ROCKY MOUNTAIN DRIFTER

Verse 1:
I came back home to suburban life
Down off my Rocky Mountain High
Back to my job my kids and wife
I guess I’ll give it one more try

But I’m lost here in the traffic
And these busy urban streets
Oh this concrete world is plastic
It don’t care about me

Chorus:
I wish I was howlin’ on the wind
Wish I was howlin’ on the wind
I feel like I’ve lost all of my friends
Wish I was howlin’ on the wind

Verse 2:

There’s nothin’ sacred here anymore
No one’s lookin’ for the truth
Those Rocky Mountains are Heaven’s door
An endless fountain of youth

But I can’t speak my religion
On these busy urban streets
With political correctness
And its chains upon my feet

Might as well be…

Repeat Chorus

Bridge
And the wolves are howlin’ right outside my door
Gotta kill ‘em if I can
Just when I think I can’t take it anymore
Autumn comes around again

Final Chorus
And I’m right back howlin’ on the wind
Right back howlin’ on the wind
Runnin’ wild with my friends
Back out howlin’ on the wind

Verse 1
I can’t count all my memories
Can’t explain the things I’ve seen
Years and miles have run right through me
Can’t remember where all I’ve been

Some might see that I’m still young
With hopeful eyes and a way that’s clear
But when I drive these endless highways
There’s an old man in the mirror

I keep reachin’ out for somethin’ That just gets further and further away

Chorus:
Twenty years of ramblin’ a couple million miles
I’ve done most of it alone
Put the kids to bed tonight and wait up for me
Your Rocky Mountain Drifter’s comin’ home

Verse 2:
I still believe that there’s a story
No one else would ever tell
The fading west in all her glory
Before it’s all bought and sold and gone to Hell

I guess I still believe in somethin’
That’s what makes me who I am today

Repeat Chorus

Bridge
And there will always be a sad goodbye
The time apart and the tear in your eye
But Heaven help me on this road alone
Pray there’ll always be a time to come home

Verse 3
Keep your phone by your side
Keep your days and nights full of hope
Put the kids to bed and wait up for me
Your Rocky Mountain Drifter’s comin’ home

Verse 1
Out on the fringes of the Winecup
Many long years ago
Was a big black mustang stud
Name of Big Black Joe

He was the keeper of the brood mares
He ruled the east Owyhee
And ev’ry wooly buckaroo that rode there
Wanted the skull of that caballo

Chorus:
Black Joe stud Devil in mustang blood
Keep your eyes on the far horizon
Or he’ll come and stomp you in the mud
The Black Joe Stud

Verse 2:
My little sister and my father
Gathering down along the river
When down the walls of the black canyon
Danced a ghostly knicker

She rode a little buckskin mare
He said “little girl ride away hard!”
He dug his ol’ Garcias into an old thoroughbred gelding
And rode straight toward

Repeat Chorus

Verse 3
Hellbent to save his little girl
He T boned that old stallion on the slide
And they all fell twistin’ and turnin’
Through dust and brush and horse hide

And as my father got back to his feet
He took the reigns of his big thoroughbred steed
But he took one front slashin’ hoof to the back
Turned around and all he could see

Repeat Chorus

Verse 4
Along the breaks of the Owyhee River
They fought and chased for an hour
Til the whinnie of one of his broodmares
Made the old black stud herd sour

Father rode back to headquarters
Bleedin’ from a slash above his eye
Grateful to God to find his little girl alive
Sworn to see a mustang die

Repeat Chorus

Verse 5
Twelve buckaroos mounted fresh horses
Rode for the range along the river
Tracked west to the foothills of the
Owyhees And south across the barren desert

On the hard pan alkali moonscape
They lost the tracks of his herd
My father’s 30-30 never left his scabbard
And he never said another word

Final Chorus

She stepped on my heel the first time I caught her
But somethin restrained me when I turned to swat her
Those soft deep dark eyes and quiet demeanor
Told me I could forgive her and she was a keeper

She sure broke out easy she was naturally kind
You know those kinda horses are so hard to find
I sent her to Wyomin to become a cowhorse
And she became a good hand all through the Big Horns

