"The Wayward Wind" is a

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

song written by

Stanley Lebowsky Stanley Lebowsky (; November 26, 1926 – October 19, 1986) was a Hollywood and Broadway composer, lyricist, conductor and music director who conducted more than a dozen Broadway musicals including ''Chicago'', ''Half a Sixpence'', '' Irma La Douce ...

(music) and Herb Newman (lyrics). Members of the

Western Writers of America Western Writers of America (WWA), founded 1953, promotes literature, both fictional and nonfictional, pertaining to the American West. Although its founders wrote traditional Western fiction, the more than 600 current members also include historian ...

chose the song as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.

Background

The “Wayward Wind” of the title is a metaphor for

wanderlust Wanderlust is a strong desire to wander or travel and explore the world. Etymology The first documented use of the term in English occurred in 1902 as a reflection of what was then seen as a characteristically German predilection for wandering ...

: an irrepressible urge to travel and explore. This is further emphasized by describing it as a "restless wind." In the context of the

19th century The 19th (nineteenth) century began on 1 January 1801 ( MDCCCI), and ended on 31 December 1900 ( MCM). The 19th century was the ninth century of the 2nd millennium. The 19th century was characterized by vast social upheaval. Slavery was abolis ...

setting of shanty towns and railroads, the Western United States was still largely unexplored by European

settler A settler is a person who has human migration, migrated to an area and established a permanent residence there, often to colonize the area. A settler who migrates to an area previously uninhabited or sparsely inhabited may be described as a ...

s. Concurrent to the era of lone

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the '' vaquer ...

s on horseback, the

First transcontinental railroad North America's first transcontinental railroad (known originally as the "Pacific Railroad" and later as the " Overland Route") was a continuous railroad line constructed between 1863 and 1869 that connected the existing eastern U.S. rail netwo ...

was built. Steam trains were a gateway the

American frontier The American frontier, also known as the Old West or the Wild West, encompasses the geography, history, folklore, and culture associated with the forward wave of United States territorial acquisitions, American expansion in mainland North Amer ...

romanticized in literature, songs and film. The subject of the song is a young man, living near train tracks, instilled with an irrepressible urge to travel by the sound of passing trains. On his travels he falls in love and attempts to settle down and lead a normal life, but the urge to wander is too strong. The phrase "

Next of kin A person's next of kin (NOK) are that person's closest living blood relatives. Some countries, such as the United States, have a legal definition of "next of kin". In other countries, such as the United Kingdom, "next of kin" may have no legal d ...

”, which is a colloquialism meaning the person's closest living relative, may suggest that the wandering man has no family or connection and will perhaps wander his entire life. Originally recorded and sung in third person

narration Narration is the use of a written or spoken commentary to storytelling, convey a narrative, story to an audience. Narration is conveyed by a narrator: a specific person, or unspecified literary voice, developed by the creator of the story to deli ...

from the

point of view Point of view or Points of View may refer to: Concept and technique * Point of view (philosophy), an attitude how one sees or thinks of something * Point of view (literature) or narrative mode, the perspective of the narrative voice; the prono ...

of the young man’s lover/wife, by female pop singer

Gogi Grant Myrtle Audrey Arinsberg (September 20, 1924 – March 10, 2016), known professionally as Gogi Grant, was an American pop singer. She is best known for her No. 1 hit in 1956, "The Wayward Wind". Life and career Grant was born Myrtle Audrey Arin ...

, the song is often adapted to male singers and sung in first person from the POV of the young man.

Recordings

In 1956, versions were recorded by

Tex Ritter Woodward Maurice Ritter (January 12, 1905 – January 2, 1974) was a pioneer of American country music, a popular singer and actor from the mid-1930s into the 1960s, and the patriarch of the Ritter acting family (son John, grandsons Jason and ...

, and Jimmy Young, of which Grant's was the biggest seller in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and Ritter's in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotland, Wales and North ...

. The song reached No. 1 on the ''

Cash Box ''Cashbox'', also known as ''Cash Box'', was an American music industry trade magazine, originally published weekly from July 1942 to November 1996. Ten years after its dissolution, it was revived and continues as ''Cashbox Magazine'', an online ...

'' chart, which combined all recorded versions, while Grant's version reached No. 1 on the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

'' chart on its own. ''Billboard'' ranked it as the No. 5 song for 1956. It became a

Gold record Gold is a chemical element with the symbol Au (from la, aurum) and atomic number 79. This makes it one of the higher atomic number elements that occur naturally. It is a bright, slightly orange-yellow, dense, soft, malleable, and ductile meta ...

. Ritter used the song to open his stage shows. In 1961, Grant's recording was reissued and reached ''Billboard'' No. 50 and Cash Box No. 78. In 1963, a new recording was made by

Frank Ifield Francis Edward Ifield OAM (born 30 November 1937) is a British-Australian country music singer and guitarist who often incorporated yodelling into his music. After living in Australia, Ifield returned to the United Kingdom in November 1959 wher ...

, which reached No. 1 on the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

for three weeks duration. The song made the ''Billboard'' country chart in a version by Irish flautist

James Galway Sir James Galway (born 8 December 1939) is an Irish virtuoso flute player from Belfast, nicknamed "The Man with the Golden Flute". He established an international career as a solo flute player. In 2005, he received the Brit Award for Outstan ...

with vocal accompaniment by American country singer Sylvia. Produced in Nashville by

Bill Pursell William Whitney Pursell (June 9, 1926 – September 3, 2020) was an American composer and onetime session pianist. He had a brief but successful career as a pop musician before continuing on as a session player. Pursell is best known for the to ...

, the single was released in 1982 and it rose to No. 57 in 1983.

Notable cover versions

(1956) No. 1 (U.S.), No. 9 (UK) *

(1956) No. 28 (U.S.), No. 8 (UK) * Jimmy Young (1956) No. 27 (UK) *

(1963) No. 1 (UK), No. 16 (Australia), No. 3 (Ireland), No. 104 (U.S.) *

featuring Sylvia (1982) No. 57 (U.S.) *

Anne Murray Morna Anne Murray (born June 20, 1945) is a retired Canadian singer. Her albums, consisting primarily of pop, country, and adult contemporary music, have sold over 55 million copies worldwide during her over 40-year career. Murray was the fir ...

(1994) No. 7 (Canada)

Chart performance

Anne Murray

Year-end charts

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Wayward Wind 1956 songs Sylvia (singer) songs Tex Ritter songs Frank Ifield songs Songs written by Stanley Lebowsky 1956 singles 1963 singles UK Singles Chart number-one singles Number-one singles in the United States