Lyrics Merle Haggard – American Waltz

The sweat of the oxen, the crack of the whip
The wheels turn slow in the dust
And with a heart full of hope
With desire we wrote California or bust

And we danced the American waltz
It couldn’t have happened anywhere else
We used our muscle and we used our minds
Building a nation, a dream at a time

A horse made of iron that could outrun the wind
Roared into the next century
And as the tracks turned to roads
And the crude oil flowed
Through the veins of the great Model T

We danced the American waltz
It couldn’t have happened anywhere else
We used our muscle and we used our minds
Building a nation, a dream at a time

We had the courage and we made the machines
O’er like an eagle we flew
And not long ago God reached out his hand
To the man who walked on the moon

And we danced the American waltz
It couldn’t have happened anywhere else
We used our muscle and we used our minds
Building a nation, a dream at a time

And the dreams roll on
Through the mothers and fathers and children
Born on the wings of freedom
Pass it on, pass it on