She learned to cut and sort there she packed elk and mule deer
She gathered in the Snowy Range, and down over Rabbit Ears
Then she started coughin’ from some bad hay in Rawlins
I knew there was trouble when they started callin’

So I went and got her brought her back to Utah
She had a high jugular pulse and she was sucked in and gaunt
I put her on albuterol and she came back to life
She carried me and my children and she carried my wife

Then tragedy struck and my son he got cancer
She knew somethin’ was wrong but she didn’t have any answers
I left he with a friend of mine up Franklin Canyon
I saw her in the rearview mirror lookin’ scared and abandoned

Fourteen long months we spent just fightin’ for dear life
I wanted to saddle up and ride but I couldn’t leave my wife
When we brought her and my son back home it was one sweet reunion
She turned nineteen that year it was the middle of June

Melodic Break/And somewhere in the middle of the night
I heard her coughin’ out in the moonlight
I knew her time was short the end was comin’
But there was one more job for her before her time was done

She became a therapy horse for my little boy
I knew she found a job again and it brought her joy
And days turned into months and months turned into years
One mornin’ my wife came in from feedin’ drownin’ in tears

Cause she was sick and dyin’ I’d waited too long
I couldn’t stand the thought of livin’ and her bein’ gone
And I’ll never forget the tears from my wife and daughter
And the look inside her eyes the last time I caught her

Verse 1:
He’s old enough to be broke
But he’s much too young to broken
But he can barely get his foot inside the stirrup this mornin’
For the old ghosts have spoken

There’s a demon diggin’ daggers in his shoulder
Blowin’ hate and hot breath down his back
He keeps a damn stiff upper lip to keep from cryin’
While the old ghosts make their attack

Chorus 1:
And their risin’ risin’ through the misty mountain mornin’
And he keeps ridin’ to heal the scars inside that hurt the most
But he keeps fightin’ fightin’ and ridin’ hard and prayin’
For some new strength today to face the Old Ghosts

Verse 2:
And then she whispers on the wind
Reminds him of the life and love they once had
He builds a big loop in his long reata
Spurs his pony hard and misses bad bad

Chorus 2:
And she’s risin’ risin’ through the dust and sage and sorrow
And he keeps ridin’ to heal the scars inside that hurt the most
But she comes back and he knows that she’ll be back again tomorrow
To take away his strength to face the Old Ghosts

Bridge:
And there’s nights nights that he falls down and then it’s mornin’
And there’s nights that he don’t every really sleep at all
And he could drink but he knows well to heed the preacher’s warnin’
Give Ol’ Scratch an inch he’ll take it all
Give Ol’ Scratch an inch he’ll take it all

Repeat Chorus 1

Verse 1:
There’s a sign says Muddy Water
Creek is risin’ in the Spring
There’s a rainstorm on the hogbacks
Pray the good Lord don’t send down no Spring lightning

Turnin’ out on Muddy Creek lease
By the railroad tracks in the Spring
Colts a boogerin’ when the train rolls by
Its good you didn’t use him when branding

Chorus:
And you’re fiddlin’ around with a little leppy calf
That just don’t want to pair up ain’t it strange
How the prairie dogs bark from mornin’ til dark
While Muddy Creek keeps a risin’ through the rains

Verse 2:
There’s a big black Golden Eagle
Salivatin’ on his perch on Three Boob Ridge
There’s a rainstorm on the hogbacks
Damn Muddy Creek’s a runnin’ o’er the bridge

Repeat Chorus

Bridge:
And I can hear some lightnin’ roll
Over Evanston to the West
And I can see that old Cedar knoll
Where we’ll finally close the gate and end our quest

Final Verse:
And where the sign says Muddy Water
I’ll be leavin’ here for a week
There’s a dry wind comin’ on the hogbacks
Pretty soon there’s nothin’ runnin’ in the creek
Adios til next year Muddy Creek

Verse 1:
Bow your head now Buffalo Beard
The rodeo is on; have no fear
Your horses are fresh and your latigo’s tight
And the time is right yeah the time is right

Toss a wide loop Buffalo Beard
There’s money on the line and way is clear
Settle him down back him in tight
Cause its on tonight yeah its on tonight

