Wild geese over the water, heading north and home again
 Bringin' a warm wind from the south, bringin'
 the first taste of the spring
 His mother took him to her breast and softly she did sing:

 Oh, Montana, give this child a home
 Give him the love of a good family and a woman of his own
 Give him a fire in his heart, give him a light in his eyes
 Give him the wild wind for a brother and the wild Montana skies

 His mother died that summer and he never learned to cry
 He never knew his father and he never did ask why
 He never knew the answers that would make an easy way
 But he learned to know the wilderness and to be a man that way

 His mother's brother took him in to his family and his home
 Gave him a hand that he could lean on and a strength to call his own
 And he learned to be a farmer and he learned to love the land
 And he learned to read the seasons and he learned to make a stand

 On the eve of his 21st birthday, he set out on his own
 He was 30 years and runnin' when he found his way back home
 Ridin' a storm across the mountains and an achin' in his heart
 Said he came to turn the pages and to make a brand new start

 Now he never told the story of the time that he was gone
 Some say he was a lawyer, some say he was a john
 There was something in the city that he said he couldn't breathe
 There was something in the country that he said he couldn't leave
 Now some say he was crazy and some are glad he's gone

 But some of us will miss him and we'll try to carry on
 Giving a voice to the forest, giving a voice to the dawn
 Giving a voice to the wilderness and the land that he lived on