"Cass County" Survivor Game

[scottside]

That Old Flame....Martina Mc Bride doesn't do it for me.

[ktdids]

Where I am Now, again.

[DivineDon]

'Take a picture of this' - I like it but I just like the others more.

[NOLA]

Voting for Here Come Those Tears Again. I prefer Jackson's version over this one.

[Brooke]

Well, I forgot to vote again! I actually thought I had! :grrr:

I would have probably voted strategically since TBNTW was headed out! Shucks!

Oh well, I will join ktdids and vote for Where I Am Now. I like the rest better!

[AlreadyGone95]

I vote for That Old Flame. It's my least favorite of the remaining songs.

[shunlvswx]

I guess I go ahead and vote. I usually vote on the last day of voting.

I'm voting for Where I Am Now.

I like the song. Its kinda the sequel to Everything Is Different Now. Good song, but I think its kinda the weakest song that's left out of the seven.

[SoaringRockyMountainWay]

I vote for The Cost of Living. Let's stick to it, Freypower.

[maryc2130]

I think Where I Am Now is my least favorite of those left. It's okay but I've never been crazy about the style or the way Don sings it. Not sure why!

[jms18222]

I vote for Where I Am Now

[Jonny Come Lately]

I vote for Where I Am Now - I like it a lot, but as I enjoy all of the last seven I feel I can vote for it as it is the shortest of the remaining tracks, and also in order to protect a couple of my absolute favourites.

I'm really not sure what I'll vote for next time. Assuming my choice is eliminated, I think I probably need to listen to the remaining songs again before deciding.

[L101]

I'm voting for Where I Am Now this round - I like it but I like the other songs in contention in this round more.

[FWIW]

My vote is for Where I Am Now

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Wow - I am bombed that Where I Am Now is going down - it's my second or third favorite song on the album. I guess I'll go ahead and continue to try to even the score among some of the remaining songs so ...

I cast my vote for Train in the Distance.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

The next song to be eliminated in the Cass County Survivor is Where I Am Now. “Where I Am Now”, the tribe has spoken, and sometimes life just isn't fair. But it won’t do you any good to bellyache and moan. It's time to make one last victory lap, and then take a bow because you must leave the island immediately.

Votes
Where I Am Now – 8
The Cost of Living – 2
That Old Flame – 2
Take a Picture of This – 1
Here Come Those Tears Again – 1
Train in the Distance – 1

Vote Breakdown
Where I Am Now – ktdids
Where I Am Now – Brooke
Where I Am Now – shunlvswx
Where I Am Now – maryc2130
Where I Am Now – jms18222
Where I Am Now – Jonny Come Lately
Where I Am Now – Lacken101
Where I Am Now – FWIW
The Cost of Living– Freypower
The Cost of Living – SoaringRockyMountainWay
That Old Flame – scottside
That Old Flame – AlreadyGone95
Take a Picture of This – DivineDon
Here Come Those Tears Again – NOLA
Train in the Distance – Ive always been a dreamer

Songs eliminated:
When I Stop Dreaming 3/24
She Sang Hymns Out of Tune 3/26
Too Much Pride 3/28
Praying for Rain 3/30
Bramble Rose 4/01
Words Can Break Your Heart 4/03
Too Far Gone 4/05
Waiting Tables 4/07
A Younger Man 4/09
It Don’t Matter To the Sun 4/11
The Brand New Tennessee Waltz 4/13
Where I Am Now 4/15

Songs remaining:
The Cost of Living
No, Thank You
Take a Picture of This
That Old Flame
Train in the Distance
Here Come Those Tears Again


Voting for Round Thirteen begins now.

[scottside]

That Old Flame

[timfan]

Here Come Those Tears Again

[NOLA]

Here Come Those Tears Again, again.

[DivineDon]

Take a picture of this - again!

[AlreadyGone95]

I'm sad to see that Where I Am Now has been voted off. It's my 3rd favorite. This round, I vote for Here Come Those Tears Again.

[Freypower]

The Cost Of Living

[ktdids]

I'm going with Take a Picture of This. I really like Here Come Those Tears Again, Don brings a poignancy to it that just speaks to me.

[maryc2130]

I will vote for Here Come Those Tears Again. I like the song, but I very much like all the others left. This falls just a tad below the others, IMHO.

[SoaringRockyMountainWay]

The Cost of Living

[Jonny Come Lately]

I went back and listened to the remaining half a dozen tracks. It's still difficult to choose because I think all of these songs are among the best he's done for this album, however I think I have established an order of preference.

I'll vote for Here Come Those Tears Again - I think it's wonderful, but it is a cover of Jackson's song and all of the others remaining are Don originals. I think his songwriting game on this album was strong and thus I think it's easiest to vote for the cover at this stage.

[L101]

JCL - I thought I could count on you to help save Here come those tears again :sad: :sad:

So in a futile attempt to try and save it, I'm voting for Take A Picture Of This - I like it but I prefer Don's singing on HCTTA

[shunlvswx]

Here Come These Tears Again

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Well, it looks like Here Come Those Tears Again is going down, so I'll vote same as I did last round ...

