Dizzy Dean sang this song every time he broadcast many baseball games. History -2 versions.
The Lake Erie, Wabash, and St. Louis Railroad Company won incorporation in 1852. However, no train named the “Cannonball” existed when this song debuted late in the 19th century. The anonymous hobos who made the song up may have been paying homage to a specific train, or to a “mythical train that runs everywhere,” as suggested by George Milburn in The Hobo’s Hornbook.
The Great Rock Island Route”, also known as “Wabash Cannonball“, is the title of an American folk song that describes the scenic beauty and predicaments of the Wabash Cannonball Express as it traveled on the Great Rock Island train route. Over many years, this popular song’s music has remained unchanged, while the verses have been updated by song artists. As early as 1882, sheet music titled “The Great Rock Island Route” was credited to J. A. Roff. This version and all subsequent versions contain a variation of this chorus.
It is a signature song of the Indiana State University Marching Sycamores and the Purdue All-American Marching Band as the ISU and Purdue campuses are adjacent to the Mighty Wabash River. It is also associated with the Stephen F. Austin State University Lumberjack Marching Band, the Kansas State University Marching Band, the Texas Tech University Goin’ Band from Raiderland, and the University of Texas Longhorn Band. It was also used as the theme song by USS Wabash.
The song “The Wabash Cannonball” is part of The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s 500 Songs that Shaped Rock and Roll list. It is the oldest song on the list.