Chorus 1:
Buffalo Beard Buffalo Beard
I’m sendin you down on a Navajo prayer
Your possibles bag’s full of rodeo gear
Good luck down there Buffalo Beard

Verse 2:
Turn him back around Buffalo Beard
One quick dally and you’re almost there
Barrier’s broken and the flag is up
You know you need some luck yeah a little bit of luck

They’ll call you by name Buffalo Beard
Love of your life’s fightin’ back a tear
There’s more than a buckle on the line tonight
And the time is right you know the time is right

Chorus 2:
Buffalo Beard Buffalo Beard
I’m sendin’ you down on a Shoshone prayer
Your possible’s bag’s full of rope and gear
Good luck down there Buffalo Beard

Bridge:
Winnin’ means so much to you
But the West lives on win or lose

Repeat Chorus 1&2

Verse 1:
Here take the keys go take a spin
Take your hopes and dreams and win
Nobody told me how this would go
Use four-wheel drive in the snow

Just come back home once in a while
But I was born to run he says with a smile

Chorus:
As he’s drivin’ away with my heart
Suddenly sixteen doesn’t seem so far away
So let’s keep it safe out on the highway everyone
Cause there goes my son

Verse 2:
Sirens will stop my heart at anytime
Late nights I’ll be out of my mind
So check the brakes check the oil check the mirror
If you ever need me I’ll be here

Just come back home Just come back home
Comes a time when you gotta just let go

Repeat Chorus Bridge:
We’ve all got places to go
And we all love someone so let’s take it slow

Final Chorus

Verse 1:
Silly boys Jeeps are for girls and damn she’s late for school
And she won’t even look at you ‘cause you’re just not that cool
You’ll be drivin’ Dad’s old truck turn sixteen in just one month
She’ll still sit higher parkin’ crooked right up front

Chorus:
Cause boys she’s drivin’ Daddy’s Jeep
And she’s puttin’ makeup on
While she’s finishin’ her breakfast
While she’s talkin’ on the phone
And she’s way above the law
Hell she could drive in her sleep
So get out the way boys cause she’s drivin’ Daddy’s Jeep

Verse 2:
Thirty threes, six-inch lift, she can’t even feel the road
And it takes the whole back seat just to carry her load
Of curlers books and pom poms and her boyfriends dirty clothes
And how they ended up back there Heaven only knows

Repeat Chorus

Bridge:
I wonder what its like inside up on those leather seats
I heard she takes off her shoes and works that clutch with her bare feet

Final Chorus

Bitter wind cries out of moonless skies
and canteens freeze to ice
Horses stagger on, seventy miles by dawn;
victory comes at a price

Drumbeats pound, songs resound
off bluffs above river banks,
a Warm Dance to bring an early spring,
and send the Great Spirit thanks

And the river ran red rolling
with bodies of the dead
massacred on the banks of the River Bear
Blue-coated soldiers carried out killing orders there
and the river ran red

Hoofs test the edge of the bluff ledge
to the banks of the Bear below
Splash freezes quick and the ice floats thick
in the black of the river’s flow

Before the sun, before night is done
brass bugles sound the attack
In Beaver Creek ravine rolled the killing machine
and there was no turning back

And the river ran red rolling
with bodies of the dead
massacred on the banks of the River Bear
Blue-coated soldiers carried out killing orders there
and the river ran red

No surrender, no quarter, now blood forever stains her shore
with bayonet and gun; when their work was done
Three hundred Shoshoni breathed no more

And the river ran red
rolling with bodies of the dead
And the river ran red

Verse 1:
Bucky started pitchin’ somehow I stayed on
Seven miles up Eastfork Meadow fifteen miles long
Nobody watched the news last night nobody checked the weather
We were four young wranglers followin’ a boss hellbent for leather

There were 700 pair stretched out in front of us
And at the first strike of dry lightnin’ I heard ol’
Ricky cuss It was deep down in his throat it was a whisper cross his lips
But it echoed in our hearts and souls each time the lightnin’ hit

Chorus:
And Donnie rolled a smoke to hide the fear inside his eyes
And Pedro started prayin’ lookin’ all across the skies
And the rimrock all around us flashed the air was dense and warm
As we kept the herd a movin’ on through the lightnin’ storm