I cast my vote for Train in the Distance.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

The next song to be eliminated in the Cass County Survivor is Here Come Those Tears Again. “Here Come Those Tears Again”, just when you thought you were going to make it through and even though you looked so sure, the tribe has spoken. I watch you walking out the door to leave the island and I’m tearing up again. I'm going back inside and turning out those light, and I'll be in the dark but you'll be out of sight.

Votes
Here Come Those Tears Again – 6
Take a Picture of This – 3
The Cost of Living – 2
That Old Flame – 1
Train in the Distance – 1

ote Breakdown
Here Come Those Tears Again – NOLA
Here Come Those Tears Again – timfan
Here Come Those Tears Again – AlreadyGone95
Here Come Those Tears Again – maryc2130
Here Come Those Tears Again – Jonny Come Lately
Here Come Those Tears Again – shunlvswx
Take a Picture of This – DivineDon
Take a Picture of This – ktdids
Take a Picture of This – Lacken101
The Cost of Living– Freypower
The Cost of Living – SoaringRockyMountainWay
That Old Flame – scottside
Train in the Distance – Ive always been a dreamer

Songs eliminated:
When I Stop Dreaming 3/24
She Sang Hymns Out of Tune 3/26
Too Much Pride 3/28
Praying for Rain 3/30
Bramble Rose 4/01
Words Can Break Your Heart 4/03
Too Far Gone 4/05
Waiting Tables 4/07
A Younger Man 4/09
It Don’t Matter To the Sun 4/11
The Brand New Tennessee Waltz 4/13
Where I Am Now 4/15
Here Come Those Tears Again 4/17

Songs remaining:
The Cost of Living
No, Thank You
Take a Picture of This
That Old Flame
Train in the Distance


Voting for Round Fourteen begins now.

[Freypower]

I didn't get into The Cost Of Living & I will vote for it again. I have to say that I thought this version of HCTTA was excellent & I liked how he speeded up the tempo - my only complaint was it went on a bit too long (so does the original).

[scottside]

Take A Picture Of This

[DivineDon]

I love HCTTA!!!!

Once again I vote for 'Take a picture of this'.

[Aussiefan]

Going with Take a Picture of This...

[sodascouts]

I'm also going with "Take a Picture of This." The song is good overall but the last verse turns me off a bit. It comes off as snarky when I think it would fit the mood of the song more if he was just sad and resigned. Of course, I realize he wanted to do the ironic turn on the title which was an important structural device, and making the title phrase a sarcastic dig accomplishes that. I just wish the shift from sadness to bitter mockery was less abrupt.

[shunlvswx]

Dang. I had Take a Picture of This in the finals. I will not vote for this song. This was my favorite song off the album.

SAVE Take a Picture Of This.

I'm going to vote with FP and cast my vote for The Cost Of Living to save Take a Picture of This.

[L101]

Seeing as one my favourite songs for the final HCTTA was voted off in the last round and I won't vote for The Cost Of Living, I'm voting for Take A Picture Of This - I agree with Soda on the snarky (love that word) ending of the song, it does kind of ruin it.

Vote for Take A Picture Of This

[timfan]

Take a Picture of this is also my favourite song from this album so I'll vote for The Cost of Living (and encourage others to do the same) to SAVE Take a Picture.

BTW I love all 5 of the remaining songs so.. this has become excruciatingly tough ;)

[maryc2130]

Well, I really like Take A Picture of This. The last verse doesn't bother me at all. In fact, I don't think the song would have as much impact if it were sad and less brash. However, I absolutley love The Cost of Living. As I mentioned before, i adore Don's and Merle's' voices together. I am sad that I'll never get to see it live with the two of them, unless there's a tape of it around somewhere that has yet to be released. I also love the lyrics, the double meaning of the title, the fact that Don wrote it to sing with Merle, whose music he very much admires. My daughter finds the song really sad, but maybe because I'm a little closer to Don's age, it just seems realistic to me.

So, to try and save The Cost of Living, I'll vote for Take a Picture of This.

[NOLA]

OK, this is where the voting starts to get really tough, because j'adore the remaining songs.

So, in a feeble attempt to save either TAPOT or TCOL, I'll vote for That Old Flame.

[Desperada]

Train in the Distance

[Brooke]

Well, I'm sad that Here Come Those Tears Again has gone, but I guess something had to go and I couldn't get here over the weekend.

My favorite songs have made it so far so I'm going to vote strategically for No, Thank You .

[AlreadyGone95]

The Cost of Living and No, Thank You are in my top 5 overall and in my top 3 of the remaining songs. Therefore, I vote for Take a Picture of This.

[ktdids]

So sad to see Here Come Those Tears Again go, I still have a favorite in the running though, hope that one survives! In the meantime, it's Take a Picture of This that gets my vote still.

[FWIW]

My least favorite song remaining is No, Thank You, but I don't think it will get enough votes to overtake Take a Picture of This. I'll therefore vote for my next least favorite, The Cost of Living, this round to try to save Take a Picture.

Shun, I think we need to be a little louder :)

Vote for The Cost of Living. Save Take a Picture of This.

