"The Wayward Wind" is a country song written by Stanley Lebowsky (music) and Herb Newman (lyrics),[1][2] and first recorded by American singer Gogi Grant in 1955, and released in 1956.

The "Wayward Wind" of the title is a metaphor for wanderlust: an irrepressible urge to travel and explore.

In the context of the 19th century setting of shanty towns and railroads, the Western United States was still largely unexplored by European settlers.

Steam trains were a gateway the American frontier romanticized in literature, songs and film.

On his journeys he falls in love and attempts to settle down and lead a normal life, but the urge to wander is too strong.

Originally recorded and sung in third person narration from the point of view of the young man's lover/wife, by female pop singer Gogi Grant, the song is often adapted to male singers and sung in first person from the point of view of the young man.

In the Gogi Grant version, the Wayward Wind is represented by a wordless female chorus, who are heard sliding up and down in the Intro and the Outro of the song.