Metrorail Song
(Mimi Stevens and Phyllis Gonigam)
Let me tell you a story of a man named Charley,
It's a tragic and fateful tale:
He bought a dollar farecard at Takoma station
Went to ride on the Metrorail.
But did he ever return? No, he never returned.
And his fate is still unlearned.
He may ride forever from White Flint to Ballston,
He's the man who never returned.
Charlie rode on the Red Line down to Metro Center
And he changed for MacPherson Square.
When he got there the computer told him "GO TO ADDFARE"
Charlie couldn't get out of there.
Charlie rides up and down the escalators at Rosslyn,
Crying: "What will become of me?"
How can I afford to see my sister in Rockville
Or my cousin in Cheverly?
Charlie's wife takes his lunch down to L'Enfant Plaza
Ever day a quarter to two
But the attendant say, "You can't eat on the Metro!"
Oh, what's poor Charley going to do?
Now you citizens of D.C. don't you think it's a scandal?
Look at Charlie getting thin and pale.
Won't somebody help him: put a quarter in the Addfare
And get Charlie off the Metrorail.
Or else he'll never return, no, he'll never return
What a sorry ending to my tale.
He'll just ride forever looking for the Green Line,
The phantom of the Metrorail.
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Written in 1986 by Mimi Stevens and Phyllis Gonigam
see also Charley on the MTA
DC
Thanks to Mudcat for the Digital Tradition!