June 25, 2009


Will he ever return?

Maybe, like the unfortunate Charlie of the Kingston Trio’s “M.T.A.”, Jesus is riding forever ‘neath the streets of Boston.

And he will never return.

Update: Everything you might want to know (and more) about the saga of Charlie and the M.T.A. may be found here.

posted by Sheila Ryan in music, religion, television, travel, urban legends, video 

comments

11 Responses to “Will he ever return?”

  1. Kathy Hilen-Smith on June 26th, 2009 at 6:23 am

    See, Jesus was the conductor demanding one more nickel, which is why poor Charlie couldn’t get off the damn train.

  2. Michael Smith on June 26th, 2009 at 6:30 am

    At least Charlie has some company:

  3. david on June 26th, 2009 at 8:54 am

    I’ve probably heard this song 20 times. And it wasn’t until I watched the video (with the rather explicit spoken intro) just now that I figured out what it was about.

  4. Kathy Hilen-Smith on June 26th, 2009 at 9:09 am

    Not to over analyze, but when he lit off for his ride that day, he only put ten cents in his pocket. What the fuck was he thinking?

  5. Sheila Ryan on June 26th, 2009 at 9:23 am

    Kathy, when I pulled this off YouTube and gave it a listen for the first time in ages, I thought exactly what occurred to you. Did I ever head out to work back in Chicago with only enough cash on me for a one-way fare on the CTA? That is something a person planning suicide (or going on the lam) would do.

  6. Kathy Hilen-Smith on June 26th, 2009 at 9:52 am

    And another thing: if the train is going so slow his wife can hand him a sandwich through the window, why doesn’t he just jump out? What’s wrong with Charlie? I think he deserves to be stuck on that train with Jesus.

  7. Do Earwigs Crawl in People’s Ears and Bore into Their Brains? : clusterflock on June 26th, 2009 at 9:58 am

    [...] of Michael Jackson’s unfortunate death, the first few riffs of Thriller, have done just that.  Why oh why am I hearing the Kingston Trio [...]

  8. Sheila Ryan on June 26th, 2009 at 10:07 am

    There are so many things wrong with the whole scenario. Why can’t his wife hand him a nickel along with the sandwich?

    Is his wife working or is she a homemaker? If she’s not pulling in income on her own, pretty soon she’s going to have to get a job. Then who will deliver sandwiches to Charlie? Not Jesus.

  9. Michael Smith on June 26th, 2009 at 10:41 am

    Maybe his wife doesn’t want to give him a nickel.

  10. Kathy Hilen-Smith on June 26th, 2009 at 11:17 am

    Turns out it’s not about Jesus at all. It’s about a quasi Communist plot to make sense of the fare schedule.

  11. Sheila Ryan on June 26th, 2009 at 11:44 am

    I do love me that thorough historical research. The reconstruction of Charlie’s route especially impressed me.

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