"Desperados Waiting for a Train" is a song written by Guy Clark and originally recorded by Jerry Jeff Walker for his 1973 album Viva Terlingua.
Clark stated that the song is about his grandmother's boyfriend named Jack who was a grandfather figure to him.
The song reached #15 on the Billboard Hot Country Singles & Tracks chart.
[2] Nanci Griffith recorded it for her 1998 album Other Voices Too (A Trip Back to Bountiful), accompanied by Clark, Jerry Jeff Walker, Steve Earle, Rodney Crowell, Jimmie Dale Gilmore, and Eric Taylor.
Jason Isbell covered the song for Guy Clark's induction into the 2015 Austin City Limits hall of fame ceremony.