[jms18222]

I am sad Here Comes Those Tears is gone so I vote Take A Picture

[Jonny Come Lately]

I love both The Cost of Living and Take A Picture of This - both would be in my top five songs on the album. I also absolutely love No, Thank You and Train In The Distance, so I'll go with my heart and vote for That Old Flame. It's another song I rate very highly, but after listening to them all again, I find I just like the other four that bit more. I could help guarantee the survival of one of my big favourites, but that's how I feel. Whatever will be will be, I guess.

Apologies for helping to vote Here Come Those Tears Again off. I do love it but at the time I was worried that a late flurry of votes might eliminate The Cost of Living, which I wanted to save, and it seemed the only realistic alternative to me at the time. In the back of my mind thought I thought 'maybe I should abstain'! As penance, I suggest the following change to the lyrics, with additional tambourine accompaniment, dedicated to me: :laugh:

Here Come Those Stevie smacks again, :steviesmack:
Just when I thought I was getting over the last few! :steviesmack:

[SoaringRockyMountainWay]

The Cost of Living

[Glennsallnighter]

My favourite is still holding strong so I'm going to vote for 'Take a Picture of This' in an effort to vote strategically

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Well - This round is settled, so I'll stick with my same vote ...

I cast my vote for Train in the Distance.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

The next song to be eliminated in the Cass County Survivor is Take a Picture of This. “Take a Picture of This”, we know you gave it everything you had, thru the good times and the bad, but the tribe has spoken. So give us a wave as we take a picture of you leaving the island. This is you walking away.

Votes
Take a Picture of This – 10
The Cost of Living – 5
That Old Flame – 2
Train in the Distance – 2
No, Thank You – 1

Vote Breakdown
Take a Picture of This – scottside
Take a Picture of This – DivineDon
Take a Picture of This – Aussiefan
Take a Picture of This – sodascouts
Take a Picture of This – Lacken101
Take a Picture of This – maryc2130
Take a Picture of This – AlreadyGone95
Take a Picture of This – ktdids
Take a Picture of This – jms18222
Take a Picture of This – Glennsallnighter
The Cost of Living– Freypower
The Cost of Living – shunlvswx
The Cost of Living – timfan
The Cost of Living – FWIW
The Cost of Living – SoaringRockyMountainWay
That Old Flame – NOLA
That Old Flame – Jonny Come Lately
Train in the Distance – Desperada
Train in the Distance – Ive always been a dreamer
No, Thank You – Brooke

Songs eliminated:
When I Stop Dreaming 3/24
She Sang Hymns Out of Tune 3/26
Too Much Pride 3/28
Praying for Rain 3/30
Bramble Rose 4/01
Words Can Break Your Heart 4/03
Too Far Gone 4/05
Waiting Tables 4/07
A Younger Man 4/09
It Don’t Matter To the Sun 4/11
The Brand New Tennessee Waltz 4/13
Where I Am Now 4/15
Here Come Those Tears Again 4/17
Take a Picture of This 4/19

Songs remaining:
The Cost of Living
No, Thank You
That Old Flame
Train in the Distance


Voting for Round Fifteen begins now.

[Freypower]

Once again, The Cost Of Living.

[scottside]

That Old Flame

[AlreadyGone95]

I vote for That Old Flame.

[DivineDon]

Gosh, this is soooo hard - I love them all! But I'm going to vote for 'That old flame'.

[shunlvswx]

Who wants to go on alliance to save That Old Flame?

SAVE That Old Flame.

[maryc2130]

Gosh, this is soooo hard - I love them all! But I'm going to vote for 'That old flame'.

I agree. It's very tough to choose. I really like all the songs remaining. I'm going to agree with you again, though,DD, and choose That Old Flame.

[NOLA]

Sad about TAPOT, really like that song, but voting again for That Old Flame.

[Brooke]

I love all the remaining songs, but am going with No, Thank You again since it's not my top pick.

JCL, you crack me up! :lol:

[Glennsallnighter]

Who wants to go on alliance to save That Old Flame?

SAVE That Old Flame.
Me, I want to save it too

[FWIW]

I want to save That Old Flame, too.

[shunlvswx]

OK. I'm going to join FP again. I'm voting for The Cost of Living again to save That Old Flame.

I like The Cost of Living, but I like That Old Flame more.

[SoaringRockyMountainWay]

I'm voting for The Cost of Living to save That Old Flame.

[timfan]

I'll join voting for The Cost of Living to save That Old Flame

[ktdids]

Tough choice time. I like That Old Flame more than Cost of Living, just a little more, so It's Cost of Living for me this time.

[Jonny Come Lately]

That Old Flame gets my vote again. It's a very good song - coincidentally the chorus has been going round in my head this afternoon - but I like The Cost of Living just that bit better.

I was quite sorry to see Take A Picture of This go in the last round, I feel it's one of the best songs on the album and one that I find myself enjoying more with time. This song has always reminded me subtly of something else completely different (not by Don, with the Eagles or solo, and not a country song) but I'd never been able to put my finger on it until now. I now think it reminds me of Don't Look Back In Anger by Oasis (not really a big fan but that's one of their best songs IMO), it's the combination of a powerful chorus and that sense of it being the final moment of a relationship.

[Freypower]

Me, I want to save it too

So which song are you, shun & FWIW voting for, then? You didn't say.

[FWIW]

I wanted to see how other votes were cast. I think I'm going to vote for The Cost of Living. I like That Old Flame more.

