Singing Cowboy Salute

I wrote this for the 3rd Dean Smith Celebrity rodeo in Abeline, TX. The theme of the event, which raised money for the John Wayne Cancer Foundation, was Salute to the Singing Cowboys. Part of the entertainment feautred modern day singing cowboys singing songs made famous by earlier singing cowboys.

SINGING COWBOY SALUTE

When westerns were a dyin’ breed
Hollywood said there’s a need
for something new that we can do
to freshen up the look and feel
and give our cowboys sex appeal.

That’s when we saw the cowboy star
who fought and shot and played guitar
like the one from 1933;
Monogram’s “Riders of Destiny”.
Back then they thought John Wayne was dandy
as cowboy-crooner “Singin’ Sandy”.

Well, that concept was mighty thin
so movie makers tried again.
This time they found success of course
using singers who could ride a horse
like Rex and Tex, Roy and Gene,
Monte Hale and Eddie Dean.

No one thought that it would last
but more than 50 years have passed
and we still find we sing along;
familiar words from days long gone.

Back in the Saddle,
that song from High Noon,
Ghost Riders, Cool Water
and that Tumbleweed tune.

Those musical memories are bound to live on
when we gather together and all sing along
like Gene Autry taught us.
Take a deep breath and grin
cause it’s time to get
Back in the Saddle again.

Jeff Hildebrandt © 2006