Load for Dad https://malwebb.bandcamp.com/track/load I love trains, I always have For rail, a high esteem I’ve always had It seems I got it from my Dad And so indeed I’m sad to see so many train lines closing And increasing rows of trucks imposing woes upon our roads It makes no sense! I’m so incensed! Thus hence, I must compose this ode Get the load off the road, get it back on track Our transport system’s out of whack Rail is three times, 3 to 1, triple the efficiency in fuel and upkeep Go bike and train, then boat, then plane Bus, truck and car only when needed Global warnings ought be heeded Progress unimpeded Hear that pleasing squeal of steel to steel That woo woo, that clicketty clack Get the load off the road, get it back on track Let’s retrain our brains and ride more than we drive and fly I’m sure it can be done in the long run Kind open minds combined can find a balance Utilise the talents of each transport mode Transfer the load, so it’s most appropriately stowed And if the way is wonky, get a donkey or a yak ... Trucking has its place for sure, but the law of door to door is sorely flawed in the long haul I’m afraid of that great weight of freight, borne on worn-out tyres by tired drivers, wired day and night Those umpteen wheelers hack and crack and smack the tarmac Belt the asphalt and beat it blue and black ... Sleepers wake! We’ve been derailed! Stuck in a rut! Quick! Get the jack! ... That truckin’ cardiac attack will drive us all to ruin and rack ... Less freighting over all would be ideal, of course Seek out a local source, and buy less stuff Don’t feel the lack, change tack Make and grow your own and share your stack, I dare you ’Cos if we all get the knack, it’s not a one-way cul-de-sac ... ©Mal Webb 2015 On a plane once I was sat beside the head of transport for Australia Post. He'd been at a Volvo truck launch is Alice Springs. The plane was delayed, so we spoke a lot. I asked him how much mail went by train and he said, "Ha! When I first got this job, I commissioned a study into using trains and transfer stations versus just trucks and found that trains are 3 times more efficient that trucks... 3 to 1! 3 to 1! People kept saying "but door to door has to be better" and I just kept repeating "3 to 1! 3 to 1!"... they must've thought I was a loony. And it didn't help anyway... people are obsessed with trucks". Thus I wrote this song. I was spending a lot of time with Dad, helping with his chemotherapy and discussing the song with him spurred me on to finish it. Thankfully, with the rising accpetance of intermodal freight systems in other parts of the world, good sense may eventually prevail. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Intermodal_freight_transport Musically, it uses a few of different train rhythms (two outside the train and one inside the carriage) that combine to make a 3 against 4 polyrhythm. Fun times! Here're a few lines that didn't make the cut! Should a maniac hijack your Cadillac or Pontiac, try a kayak or row a zodiac, cop no flack or get shellacked, get a snack sack on your packrack, backtrack to your shack or bivouac!