Night of the Orphan Train

Brent Maher, who has produced seven Grammy Award winning records and over twenty #1 singles has written this musical novel, "Night of the Orphan Train", bringing to life the little-known story of 250,000 homeless orphans who were swept off the streets of New York City and shipped off in boxcars to every state in the union from 1854 until the early 1920s. Songs weave in and out of the saga and help to tell the story of three of these children, who we meet around the age of 11. Caroline, a young girl far older than her years would suggest, Billy, who has an unshakeable sense of right and wrong, and Jacob, whose heart is as big as the moon. We follow their journeys from their childhood to young adulthood with the Orphan Trains, World War I, and Angels Unawares profoundly impacting each of their lives.
With 7 Grammy award-winning records to his credit, Brent Maher has become one of Nashville's most acclaimed songwriters, engineers, and producers. Maher's accomplishments include over 20 #1 singles and a wide array of multimillion selling albums. Maher has worked with such iconic artists as Ike & Tina Turner, Willie Nelson, Merle Haggard, The Judds, Kenny Rogers, Dolly Parton, Lainey Wilson, Taj Mahal, Jelly Roll with a new duet by Sierra Ferrell & Nikki Lane and a song in the 2025 season of The Bear on FX/Hulu. Maher has been inducted into the Audio Engineering Society Hall of Fame and honored by the Country Music Hall of Fame.