1995 (62nd) Best Song: “Colors of the Wind”


1995 (68th Annual Awards, 62nd Best Song)
Best Song Lyric


Colors of the Wind
You think you own whatever land you land on;
The earth is just a dead thing you can claim;
But I know ev’ry rock and tree and creature
Has life, has a spirit, has a name.

You think the only people who are people
Are people who look and think like you,
But if you walk the footsteps of a stranger
You’ll learn things you never knew you never knew.

Have you ever heard the wolf cry to the blue corn moon
Or asked the grinning bobcat why he grinned?
Can you sing with all the voices of the mountain?
Can you paint with all the colors of the wind?
Can you paint with all the colors of the wind?

Come run the hidden pine trails of the forest,
Come taste the sun-sweet strawberries of the earth,
Come roll in all the riches around you,
And for once never wonder what they’re worth.

The rainstorm and the river are my brothers;
The heron and the otter are my friends;
And we are all connected to each other
In a circle in a hoop that never ends.

How high does the sycamore grow?
If you cut it down then you’ll never know.
And you’ll never hear the wolf cry to the blue corn moon,
For whether we are white or copper skinned,

We need to sing with all the voices of the mountain,
We need to paint with all the colors of the wind.
You can own the earth and still all you’ll own is earth
Until you can paint with all the colors of the wind.