This land is your land, this land is my land
From California to the New York Island
From the redwood forest to the Gulf Stream water
This land was made for you and me

As I was walkin', that ribbon of highway
I saw above me, that endless skyway
I saw below me, that golden valley
I said this land was made for you and me

I've roamed and rambled and I followed my footsteps
To the sparkling sand of her diamond desert
And all around me, a voice was sounding:
This land was made for you and me

Down in the city, in the shadow of the steeple
By the relief office, I saw my people
As they stood there hungry I stood there whistling:
This land was made for you and me

As I went walking, I saw a sign there
And on that sign it said "Private Property"
But on the other side it didn't say nothin'
That side was made for you and me !

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

The sun came shining, and I was strolling
And the wheat fields waving and the dust clouds rolling
As the fog was lifting, a voice was chanting:
This land was made for you and me


Lyrics submitted by ralph mctell

This Land Is Your Land song meanings
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17 Comments

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  • +3
    General Comment

    rlantelope, wat the hell are u talkin about, this was written in response to god bless america, its an anti god bless america, and its missin a bunch a verses

    rockerdude614on March 25, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    If I remember right it's actually a Communist Manifesto.

    perfectlemuron March 31, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    rlantelope has been drinking.

    plaincl0thesmanon July 26, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    Indeed, its a communist anthem. I presume its written with "you" being a rich man, possibly making money from the poor, its pointing out how America is not just for the rich and fortunate, but also for the poor and un-lucky.

    Thesmellyoneon September 05, 2005   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    I know this song, but I dunno how.

    Maybe from Friends : "this hand is your hand, this hand is my hand..."

    S0LIPSISTon April 06, 2008   Link
  • +1
    General Comment

    it makes me sick that there is a 10.2% plus unemployment in america while alex rodriguez makes about 30 million a year. This is to the U.S government. Be trye patriots, tax heavily millionaires and help the hungry and homeless. Make peace talks. Not war.

    ThinkSolutionson January 17, 2010   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    It's pretty funny to me how me and everyone else I know has been taught this in school, despite its meaning. Ignorance is funny...

    Squevenon March 10, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    "ignorance is funny" that's why rlantelope was born. and is still breathing today. we need to thin the herds, people.

    poetic_fireon May 01, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    woody guthrie's original version was titled "god blessed america for me"

    murderbicycleon June 03, 2006   Link
  • 0
    General Comment

    Yeah, the posted version is messed up. Maybe he sang it that way a couple of times, but it's definitely not the standard way.

    Freddy got most of it there. One verse that is usually left out goes:

    On a bright sunny morning, in the shadow of the steeple By the relief office, I saw my people As they stood there hungry, I stood there wondering if This land was made for you and me.

    Kind of packs more of a punch than the "Yay America" version people tend to think this song is.

    Also, Woody wrote the song because he was sick of hearing some lady )I don't remember her name) singing God Bless America on the radio. This song was originally titled "God Blessed America For Me." Those words can still be sung instead of "this land was made for you and me."

    "I ain't a Communists necessarily, but I have been in the red all my life." -Woody Guthrie.

    Nick the Bastardon July 16, 2006   Link

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