[Verse 1] We left Red Creek before the sun, Two hundred head and a wagon drum. The cook tied coffee in a canvas sack, And old Blue kept the lead herd back. [Verse 2] By noon the dust had salted our coats, The river ran low where the cottonwood grows. Cal Rusk rode point with his hat brim down, Counting each steer through the shale and brown. [Chorus] Keep them rolling, easy and slow, Past the dry creek and the buffalo grass below. When the north wind calls and the long day’s done, We’ll bed down west of the setting sun. [Verse 3] A storm came hard on the Cimarron plain, Lightning stitched white through the rattling rain. We circled wide till the thunder moved on, Then rode by the stars till the gray came along. [Bridge] At dawn, Mae’s old bell mare found the ford, And every last steer crossed safe toward the board. No grand words spoken, no medal to claim, Just a warm tin cup and the cook’s quiet flame. [Chorus] Keep them rolling, easy and slow, Past the dry creek and the buffalo grass below. When the north wind calls and the long day’s done, We’ll bed down west of the setting sun. [Outro] At Red Bluff station, we turned them in, With grit in our teeth and the trail on our skin. The herd moved on; we watched the dust run, Then pointed our horses toward another sun.
