Montana State Ballad

"Montana Melody"

Written by LeGrande and Carleen Harvey
Composed by LeGrande Harvey

Adopted on March 11, 1983.

"Montana Melody" was adopted by the state legislature as the official state ballad on March 11, 1983.

Montana State Ballad: "Montana Melody"

"Montana Melody"

I long to be in the places that I see
in the pictures of my dreams
Where there's mountains full of trees,
meadows carpeted in green
Silent, snow-fall, clear running streams.

Where the bear-grass blooms
In the spring-time of the year,
And the larch turn gold in the Fall
Where there's deer, elk and antelope
Beaver, bears and birds and the yippin'
coyotes serenade them all.

Chorus:

Yes, there's no place like Montana,
the Big Sky country, my home.
A place to set my spirit free,
a Rocky Mountain melody,
These things are a part of me,
Montana, Montana, my home.

Charlie Russell clouds paint sunsets in the West,
in colors of red, blue and gold.
Snow-capped peaks reach endless to the sky,
and the grain-fields with gentle breezes flow.

There's high mountain lakes, Missouri river breaks
and the open plains, where the buffalo used to roam.
It's a cowboy song, it's where Indians belong
God's country, my home sweet home.

I had a dream, of how Heaven's s'posed to be,
and when I die, that's where I want to go.
Cause there's mountains full of trees, meadows
carpeted in green, silent snowfall, clear running streams.

(Chorus)

Origin of Ballad: "Montana Melody"

Montana is one of the few states to have a state song AND a state ballad. A ballad is different from most songs because it tells a story. The song was written by LeGrande Harvey. "Montana Melody" in a 1983 compromise, Montana Melody was adopted by the state legislature as the official state ballad. Helena students from Jefferson school were instrumental in getting the bill passed. Hal Harper introduced and carried the bill. Seventy-two children from Jefferson High School in Helena sang the new state ballad for Governor Ted Schwinden on the day he signed legislation making it official; March 11, 1983. He urged them to help spread the new state ballad to all parts of the state.

Montana Law

Montana Code Annotated, Title 1, Chapter 1, Part 5, Section 11.

TITLE 1. GENERAL LAWS AND DEFINITIONS
CHAPTER 1. GENERAL PROVISIONS
Part 5. State Symbols - Official Designations

1-1-511. State ballad. The song "Montana Melody", written by Carleen Harvey and LeGrande Harvey, is the official state ballad of the state of Montana.

History: En. Sec. 1, Ch. 56, L. 1983.