LYRICS - PHANTOM 309 - Recorded by Red Sovine:
I was out on the West Coast, tryin' to make a buck and things didn't work out, I was down on my luck Got tired a-roamin' and bummin' around So I started thumbin' back East, toward my home town. Made a lot of miles, the first two days and I figured I'd be home in week, if my luck held out this way But, the third night I got stranded, way out of town at a cold, lonely crossroads, rain was pourin' down.
I was hungry and freezin', done caught a chill When the lights of a big semi topped the hillLord, I sure was glad to hear them air brakes come on And I climbed in that cab, where I knew it'd be warm. At the wheel sit a big man, he weighed about two-tenHe stuck out his hand and said with a grin "Big Joe's the name", I told him mine and he said: "The name of my rig is Phantom 309." I asked him why he called his rig such a name He said: "Son, this old Mack can put 'em all to shame. There ain't a driver, or a rig, a-runnin' any line Ain't seen nothin' but taillights from Phantom 309."
Well, we rode and talked the better part of the nightWhen the lights of a truck stop came in sightHe said: "I'm sorry son, this is as far as you go'Cause, I gotta make a turn, just on up the road. "Well, he tossed me a dime as he pulled her in low and said: "Have yourself a cup on old Big Joe. "When Joe and his rig roared out in the night, In nothin' flat, he was clean out of sight.
Well, I went inside and ordered me a cup. Told the waiter Big Joe was settin' me up. Aw!, you coulda heard a pin drop, it got deathly quiet and the waiter's face turned kinda white. Well, did I say something wrong? I said with a halfway grin He said: "Naw, this happens every now and then. Ever' driver in here knows Big Joe, but son, let me tell you what happened about ten years ago.
At the crossroads tonight, where you flagged him down there was a bus load of kids, comin' from town and they were right in the middle, when Big Joe topped the hill. It could have been slaughter, but he turned his wheel. Well, Joe lost control, went into a skid and gave his life to save that bunch a kids and there at that crossroads, was the end of the line for Big Joe and phantom 309.
But, every now and then, some hiker'll come by and like you, Big Joe'll give'em a ride here. Have another cup and forget about the dime. Keep it as a souvenir, from Big Joe and Phantom 309!".............
Red Sovine was born Woodrow Wilson Sovine July 17, 1918 in Charleston, West Virginia. He was an American country music singer associated with truck driving songs. The most famous was his 1976 number one hit "Teddy Bear". Red Sovine was taught to play guitar by his mother. By the time he was 17 years old, Red worked professionally as an entertainer. In 1948 he formed his own band, "The Echo Valley Boys." By 1949, Red replaced Hank Williams, Sr. on the Louisiana Hayride after Williams joined the Grand Ole Opry.
On April 4, 1980, Sovine suffered a heart attack while driving his Ford van in Nashville, which caused him to crash. The injuries and his heart attack were fatal. He was buried next to his wife Norma, who died in 1976. For many years after his death, his greatest hits collection (The Best Of Red Sovine) was advertised on television, exposing his music to a new generation of fans.
