Somewhere Else Altogether

“This Land Is Your Land” was written by Woody Guthrie in 1940, a response to Irving Berlin’s “God Bless America.”

Guthrie varied the lyrics over time, sometimes including more overtly political verses. Googling around the internets there is a lot of variation in the lyrics given for the song, some including different verses, others slightly different versions of different verses.

I loved this song when I was a kid in the 1960s. To me, it epitomizes American optimism.

Sing along with Pete Seeger and friends at the Inaugural Concert on Sunday, January 18, 2009 and remember what optimism and joy feel like.

As I went walking that ribbon of highway,
I saw above me an endless skyway,
I saw below me a golden valley.
This land was made for you and me.

This land is your land,
This land is my land,
From California to the New York Island.
From the redwood forests,
To the Gulf stream waters,
This land was made for you and me.

I’ve roamed and rambled
And I’ve followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sands of her diamond deserts;
And all around me a voice was sounding:
This land was made for you and me

This land is your land,
This land is my land,
From California to the New York Island.
From the redwood forests,
To the Gulf stream waters,
This land was made for you and me.

In the squares of the city,
By the shadow of the steeple,
Near the relief office I saw my people.
As they stood there hungry, I stood there asking,
Is this land still made for you and me?

There was a big high wall there that tried to stop me.
A great big sign there said private property.
But on the other side it didn’t say nothing;
That side was made for you and me.

This land is your land,
This land is my land,
From California to the New York Island.
From the redwood forests,
To the Gulf stream waters,
This land was made for you and me.

Nobody living can ever stop me
As I go walking that freedom highway.
Nobody living can make me ever turn back.
This land was made for you and me.

This land is your land,
This land is my land,
From California to the New York Island.
From the redwood forests,
To the Gulf stream waters,
This land was made for you and me.

Thanks to commenter Drip over at The Edge of the American West for the video footage.

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