This song started out as more of a poem initially. It's simply a memorial of the real cowboy who continues to work across the deep west without recognition. I lost some friends and heroes over the last few years and although I miss them, they leave behind a legacy....
Lyrics
Older than the town that lies before you
Haunting the museums after close
You might see me in a painting or a postcard
And every now and then the rodeo
I left a great-great grandson my old saddle
My brand survives your progress and your greed
My spurs sit on the bookcase by your mantle
Leather, luck and weather changing leads
On the edge of freedom, they’ll keep grazing till I’ve seen ‘em
Fat and happy, and ready for the chutes
To the city sprawl and crowds I am resistant…
In the Distant…
In the valleys where the bawling calves are bounding
Where the mountain groans to reach the sky
I’m in the smoke and comfort of a campfire
Or the morning spice of juniper and pine
Far out where the sage is never ending
I’m standing in the round pen with a colt
Or driving a team of big blonde Belgians
Throwing hay past buck rails in the snow
I rode with the remudas, Santa Rosa, old Missoula
Serenaded by the eagle and the wolf
Come Spring, Summer, Fall I am persistent…
In the Distant…
When the lonesome comes upon your memory
Worry not my friends and family nigh
Follow back the trails we lived together
You will see my spirit is alive
Cautious in the canyons, taking care of my companions
Stretching wire and pounding straight the posts
Look West when I am gone to find my remnant…
In the Distant…
In the Distant…
Words and Music by Chris Ryden © 2020 BMI