I was born in California
The northern territory's where I'm from
I was raised in the country
But the city is where I make my home
I wash my hands in the Feather River
Feel its cool, cool water on my face
And the "O" on Table Mountain
Is like a beacon calling me back to this place
The foothills and the gold mines
They map out the story of my youth
Till I rambled on down I-5
Seeking out my own kind of truth
I was born in California
Butte County is where it is I'm from
I was raised in the country
But the city is where I make my home
I spent some years in Hollywoodland
They all thought I was a hillbilly son
But when I'd go back to my hometown
They all thought I was as city as they come
So I travelled as a troubadour
Put my heart out on the line for a song
Till I had that old heart broken
Don't seem a place left where I belong
I was born in California
The northern territory's where I'm from
I was raised in the country
But the city is where I make my home
You won't catch me fightin'
My only weapon's a paper and a pen
Spinnin' yarns of disenchantment
For all of us that don't quite fit in
Here on the bank of the Tennessee River
I ain't seen the Golden State in so long
So I take another pull of whiskey
And write out the last line of this song
I was born in California
Butte County is where it is I'm from
I was raised in the country
But the city is where I make my home