A spoken-word performance weaves personal cowboy mythology with Western history, from Coronado's gold quest through Kit Carson and the mountain men to Manifest Destiny. The piece captures the tension between the restless frontier spirit and the land's resistance, ending with the vanished buffalo as a symbol of what was lost.
Just like a young man with a heart full of fire, a wild restless dreamer, a natural hatred for the wire, a fast horse and that lonesome road. Just like a young man with a heart full of fire, a wild restless dreamer, a natural hatred for the wire, a fast horse and that lonesome road. Too wild to tie down, although some have tried. They'd have a better chance of grabbing at smoke. I was born to ride. Born to ride, born to ride. Can't they hear that rebel yell? From the wild, restless spirit outrunning the very flame of hell. Wild heart, wild soul, wild spirit, wild, wild, wild. The spirit of the dreamer can't be held down nor tied. It's like trying to catch a ghost, some souls are born to run. A million miles rode and all the range that I've seen. This country's not big enough for a guy like me. They fence us in and try to steal away our pride. They'd have a better chance grabbin' at stock. Some of us were born to ride. I'm a cowboy. Born to ride, born to ride. Can't hear that rebel yell of the wild, restless spirits outrunning the very blood in their veins. Wild heart of the dreamer can't be held down nor tied. It's like trying to catch a ghost, some souls are born to ride. Just like trying to catch a ghost, some souls are born to ride. Just like trying to catch a ghost, some souls are born to ride. Coronado came here in search of gold. His bloody wrath, the name it sings at full tone. The Spaniards came to lay claim to this land, underestimating its harshness and the will of the red man. The warring tribes of the red man fought and bled. More people came here, but still more fled. The vastness of this land proved Too much for Spain to hold. They gave up on their dream to let Colorado go. Next came the mountain men in search of fur. Kit Carson and Bridger and many more we've never heard. A new country formed from Europe's unwanted scattered seeds, fueled by freedom and what was called Manifest Destiny. Mountain men, stories of the West's endless bounty spread. Dreams of the Garden of Eden filled the pioneers' heads.
The pioneers turned the sod, but the land would not accept the plow.
Plains once full of buffalo,