[WalshFan88]

I'm not voting as mentioned before but thought I'd say something...

I LOVE That Old Flame. The rock chordal chunk under the verses is the saving aspect of this album for me. I do not like classic country music and the rock edge of the album is the only thing I honestly like about it. I like new country (because it doesn't sound like classic country), and rock n' roll and that song is the best part about it I think.

[jms18222]

That Old Flame. Martina out sang Don.

[L101]

Well as I love both The Cost Of Living and That Old Flame, I can't vote for either of them as they were my final two :-(

So, I'm voting for No, Thank You

[Glennsallnighter]

So which song are you, shun & FWIW voting for, then? You didn't say.

I was waiting to see!

I will vote off The Cost of Living as it seems to present the best challenge

[FWIW]

I'm voting for The Cost of Living this round.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

Well even if this round ended in a tie, The Cost of Living would be eliminated because it has more previous votes. At this point in the game, I can't see any advantage to voting strategically, so I'll join the coalition since it's my least favorite of the remaining songs ...

I cast my vote for The Cost of Living.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

The next song to be eliminated in the Cass County Survivor is The Cost of Living. “The Cost of Living”, the tribe has spoken and you must take the hand you’re dealt even if your heart disobeys. Common sense say let it go, so please leave the island immediately.

Votes
The Cost of Living – 8
That Old Flame – 7
No, Thank You – 2

Vote Breakdown
The Cost of Living– Freypower
The Cost of Living – shunlvswx
The Cost of Living – SoaringRockyMountainWay
The Cost of Living – timfan
The Cost of Living – ktdids
The Cost of Living – FWIW
The Cost of Living – Glennsallnighter
The Cost of Living – Ive always been a dreamer
That Old Flame – scottside
That Old Flame – AlreadyGone95
That Old Flame – DivineDon
That Old Flame – maryc2130
That Old Flame – NOLA
That Old Flame – Jonny Come Lately
That Old Flame – jms18222
No, Thank You – Brooke
No, Thank You – Lacken101

Songs eliminated:
When I Stop Dreaming 3/24
She Sang Hymns Out of Tune 3/26
Too Much Pride 3/28
Praying for Rain 3/30
Bramble Rose 4/01
Words Can Break Your Heart 4/03
Too Far Gone 4/05
Waiting Tables 4/07
A Younger Man 4/09
It Don’t Matter To the Sun 4/11
The Brand New Tennessee Waltz 4/13
Where I Am Now 4/15
Here Come Those Tears Again 4/17
Take a Picture of This 4/19
The Cost of Living 4/21

Songs remaining:
No, Thank You
That Old Flame
Train in the Distance


Voting for Round Sixteen begins now.

[sodascouts]

I ADORE "That Old Flame." It's the best song on the album - absolutely fantastic, IMHO, and one of my top 25 Don songs EVER.

"Train in the Distance" is an alright song, but nowhere near as good as "That Old Flame". It can drag a bit. I think it should be the next to go, and I hope those that love "That Old Flame" will join me in voting for it.

SAVE THAT OLD FLAME! VOTE TRAIN IN THE DISTANCE!

I cast my vote for "Train in the Distance."

[shunlvswx]

I'm voting for Train In The Distance. The other two are my favorites.

[Freypower]

Sorry Soda. That Old Flame.

[shunlvswx]

I'm joining you, Soda. I had already voted after I saw your post. I love That Old Flame and NO, Thank You. I adore Vince and Martina.

Save both That Old Flame and No, Thank You.

[AlreadyGone95]

Train in the Distance is my favorite song on the album, so I vote for That Old Flame.

Save Train in Distance.Vote for That Old Flame.

[scottside]

That Old Flame

[ktdids]

Oh, so hard to choose, like all 3, but they're so different in style. I guess I'm going with No,Thank You, and then see how the voting goes down for the other two!

[DivineDon]

'Train in the Distance' is my favourite song on the album so I vote for

'That Old Flame'

[Desperada]

Train In The Distance

[NOLA]

Sad to see TCOL go down, too. :(

That Old Flame, for the third time.

[Brooke]

No, No, No, save That Old Flame!

It's my favorite song on the album too! I think Don and Martina sound wonderful together and it's much more interesting than the other two!

I love all the remaining, but something has to go.

I vote for No, Thank You again!

[DivineDon]

I'm surprised people are putting 'That old flame' ahead of 'Train in the distance' - its catchy but forgettable -not a Don classic like TITD imo. I love that its autobiographical and when that guitar cuts in I get a lump in my throat everytime.

'You can ride that train to the far end of creation, away from everything and everyone you know. You'd better make friends with your angels and your demons, they will be riding with you whenever you may go but you have to go'! - profound.

SAVE TRAIN IN THE DISTANCE!!!

[L101]

I'm disappointed that TCOL is gone - apart from one song, all the best ones have been voted out imo.... :-(

I love That Old Flame - I think it has a great rockin' song and Don and Martina sound really good together - I watched Don's ACL show again recently and That Old Flame just stood out !!

So I'm joining Soda's alliance:
SAVE THAT OLD FLAME! VOTE TRAIN IN THE DISTANCE!

