Phil Brey has been writing songs for decades. But they went unheard for nearly as long, the lyrics written down and stashed away, the melodies stored in his head or recorded.
Now, however, “Roll On Big Boy,†a song Brey wrote about the last giant Union Pacific locomotive that just rumbled through Nebraska — which he said showed “the power of steam in modern timesâ€Â — is getting international attention on YouTube, Spotify and other streaming platforms.
To say Brey could never have anticipated that is an understatement. He never intended his songs to see the light of day.
“I wrote songs, and I’d stick them in the drawer,†Brey said. “My wife and son said I should do something with them. I said 'No.' Maybe it was modesty.â€
The rest is providing the instrumental arrangements for the song, playing guitar and many of the other instruments in Mark’s Virginia studio, and, in the case of “Roll On Big Boy,†finding a Nashville singer to do the vocals.
Writing country songs about trains was nothing new for Phil Brey when he penned “Roll On Big Boy.†Nor was the appeal of the railroad.
“I was a hobo for a while,†the Raymond native said. “That may have got the adrenaline going on the train songs. Since the ‘70s, I’ve had songs coming through my head.
"The first was 'Nine Thousand.’ That was about a locomotive that came through the small town of Raymond. Everybody would stop and watch it come through. I got to thinking about it and it turned into a song.â€
Brey wrote that song when he was living in Maryland, playing in a bluegrass band The Public Domain and working at the Government Printing Office.
That was just one of the bands that Brey played in — although he never saw music as a career.
“Never quit your day job," Brey joked. “I started at about 13 years old. I played in one-room schoolhouses and taverns. I played in combos for four or five years, then I got completely away from country music playing jazz.
"I didn’t sing any more; I was just playing guitar once we started playing country clubs and Elks clubs.â€
Brey, who returned to Lincoln after he retired from the printing office in 1993, is still writing songs.
“The juices are still flowing,†he said. “I can’t believe it myself. I wrote 'Big Boy' last year, and I was 86 then. It just came to me, and I started writing it down. I told the story of the Big Boy and what it was.â€
The Breys got a firsthand look at the Big Boy as the legendary locomotive rolled through Fairbury last weekend.
Phil Brey’s song, Mark Brey’s production and arrangements are paired with footage of the locomotive, much of it shot with a drone by a Colorado filmmaker, in the video for “Roll On Big Boy†that’s on the duo’s YouTube channel, where it’s been watched more than 10,000 times.
“What’s special about this, what we love, is people from all over the world are watching the video,†Mark Brey said. “If you put in the search terms, Big Boy, Union Pacific 4014, the video comes up.
"There’s a little boy in the Philippines who loves locomotives who’s watched it. We get a lot of people from Calgary. It's doing well in the U.K. and Australia, and we’ve got a lot of viewers in India. I guess if you have a billion people, a few of them are going to be interested in locomotives.â€
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Top Journal Star photos for August
Reach the writer at 402-473-7244 or kwolgamott@journalstar.com. On Twitter @KentWolgamott Â