and ruined both phone and toilet in the process. You just never hear stories like this in airport waiting rooms. :lol:
 
Although Arlo had the hit, the original version by Steve Goodman, the guy that wrote it, is Superior in my opinion!

(Willie Nelsons version is not too shabby either!)

As for the announcements about contacting your Government Reps, several of the Texas Eagle Conductors make these announcements regularly as do some of the OBS!

Hope the Chief is on time Jeff and look forward to the rest of yalls adventures!
 
He should have played the original Steve Goodman version _ now that's "The City of New Orleans!" He's the songwriter who actually rode the CONO back in the IC days. He got on board in Chicago to ride to Champaign, but stayed on through to New Orleans....or at least that's a story I once heard.
 
I had the pleasure to meet Steve Goodman before his untimely demise. I never did ask that question as to the origin of the song but I have heard in his presence that the song was written while he was on a campaign tour.

I have found some truth to the saying only the good die young, after all I have made it to the senior citizen status.
 
i knew Steve, and his humor was probably only matched by another oft performing regular John Prine at Somebody Else's Troubles on,if memory serves me right, Lincoln Ave.. The owner, Fred Holstein, was the world'g greatest six string banjo player, and fondly remembered, at least in the Windy City for "For All The Good People" . His brother Ed, was a one hell of a nice guy.

WGN attacked Goodman after he wrote a "Dying Cub Fan's Last Request" and he became the object of Roy Leonard's wrath,,, an in irony they turned around and used "Go Cubs Go" as a theme song for their baseball broadcasts. I personally think his best lyric was "The Lincoln Park Pirates".

As for covers, I like the Judy Collins version the best. For an SCA to play the Cash version is truly tasteless. However, music is like pizza, we don't all order pepperoni.
 
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We had Julio.... he was just what an attendant should be! Enjoy the trip and thanks for the laugh!
 
JayPea said:
I may never ride Amtrak again after the behavior of our SCA today. :angry: As part of two large AGR trips I, my uncle, and his two granddaughters traveled from Champaign to Chicago in roommates. While waiting to back into Union Station, the SCA played a song over the PA that he said was appropriate. Which he did: The City of New Orleans. What was so egregious, so inexcusable about this was he played Johnny Cash's version instead of Arlo Guthrie's. Totally outrageous! Boardman's gonna hear about this, I tells ya! :angry: :p : ;) :lol:

Seriously, what with amenities cutbacks and all, personal touches like help make up for amenity cutbacks IMHO. He also urged us to contact our Congresspersons regarding Amtrak funding. I've never heard any SCA do this before.

Am relaxing in the Metropolitan Lounge in Chicago waiting for the SWC to board and being treated to a loud story by some guy telling how he dropped his phone in the toilet, didn't know it, and ruined both phone and toilet in the process. You just never hear stories like this in airport waiting rooms. :lol:
Click to expand...
Eh I'm not a fan of willie nelson, but I really liked arlo's version
 
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Steve Goodman wrote City of New Orleans after a trip to downstate Illinois to visit his wife's grandmother, as I recall.

I love Arlo's version, but I love Steve's a lot more. I was there when Steve opened for Kris Kristofferson at the Quiet Knight in Chicago many, many years ago. After that, Kris was instrumental in having Stevie meet Paul Anka, and that eventually opened the door for Steve's first album. But Steve, always generous to a fault, insisted that Kris and his group also meet John Prine. And that's how they both got their breaks. Arlo has a great way of telling the story of his first meeting with Steve, when he first heard "City". Kris says he told Johnny Cash he should record the song, but Johnny was afraid of being thought of as somebody who only sang train songs. Kris couldn't buy that. Of course, Johnny eventually relented after Arlo had made the song famous.

Maybe my view of the song is prejudiced. I wasn't familiar with Steve at all, and Kris was so new on the scene that NOBODY was familiar with him. Janis Joplin had just died, and I took my girlfriend Carol because we both wanted to see Kristofferson because he was the guy who had written Me And Bobby McGee. So Steve opened the show, and when he finished his set with City of New Orleans, he brought the house down. While we waited for the featured performer --- Kristofferson --- to start, I turned to Carol and said "You know, Kristofferson doesn't have to be any good. We've already gotten our money's worth." There is a video interview with Kris where he said he hated to have Steve open for him because he was such a hard act to follow. After that, I tried to catch his shows whenever I could. Met him and found him to be a warm, gracious, wonderful person. Wish I'd known him better.

There is a very comprehensive biography of Steve Goodman, and the story of his rise, his career, and his longtime fight with Leukemia is told in great detail. It's called Steve Goodman - Facing The Music, and I highly recommend it. There's also a DVD of his performance at Austin City Limits. Watch that and you'll be a convert.

Tom

Steve's gone, so he's not here to sing it for us any more. We should thank our lucky stars for recordings.

While we had him, he was a treasure.
 
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Had trouble editing, which accounts for the signature above the text in my last comment.

Just wanted to add that as far as I know, John Denver was first to record the song. He changed it so it would be more of a "John Denver Song" (whatever that is), and the credit on the album read something like "by John Denver, with Steve Goodman". Stevie wrote it, so he was livid about the incorrect credit as well as the fact he didn't like Denver's changes. It took quite a while to repair that rift.

Tom
 
Really enjoyable stories Tom! Chicago and Austin have a lot in common when it comes to music stories!

The incident where John Denver took credit for "The City of New Orleans" is a frequent happening in the music biz! This is why Dick Clark is credited with being a writer on so many classic Rock n Roll songs,( ie Chuck Berry) Robbie Robertson is credited on Mystery Train etc. Country music is especially known for Big Stars adding their name as co-writers to songs

I was @ Steve's ACL Taping and also frequently heard John Prine who is a fave here in Austin as is Chris of course!
 
I'd assume with your tongue in cheek manner you are aware you most likely experienced 58 Sleeper Guy ( find him on Facebook - unfortunately it doesn't look like he has his own website). On my 2 round trips on City of New Orleans I've only had him once. On my trip home from Memphis this year.

"He also urged us to contact our Congresspersons regarding Amtrak funding. I've never heard any SCA do this before."

From my experience this is his usual method of operation. The foreign couple from across the pond in the roomette across from me loved it when the music started playing and he did his routine over the car airwaves.

"This page is for Rion, sleeping car attendant on the legendary City of New Orleans, Amtrak's Train #58/59. I'm creating it to keep in touch with passengers and keep them abreast of happenings on Train 58, at Amtrak and in my life."
 
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all these SG remembrances,,,, reliving my youth in Chi,,,, but i would remiss not to mention how funny John Prine is,,, i was fortunate to listen to his stories one night, Belush's the next (i had a friend I partied with in Second City) it was a special time in a special place,,, and next week i get to relive GPK,,,,, there is a god,,,
 
How's this for a blast from the past? Last year I saw Bonnie Koloc at a venue in DC. New material, but her voice is still there. Beautiful. Need a time machine to go back & see her perform with Steve & John & Fred Holstein.

Tom
 
Resurrecting an old thread here...

Had the pleasure of Rion's company on our southbound trip on 59 last Sunday. As everyone said, he's among the best. Attentive, careful, pleasant and knowledgable. We also got the New Orleans speech as we rolled around Lake Ponchartrain, and we got the Johnny Cash version of the song.
 
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