I vote for Train In The Distance - I like it but it takes a while to get going and it is a tad boring - I'd never thought I'd say this about a Don song - but I'd love to hear just the instrumental of this song - that guitar is fab!!

[Jonny Come Lately]

I'm sorry Soda, but I can't agree with you at all - I LOVE Train In The Distance. In a way I am glad I have not needed to have defended it so far, but to me, it is the best song on the album. As DD has pointed out, it has have the great autobiographical lyrics, things that are very personal to Don (I especially love the verse about putting pennies on the railroad tracks), and the music is beautiful, especially the guitar solo. It's a song that I feel he has been working towards for his entire life, a bit like The Heart of the Matter was. I'd say it was in my top 10 of Don's solo tracks. I do think That Old Flame is a good song, and perhaps a bit more immediately appealing, but I think Train In The Distance is a timeless classic in the making and showcases Don at his very best as a songwriter.

I would hate for Train In The Distance to get shunted into a siding when it's so close to it's destination. In my opinion, it's the pride of the fleet.

I therefore vote for That Old Flame. I can only repeat what AG95 has already suggested:

SAVE TRAIN IN THE DISTANCE! VOTE FOR THAT OLD FLAME!

(and if, you really don't want to vote for That Old Flame, vote for No, Thank You. Anything to save Train!)

[timfan]

Though I love the song, I am voting for Train in the Distance in hopes of saving That Old Flame (which is my favourite of the remaining three songs).

[jms18222]

Again I vote That Old Flame

[SoaringRockyMountainWay]

This is such a hard decision. I guess I'm going to have to go with Train in the Distance.

[maryc2130]

I'm sorry Soda, but I can't agree with you at all - I LOVE Train In The Distance. In a way I am glad I have not needed to have defended it so far, but to me, it is the best song on the album. As DD has pointed out, it has have the great autobiographical lyrics, things that are very personal to Don (I especially love the verse about putting pennies on the railroad tracks), and the music is beautiful, especially the guitar solo. It's a song that I feel he has been working towards for his entire life, a bit like The Heart of the Matter was. I'd say it was in my top 10 of Don's solo tracks. I do think That Old Flame is a good song, and perhaps a bit more immediately appealing, but I think Train In The Distance is a timeless classic in the making and showcases Don at his very best as a songwriter.

I would hate for Train In The Distance to get shunted into a siding when it's so close to it's destination. In my opinion, it's the pride of the fleet.

I therefore vote for That Old Flame. I can only repeat what AG95 has already suggested:

SAVE TRAIN IN THE DISTANCE! VOTE FOR THAT OLD FLAME!

(and if, you really don't want to vote for That Old Flame, vote for No, Thank You. Anything to save Train!)

Very nice description, JCL!

I'm sad to see The Cost of Living go. It's probably my favorite song on the album, but in a way I'm surprised it's survived as long as it has.

I love Train in the Distance. It's so evocative. It brings me right back to my childhood, in a completely different place(New England) and slightly different time than Don's. My grandmother's house wasn't far from a train track, so I can relate to the part about "summer nights at Grandma's house, cozy in my bed" as well as putting pennies on the track and running and fetching them back. It's such a beautiful song.

I like all three songs left, but I think That Old Flame is definitely the weakest.I like the lyrics, the tune and the storyline but it's lacking something somehow. So, I vote for That Old Flame.

[Glennsallnighter]

That Old Flame is my favourite on the CD and as I listened to it the first time the evening it was released it was the first song that struck me and really stuck in my head. I was singing the chorus as it ended too - maybe some people call that simplicity but for me it meant that I loved it. So I want to save it and will vote for Train in the Distance

[DivineDon]

and the music is beautiful, especially the guitar solo. It's a song that I feel he has been working towards for his entire life, a bit like The Heart of the Matter was. I'd say it was in my top 10 of Don's solo tracks. I do think That Old Flame is a good song, and perhaps a bit more immediately appealing, but I think Train In The Distance is a timeless classic in the making and showcases Don at his very best as a songwriter.....

...and if, you really don't want to vote for That Old Flame, vote for No, Thank You. Anything to save Train!)..

I so agree with you JCL, I would put it up there with HOTM and your idea about voting for No, thank you is good. It's my second favourite but I'd sacrifice it to save TITD.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

I cast my vote for Train in the Distance.

Although I appreciate the passion some of you have around these songs, I have to be honest in saying that none of the songs on this album come close to packing the emotional punch of the stupendous The Heart of the Matter for me. That one is almost incomparable AFAIC.

As of right now, this round is tied so I would encourage the players that haven't voted to get in here and do so.

[Jonny Come Lately]

I love Train in the Distance. It's so evocative. It brings me right back to my childhood, in a completely different place(New England) and slightly different time than Don's. My grandmother's house wasn't far from a train track, so I can relate to the part about "summer nights at Grandma's house, cozy in my bed" as well as putting pennies on the track and running and fetching them back. It's such a beautiful song.

Thanks from all my fellow Train In The Distance fans for your kind words. It's great that we can share in our love of this song whatever happens in this round. Thanks also for the story - it's funny because I always liked trains, but putting coins on the rails isn't something I can relate to because in the UK, almost all railway lines have to be fenced in by law and therefore it is not possible to get so close to the tracks. This is the reason why British steam locomotives were not usually fitted with 'cow catchers' on the front, unlike their American equivalents, as there was less risk of people or animals straying onto the line in front of trains.