Verse 2:
We stopped and let our horses drink from the new Spring Tank
And no one said a word as lightnin’ crashed along the bank
We tore across the meadow when four pair broke and ran
Longin’ for the home corrals and less forsaken land

But we kept ‘em headed north until we reached the summer range
With those old dry lightnin’ nimbus clouds just circlin’ so strange
The lightnin’ and the wind passed by the Meadow’s upper end
And we all started talkin’ loud and laughin’ once again

Chorus:
And Donnie rolled another smoke and drew hard on his flask
And Pedro started singin’ loud and sang the whole ride back
And the rimrock all around us watched like mother’s watch newborns
As we kept the herd a movin’ on through the lightnin’ storm

Verse 3:
Sometimes the storms of life will come when you expect it least
The great gray clouds will gather o’er and roar just like a beast
Just square your shoulders up remember what you’re ridin’ for
And keep your herd a movin’ on through the lightnin’ storm
Just keep your hopes and dreams a movin’ through the lightnin’ storm

Verse 1:
Fancy you a standin’ there with your diamond necklace on
Lookin’ at me like you’ve just seen some old ghost
It’s a trendy place in the old downtown now the old café is gone
This woulda been where we hung out the most

And I see that you just can’t help but look me up and down
Ragged jeans and muddy boots and spurs
I mighta left them in the truck if I’d known you’d be around
What’s a matter are you finally lost for words

Chorus:
Or do you see back twenty long years to the night you said goodbye
Did you think you’d never see me again
Did you miss my truck and trailer parked by the old town sign
Blown in by the Oklahoma wind

Verse 2:
I finally found my rainbow in the buckskin colt she foaled
I’m gonna buy a ranch outside of town
Maybe you could bring our son to meet his real
Dad sometime I’m sure that I’ll be seein’ you around

You disappeared back twenty long years and I never said goodbye
Did you think you’d never see me again
A prisoner in my truck and trailer watchin’ as towns roll by
Blown in by the Oklahoma wind

Verse 3:
Oh is this your husband well I never did get the news
Congratulations is way long over due
I see that he must really do well by the tassels on his shoes
A Houston gas and oil boy through and through

Chorus:
I know you see back twenty long years to the night you said goodbye
You never thought that you’d see me again
I’d like to take that son of ours and teach him how to ride
Straight into the Oklahoma wind
It’s a cold night in the Oklahoma wind

Verse 1:
I drove all night to drive all day
I gave my heart and soul away
So far from home still my heart sings
I hope I earn my Angel Wings

I bear the pain of brother’s hearts
I never cease til healing starts
Final goodbyes are precious things
I hope I earn my own Angel Wings

Chorus:
My Angel Wings will carry me
Back to loved ones I long to see
They visit me in my dreams
Tell me I’ll earn my Angel Wings

Verse 2:
I am a sinner through and through
I’ll rectify one day the wrong
I do His great Atonement such peace it brings
I hope I earn my Angel Wings

Repeat Chorus

Verse 3:
My wife and children they wait for me
And home is where a father should be
There are no words for how much your friendship means
I hope I earn my Angel Wings

Verse 1:
I’m stuck here in this prison called assisted livin’
Hell And I have lost my mind but doctors say I’m doin’ well
There’s green grass through my window but the fall is comin’ soon
I lie awake at night and wait to see the passin’ moon

My family comes and goes I guess their lives are not like mine
I sift through my memories most of which are truly fine
But I was once a whisky drinkin’ able mountain man
Now I can’t even hold a gun or bottle in my hand

Chorus:
So take me up to Woodruff when the leaves are comin’ gold
One last ride o’er Monte in the early Autumn cold
Take me from this prison and this cold hospital bed
Then take my old Winchester and shoot me in the head

Verse 2:
I’ll smell the Autumn sagebrush I’ll look into the sky
My heart it will be full again the moment that I die
I’ll see the Rocky Mountains when I take my final breath
And know I love you more for givin’ me a cowboy’s death

Repeat Chorus

Bridge:
And I know what I’m askin’ is too much
But life is so much sweeter when you die someplace you love

Final Chorus lyrics over Verse Melody