They Call the Wind Maria They Call the Wind Maria "They Call the Wind Maria" is an American popular song with lyrics written by Alan J. Lerner and music by Frederick Loewe for their 1951 Broadway musical, "Paint Your Wagon", which is set in the California Gold Rush. Rufus Smith originally sang the song on Broadway, and Joseph Leader was the original singer in London's West End. It quickly became a runaway hit, and during the Korean War, the song was among the "popular music listened to by the troops". Vaughn Monroe and his Orchestra recorded the song in 1951, and it was among the
Wild Is the Wind (song) Into the Forest. Randy Crawford covered the song on her 2001 album "Permanent" (a.k.a. "Play Mode"). Scottish singers Storm Gordon (as featured on her 2001 album-debut "Radio Wonderlust Vol. 1") and Billy Mackenzie, have also recorded the song. Billy MacKenzie's version appeared posthumously on the 2001 EP "Wild Is the Wind" and on the 2005 album "Transmission Impossible." TV on the Radio sampled Nina Simone's version on the song "Say You Do" on their self-released 2002 debut "OK Calculator." In 2003, Barbra Streisand recorded the song for her album "The Movie Album" (2003), and filmed a music video. Amel Larrieux