[AlreadyGone95]

I love Train in the Distance because I can relate to hearing a train in the distance growing up and the song in general. My home is than a football field length from tracks for freight trains. I've walked the tracks and put coins on them many times. Dreams of far off places and family ties run deep describes my chilhood. I love the verse about your demons and angels staying with you. The first time I heard the song, the whistle for my local train started to blow just as the song was ending with the train whistle.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

In another tied round, the next song to be eliminated in the Cass County Survivor is That Old Flame. “That Old Flame”, the tribe has spoken and we know this is ending badly, but hope you don’t end up angry for a long, long time. You know nothing, nothing stays the same, so it’s time to move on and leave this island. The remaining two songs can step forward for the final round …

No, Thank You vs. Train in the Distance

Votes
That Old Flame – 8
Train in the Distance – 8
No, Thank You – 2

Previous Votes
That Old Flame – 12
Train in the Distance – 2

Vote Breakdown
That Old Flame – Freypower
That Old Flame – AlreadyGone95
That Old Flame – scottside
That Old Flame – DivineDon
That Old Flame – NOLA
That Old Flame – Jonny Come Lately
That Old Flame – jms18222
That Old Flame – maryc2130Train in the Distance – sodascouts
Train in the Distance – shunlvswx
Train in the Distance – Desperada
Train in the Distance – Lacken101
Train in the Distance – timfan
Train in the Distance – SoaringRockyMountainWay
Train in the Distance – Glennsallnighter
Train in the Distance – Ive always been a dreamer
No, Thank You – ktdids
No, Thank You – Brooke

Songs eliminated:
When I Stop Dreaming 3/24
She Sang Hymns Out of Tune 3/26
Too Much Pride 3/28
Praying for Rain 3/30
Bramble Rose 4/01
Words Can Break Your Heart 4/03
Too Far Gone 4/05
Waiting Tables 4/07
A Younger Man 4/09
It Don’t Matter To the Sun 4/11
The Brand New Tennessee Waltz 4/13
Where I Am Now 4/15
Here Come Those Tears Again 4/17
Take a Picture of This 4/19
The Cost of Living 4/21
That Old Flame 4/23

Songs remaining:

No, Thank You vs. Train in the Distance

We’re at the last round. This round is special, so it’s done differently. We’re not going to vote for the song we want to go. We’re going to vote for the song we want to win. This is how they do it on the real show, after all.


Once again...

VOTE FOR THE SONG YOU WANT TO WIN.


Voting for the final round begins now.

[shunlvswx]

I'm kinda upset that That Old Flame is gone.

Anyway. It doesn't matter. I'm going to give my explanation for each song and which one I'm voting for.

Train In The Distance. I did like it when I first heard it, but I started to not like it. Someone said that Martina oversings Don. Not really. I thought Don and Martina blended well together compare to Dolly and Don. Lucinda Williams overpowers Don on this song. She comes out too strong on this song. I've never was a fan of her music, but she wrote some great songs. It is something about this song that I don't like.

No, Thank You. Now this song is kinda like Dirty Laundry and Get Over It. You know Don has to have a political, television or environmental like song on his album. LOL Anyway. I'm a huge of Vince Gill and I was soo happy Don asked Vince to sing and play guitar solo on his album. Vince was on three songs on this album. I guess Don really like Vince. LOL Anyway. Every since I became a fan of Don's music. I hope and prayed that Vince and Don sing together. I got my wish. They sounded so great together. Their voices blended great together. Vince sings on a lot of people's album and I've never heard a song that Vince sang backup on that was bad.

My vote goes to No, Thank You. I was going to vote for No, Thank You anyway if it was between No, Thank You and That Old Flame. I had Take a Picture of This and That Old Flame as my choices of going to the finals, but I'm glad No, Thank You made it to the finals. This is actually one of my favorite songs from the album.

[timfan]

my vote is Train in the Distance for the WIN!!!

[WalshFan88]

I'm not voting as said before but just a quick bit about the two remaining songs.

I prefer No, Thank You. It's the least sounding traditional country of the two songs. As a rock guy and a modern country (more rock and rnb soudning) guy, I really like heavier stuff and while I wish TOF would have won, I think No, Thank You is the better song.

[Freypower]

Train In The Distance because it's more about Don's life in a positive way.

[AlreadyGone95]

I vote for Train in the Distance to win.

[DivineDon]

It has to be 'Train in the Distance' for me though 'No, thank you' is my second favourite and like Shun, I'm a huge Vince Gill fan.

Train in the Distance to win!

[scottside]

No Thank You for the win.

[Ive always been a dreamer]

No need for me to wait to vote now. This is an easy choice for me as well. This has been my favorite song since the very first time I heard the album ...

NO, THANK YOU for the win!

[jms18222]

My vote to win is No Thank You because his son played on that track & because of the line "Don't tell me to TAKE IT EASY"!

Sorry Train...

[sodascouts]

I am so bummed about my fave being gone! It was the real standout track for me. Farewell That Old Flame.

