Like drifting clouds, slow and thoughtful
Years rolled over the land
And through the ages kept on flowing
A river vast and grand
She would not bow to chains or shadows
No lies could hold her course
A blue road cutting through the country
With quiet, endless force
Old sails once traced her silver body
From distant shores they came
Through Dutch and British winds and waters
They whispered out her name
Oh, peopleβs beauty, strong and free
As deep as any sea
Like home itself, she runs so wideβ
The Hudson in her pride
Wideβ¦
Deepβ¦
Strongβ¦
So many songs once filled her silence
But sorrow shaped their sound
The weight of time, the voice of longing
Was all that echoed round
But now the clouds are torn and scattered
And spring has claimed the sky
Like Hudson rising, full and mighty
Our freer lives run high
Oh, peopleβs beauty, strong and free
As full as any sea
Like home itself, she runs so wideβ
The Hudson in her pride
Wideβ¦
Deepβ¦
Strongβ¦
From mountain slopes in Adirondack heights
She journeys down to ocean tides
Through valleys carved in ancient stone
To New York Harbor, vast and wide
She greets the world with open waters
Every nation passing through
And on her waves a thousand stories
Old and new
Ferries crossing, bright and steady
Carrying lives each day
From Manhattan to the far shores
They glide and fade away
Tour boats circle, lights and laughter
Yachts drift soft in line
While tugboats push the heavy barges
Through currents strong with time
Cargo moves in silent power
Steel and sand and flame
And sometimes giants from the ocean
Slowly stake their claim
In summerβs heat, small boats are dancing
Kayaks cut the blue
Every kind of life is moving
Every kind of view
Oh, river singing, bold and clear
A voice the world can hear
From mountain high to ocean strongβ
You carry every song
Wideβ¦
Deepβ¦
Strongβ¦
Weβll raise a song so bright and fearless
Let it rise and fly
From every heart along the Hudson
Up to the open sky
Let it carry all our power
All weβve come to be
Till it reaches every soul alive
And sets our spirits free
Oh, peopleβs beauty, ever young
Your endless songβs begun
Beneath the stars we stand as oneβ
Our work, our lives, our sun
Wideβ¦
Deepβ¦
Strongβ¦