Lyrics
[Verse 1]
Old ties cracking under rust
Thirty years of settling dust
Silver paths turned black and bone
Iron lungs made out of stone
Half-bent spikes and splintered wood
Nothing moves where the station stood
[Pre-Chorus]
But when the clock strikes twelve
The fog begins to swell
Don't walk near the creek
Unless you're seeking what you seek
[Chorus]
Hear that whistle blowing through the pines
Phantom smoke on the silver lines
The Departed board when the air gets cold
Leaving behind the stories untold
Trading a spirit for a stray
Watching the embers fade away
Fade away
Fade away
[Verse 2]
I waited where the cedar bends
Met a shadow that the engine sends
Caleb's eyes are a gentle blue
Like the sky when the light breaks through
He speaks of wars I'll never know
In a voice soft and low
[Pre-Chorus]
They tell the newcomers to stay away
Lock the doors and start to pray
But I count down the ticking hours
Picking bunches of wilted flowers
[Chorus]
Hear that whistle blowing through the pines
Phantom smoke on the silver lines
The Departed board when the air gets cold
Leaving behind the stories untold
Trading a spirit for a stray
Watching the embers fade away
Fade away
Fade away
[Bridge]
They say he isn't right
Coming out of the pale white light
They say he isn't whole
Lacking blood and a beating soul
But his cold hand feels like home
Wherever we happen to roam
[Chorus]
Hear that whistle blowing through the pines
Phantom smoke on the silver lines
The Departed board when the air gets cold
Leaving behind the stories untold
Trading a spirit for a stray
Watching the embers fade away
Fade away
Fade away