Well, I also enjoy No, Thank You. It's catchy.

No, Thank You for the win!

[NOLA]

Train in the Distance for the win!!!

Squash "No, Thank You" flat!

[SoaringRockyMountainWay]

No, Thank You for the win!!!! It is definitely my favorite song on the album.

[maryc2130]

I very much like No, Thank you. It's got a great, catchy tune, the harmony is excellent, and the lyrics are pure Don Henley. It's a great song, but I have to vote for A Train in the Distance for the win. As I said before, it's so evocative. I like the way it brings images into my head. I also like how it talks about the bittersweetness of aging, and always yearning for something in our lives, whether we're young or old. When we're young, we want to go away and have exciting adventures. When we're older, we yearn for those innocent days and often want to return to our roots. Just a lovely song, IMHO.

[ktdids]

Train in the Distance for the win!
I like No, Thank You, it's such a Don song, but hearing Train in the Distance live, kind of made it a favorite for me.

[Glennsallnighter]

I'm going for No Thank You for the win - I was sorry to see 'That Old Flame' go but happy that it made 3rd place!!

[Brooke]

Well, I'm sorry to see That Old Flame go as I had it as being the winner. I just love it and I think Martina does a great job with Don. I was worried she might oversing Don as her voice is so powerful, but I don't feel that she did.

Now, I was voting for No, Thank You to try to even up the score for the final, but it doesn't like that will help any and it will win. I really love it and also Train. I think Train is really beautiful and thought provoking. No,TY is a typical Don rant. Different songs, but both are great. Eenie, meenie......

I'm going to listen to both again before I decide. :headscratch:

[Desperada]

No, Thank You to win

[timfan]

Looks like this is gonna be a close one.... ;)

[FWIW]

I'm voting for Train in the Distance for the win!

[L101]

Well, I'm sad that That Old Flame didn't make the final two - it deserved to win in my book :-(

I'm going to vote for Train In The Distance - simply because I prefer it more than No, thank you - any song that puts 'Achy Breaky Heart' into my head is not good !! :grin:

[Jonny Come Lately]

This is an interesting final - I feel both songs are worthy candidates and are high up my personal list.

No, Thank You is among my top five songs on the album. I think it is another example of Don's great social commentary pieces. I really like the harmonica in the intro, and the Take It Easy reference (the lyric by itself is clever, but even more so with the Bernie-esque guitar lick). It has energy yet I'd say it still definitely has a country sound, more so than That Old Flame or even Take A Picture of This.

However, I am delighted to say that the song which I consider to be my absolute favourite and the highlight of the album is still standing. I was relieved to see it get past That Old Flame. I totally agree with maryc's description of this song, and I agree that it is very evocative. I would personally vote for it over any of the other songs in the game, as good as many of them are.

I am therefore extremely happy to vote for Train In The Distance for the win.

[Brooke]

At this point, TITD has a slight lead and I'd better vote before I head home.

After careful consideration I'm voting for

No, Thank You

if for no other reason than the TIE reference! I love them both but prefer the more upbeat song. Don rant at his best!

[LuvTim]

Train In The Distance

[Ive always been a dreamer]

The tribe has spoken and we have a winner in the Cass County Survivor. The round was very close and looked like it was headed for a tie, but No, Thank You - we weren't going to stand for that. So the song that traveled the tracks the farthest distance is ...

Train in the Distance!

Votes
Train in the Distance – 11
No, Thank You – 9

Vote Breakdown
Train in the Distance – timfan
Train in the Distance – Freypower
Train in the Distance – AlreadyGone95
Train in the Distance – DivineDon
Train in the Distance – NOLA
Train in the Distance – maryc2130
Train in the Distance – ktdids
Train in the Distance – Lacken101
Train in the Distance – FWIW
Train in the Distance – Jonny Come Lately
Train in the Distance – LuvTim
No, Thank You – shunlvswx
No, Thank You – scottside
No, Thank You – Ive always been a dreamer
No, Thank You – jms18222
No, Thank You – sodascouts
No, Thank You – SoaringRockyMountainWay
No, Thank You – Glennsallnighter
No, Thank You – Desperada
No, Thank You – Brooke

Songs eliminated:
When I Stop Dreaming 3/24
She Sang Hymns Out of Tune 3/26
Too Much Pride 3/28
Praying for Rain 3/30
Bramble Rose 4/01
Words Can Break Your Heart 4/03
Too Far Gone 4/05
Waiting Tables 4/07
A Younger Man 4/09
It Don’t Matter To the Sun 4/11
The Brand New Tennessee Waltz 4/13
Where I Am Now 4/15
Here Come Those Tears Again 4/17
Take a Picture of This 4/19
The Cost of Living 4/21
That Old Flame 4/23
No, Thank You 4/25


CONGRATULATIONS TRAIN IN THE DISTANCE!


Thanks for playing, everybody!

[WalshFan88]

I'm still wishing That Old Flame or No, Thank You won. I like the more rocked up songs, as opposed to classic country I guess. Which is why the Cass County album is hit or miss for me. I'm more into Jason Aldean or Sam Hunt (rock or rnb sounding today's modern country).

That said, TITD isn't a bad song. It's just not heavy enough for me.

