Cowboy Songs
December 27th, 2006, Posted in Cowboy Stuff
As I think about camp fire songbook favorites, the first type of song that comes to mind is cowboy songs. I suppose it is because singing cowboys is what comes to my mind when I think of campfire singing. As cowboys worked the cattle and drove them from range to range, there would be one or two of the group that might have a guitar, banjo or other musical instrument. The songs that they sang were probably as diverse as their backgrounds.
Some cowboys had heard the popular folk songs of the time. Most had been brought up going to church, and so they would know some of the hymns of that time period. There may have even been a few cowboys that had attended an opera while in New York or one of the other large cities. Of course, many cowboys came from other countries, and so they would remember the songs they learned in their childhood. Whatever songs they had learned in their past are the songs they would sing around a camp fire.
The Great American Camp Fire Songbook has many songs that were popular among cowboys. Here are some of the best.
- I Ride An Old Paint
This has been one of my favorites for over 20 years. I first heard this melody as I was listening to an orchestra piece by Aaron Copland called Hoedown. Copland took several songs from the old west and put the melodies into Hoedown. It’s in a medium-slow tempo, which can lull little cowboys and big cowboys alike to sleep.
- Great Granddad
This is another song that Copland used in his Hoedown. I included this because it has been around for quite awhile. When I think of my own great grandparents, I imagine their lives were similar to what is sung in this song. They were pioneer stock, living in the west, in houses that must have seemed primitive compared to how we live today.
- Home On The Range
Probably the most popular cowboy song that we sing today is Home On the Range. You probably know this one already. If you have never heard the second verse, you should listen to it. It is perfect for singing under the starry night sky and wondering what lies in the great beyond.
- Git Along Little Dogies
The next three songs, including this one, give the camp fire participants an idea of what life was like on the trail. They talk about dogies (young calves) and driving (herding) them to their grazing lands in places like Wyoming, Montana, Texas and everywhere in between. - Lone Star Trail
The Lone Star Trail, as near as I can guess, in Texas, or in the vicinity. Texas is the Lone Star State, so it stands to reason. This song also goes by another name; The Old Chisholm Trail. The song has a lot Yippie Ti Yi Yays in it, which is typical of cowboy songs. - My Home’s in Montana
If you’ve ever been to Montana, you can see why this cowboy decided to make it his home. There is a lot of beautiful country thereabouts. My favorite areas include the Yellowstone area and the Glacier area.
I hope this gives you an idea of what songs the cowboys might have sung in the old west. Get some friends and/or family together and sing some cowboy songs from the Great American Camp Fire Songbook.
Roger Turner is a campfire song enthusiast. For more great tips and advice on camp fire song book cowoy songs visit http://www.bestcampingsongs.com. He is also the editor of The Great American Campfire Songbook. You can find over 80 campfire songs, including the ones in this article in The Great American Campfire Songbook.
Can you use the cowboy songs with more than 60 years?
I try to understand copyright here if I make a melodrama Western comedy – Can I wear jeans and western / country songs word for word, 60, or should I change the words in the form of parody right?
In general (as an exact answer is quite complicated) should consider extending copyright term to the end of life of the author plus seventy five years. Based on the estimated age for the songs, their authors have had to write after his death for fifteen years, which is rather unlikely even for the hardcore, old jeans. Nor can we proceed under any illusion that it can avoid the issue of copyright, simply by making changes arbitrary words or constitutes a kind of parody, which has a particular meaning in copyright. If the songs belonging to someone else, you need to locate rights holders and obtaining permission, otherwise, I think that you would violate copyright and is punished with sanctions such behavior entails.
Home on the range-CowBoy Songs
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