@tony.hartzell Ah no I was wrong, you were right. He’s re-vamped his site.
All the PDF’s I referenced above are available here:
Some Sonny Junior and Sugar Ray Norcia playing some train rhythms in the style of Sonny Terry.
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I actually played a lot of train rhythms when I first started out on the harmonica. I was a singer prior to learning the thing, but I love a lot of country harmonica music. Fun fact: the harmonica train and the fox chase, both of which are more nowadays considered to be “blues”, actually have roots in Country music as they are most notably tied to one of the first big stars of the Grand Ole Opry, DeFord Bailey. A lot of the older country musicians prior to the 1960s frequently did this type of stuff. My favorite train player of this era has to be Lonnie Glosson (who also, afaik, was one of the first country players to frequently use growls in their playing).
Most of the good train stuff in modern times (after the 1960s), in my opinion, come from those who are also in the rhythm section. I don’t know up with this oddly specific combination, but percussionists and drummers who happen to play the harmonica tend to be the best when it comes to train stuff and creating solid grooves. Terry McMillan’s thousand covers of “This Train” are awesome examples of somebody who comes from a drummer/percussionist background doing this type of thing.
In terms of original songs with harmonica trains in them that aren’t just instrumentals, there isn’t really a whole lot of options. However, I do have one song that comes straight to my mind when I think of original train music. Check out the song, “High Tide in Wingo” by Norton Buffalo, specifically the version he did for his appearance on Austin City Limits. That song right there is one of the best modern train songs featuring a harmonica. I specifically mentioned the Austin City Limits version because of the extended harmonica solo section.