[sodascouts]

Wow. I didn't expect that song to win. This has been a very interesting Survivor! Congrats to Train!

And thank you so much, dreamer, for all your hard work in running this game. You're a treasure!

[Glennsallnighter]

I didnt expect Train to win either, but it is very worthy! Thanks to Soda and Dreamer for their continued hard work over the Survivor.

[DivineDon]

Well, actually I felt that Train in the Distance was the outstanding track on the album the moment I first heard it...

....I'm really pleased that it won plus my second favourite, No, thank you was runner up! :applause:

[L101]

Well, I didn't expect Train to win or No, thank you to be second - none of my favourites made it to the last few rounds apart from That old flame :-(

Anyway, it was a good game, a bit emotional at the start :-) but ended on a high! Thanks Dreamer for keeping it going :thumbsup:

[shunlvswx]

I didn't expect Train in the Distance to make the finals. I thought it would had been gone many rounds ago, but I guess a lot of people loved the song.

I kinda thought it was going to be Take a Picture of This and No, Thank You or That Old Flame in the finals. Boy was it wrong. We had a lot of songs that were A Little Engine that Could. It couldn't be eliminated. LOL

Congrats to Train IN the Distance. I like the song, but its not my top favorites as Take A Picture Of This, That Old Flame and No, Thank You.

Thank you, IABD for doing the game.

[Brooke]

I didn't think Train would win either, but it is a great song! No problem for me as my top three songs were the top three! I just had picked That Old Flame for the win.

Congrats to Train in the Distance! :band:

And thanks to everyone that participated whether you actually voted or not! Makes it interesting! :thumbsup:

[NOLA]

Glad to see that "Train in the Distance" won the game, but I thought it would be either "The Cost of Living" or "Take a Picture of This." A little surprised they were eliminated, but happy they held on so close to the final round.

Great game, everyone, and special thanks to Dreamer for moving it along! :)

[jms18222]

Yea Train is one of those I don't always listen to. It's just "meh" to me. My favorite 3 were eliminated long ago so oh well.
Congrats to those who loved Train & won. Thanks for running the poll.

[AlreadyGone95]

I'm glad that my favorite song won! No, Thank You is one of my top 5 favorites, though.

Great and fun game everyone. Thank you Dreamer for running it.

[Jonny Come Lately]

I am personally delighted that Train In The Distance won! :yay: It's not only my favourite song from the album, but it has become one of my favourite Don solo songs of all. I thought it would do well, probably getting to the last four or so, but I didn't think it would make the final. If you had asked me before the game, I'd have probably suggested That Old Flame as the winner, with the other finalist being Take A Picture Of This.

I've been interested to see how other Borderers have responded to these songs, and in some cases the results but perhaps more importantly the actual opinions were quite a bit different to what I expected. I was surprised to see No, Thank You get to the final - no complaints here, I love it myself, but I didn't think it was quite that popular. Conversely, I thought Praying For Rain (which I must admit is one of my favourites) would do better - I certainly didn't think it would go before The Brand New Tennessee Waltz, a song that I'd have guessed would be eliminated quite early but lasted some way into the game.

Just thought I'd share my personal rankings of the songs on the album. Train is the only 10/10 song on the album, but I don't use that rating lightly and I am usually reluctant to give to songs I am relatively new to, which tells you how much I love it. However, there are several 9/10 songs, including his IMO wonderful cover of Here Come Those Tears Again.

A quick explanation/rundown of what my personal rankings mean:
10 - Absolutely love it!
9 - Love it
8 - Like it a lot
7 - Like it
6 - Like it a little
5 - Okay
4 - Dislike it a little
3 - Dislike it
2 - Hate it
1 - Loathe it
0 - Absolutely loathe it!

Bramble Rose - 8
The Cost of Living - 9
No, Thank You - 9
Waiting Tables - 8
Take A Picture Of This - 9
Too Far Gone - 7
That Old Flame - 8
The Brand New Tennessee Waltz - 6
Words Can Break Your Heart - 7
When I Stop Dreaming - 4
Praying For Rain - 9
Too Much Pride - 7
She Sang Hymns Out Of Tune - 5
Train In The Distance - 10
A Younger Man - 8
Where I Am Now - 8

BONUS TRACKS
It Don't Matter To The Sun - 5
Here Come Those Tears Again - 9

I don't know how anyone else feels, but to me I feel I can split the album into three sections - it starts off great, I like all of the first seven tracks, and apart from Too Far Gone which I only 'like' I am fond of all of these songs, especially tracks 2, 3 and 5. The middle section of the album I'm sorry to say I don't find as strong, and it includes my two least favourites (When I Stop Dreaming and She Sang Hymns), although most of the others are decent and it does include one of my favourites, Praying For Rain. Then comes my favourite song, and two other strong songs so I think the third and final part of the album is strong.

My top five in order would be:
1. Train In The Distance
2. Take A Picture Of This
3. The Cost Of Living (RIP Merle. So glad Don did this duet while he still could)
4. No Quarter
5. Praying For Rain (I love the chorus and lyrics)

Lastly I'd like to thank Dreamer for doing this game, I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was especially interesting because I didn't really know what other people would make of the songs which meant it was quite unpredictable (in a good way!) at times.