yellow-billed cuckoo sittin' on that fence
looking both ways like he don't have no sense
sense of direction and sense of trust
but he knows something in this land of dust

and I sat lookin' in her deep blue eyes
at her dark black hair and her little white lies
lies of contrition and lies of deceit
lying to herself and lying to me

(chorus:)
has he heard you singing that wavering song
that don't know the difference 'tween right and wrong
has he heard you wishing that you were free
like the yellow-billed cuckoo that follows me

a distant storm lightening up the sky
frightening the horses that are ready to ride
leaves on the trees turning inside-out
gonna break loose, no shadow of doubt

(repeat chorus)

wildflowers bloom on a little bit of rain
a little bit of hope on a desolate plain
wildflowers wither underneath the strain
of the wildfire burning up another man's name

(repeat chorus)