What An Amazing Journey!
Updated: Sep 22
A Review of the album and book Wild West: American Stories
by Ron Ovadia • 9/20/2026
We all have our own American stories, whether we’re multi-generation Americans whose families lived through a changing national landscape or first-generation children of immigrants whose parents fled war-torn Europe to move westward to a new continent. But one thing connects us all – the “Wild West.”
We all grew up watching the “Wild West” on TV (black-and-white), through romanticized, mythical stories of frontier life. They contained plenty of action, “good guys and bad guys,” and moral lessons that helped shape our own code of ethics.
In his most recent theme album, Wild West: American Stories, Grant Maloy Smith reconnects us to that shared experience. He captures the Wild West in vivid stories and songs, feeding our nostalgic yearning for this land and time with its real-life stories and larger-than-life characters. And he does it in a way only Grant can do, with a masterful compilation of stories told through songs. Grant transports us back in time on this journey of westward expansion, expanding our appreciation of history with his trademark American roots music. And that soulful, longing voice that is distinctly Grant’s balances out some of the romance of the West with poignant, less-than-idyllic realities. Indeed, there were bumps along the way in our Western expansion, where frontiersmen displaced Native Americans, whose lives would never be the same.
From the opening songs of “Voices in the Wind” (about Sacajawea) and “Go West Boys,” there are 18 memorable tunes, including some unexpected ones. Who knew about the first Black U.S. Deputy Marshall, Bass Reeves (“Gunslinger”)? And what a delightful song, El Paso Señorita(replacing in my mind the tragic fate, from Marty Robbins’s El Paso, of a cowboy losing his life over a beautiful señorita). And I loved Ro-dee-o! There’s something for everyone in this landmark album, and all the tracks are masterfully arranged and produced—a tribute to Grant and to his “Who’s Who” stable of musicians and singers.
The companion book alone is a tribute to Grant’s knowledge and appreciation of the Wild West. Ken Burns would be proud. I certainly am. And I have never been more proud to drive a 2015 car with yet another relic of our recent past, a CD player, so I can listen to Grant’s songs over and over. It’s wonderful traveling music, and it fits the amazing journey Grant takes us on.
The Wild West: American Stories boxed set is available for purchase on this website. The album is not available for streaming.
About the writer:
Ron Ovadia is a Southern California-based songwriter, author, and motivational speaker. He believes music has a powerful purpose: to help connect people to worthy causes and each other. To learn more about him, please visit him at:
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