Riders in the Sky: A Cowboy Legend

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"(Ghost) Riders in the Sky: A Cowboy Legend" is a country and cowboy-style song. It was written on June 5, 1948 by Stan Jones. [1] A number of versions were also crossover hit on the pop charts in 1949.

The song is about a cowboy who has a vision of red-eyed, fire-breathing cattle thundering across the sky, being chased by the ghosts of damned cowboys. One warns him that if he does not change his ways he will be doomed to join them, forever "trying to catch the Devil's herd across the endless skies." More than fifty different artists have recorded versions of this classic. Charting versions were recorded by Vaughn Monroe (with orchestra and vocal quartet), by Bing Crosby (with the Ken Darby Singers), and by Burl Ives. Other contemporary versions were recorded by Peggy Lee (with the Jud Conlon Singers), and by Spike Jones and his City Slickers.

[edit] Inspiration

The wild hunt: Åsgårdsreien (1872) by Peter Nicolai Arbo

The cowboy song seems to be a modern re-working of the Wild Hunt myth, or at least it tells a similar story. Both incorporate the same archetype of lost souls being ushered to the realm of the dead by a band of wild, heavenly riders.

From Norse gods to cowboys, a biographical sketch of Jones gives this explanation:

An impressionable 12 year old rode to the top of an Arizona hill one afternoon with an old Cowboy friend to check a windmill. A big storm was building and they needed to lock the blades down before the wind hit. When finished, they paused to watch the clouds darken and spread across the sky. As lightning flashed, the Cowboy told the boy to watch closely and he would see the devil's herd, their eyes red and hooves flashing, stampede ahead of phantom horsemen. The Cowboy warned the youth that if he didn't watch himself, he would someday be up there with them, chasing steers for all eternity. The terrified boy jumped on his horse and took off for the the safety of home. Years later, he recalled that scary, dark afternoon and on his 34th birthday, Stan Jones sat outside his Death Valley home and wrote "(Ghost) riders in the Sky."

[edit] Recordings

The Vaughn Monroe version was recorded on March 14, 1949 and released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20-3411. The recording first appeared on the Billboard charts on April 15, 1949, lasting 22 weeks and peaking at position #1.
The Bing Crosby version was recorded on March 22, 1949 and released by Decca Records as catalog number 24618. The recording first appeared on the Billboard charts on May 6, 1949, lasting 6 weeks and peaking at position #14.
The Burl Ives version was recorded on February 17, 1949 and released by Columbia Records as catalog number 38445.The recording first appeared on the Billboard charts on April 22, 1949, lasting 6 weeks and peaking at position #21.
The Peggy Lee version was recorded on April 18, 1949 and released by Capitol Records as catalog number 57-608.
The Spike Jones version was recorded on May 24, 1949 and released by RCA Victor Records as catalog number 20-3741.
Duane Eddy brought his electrified "twangy guitar" sound along with a sax edition by Jim Horn to a 1966 version on an RCA Album of Duane's best.
Singer/comedian Sean Morey has recorded a parody called "Ghost Chickens in the Sky", in which the ghosts of chickens hunt a chicken farmer. It ends with the line, "they cooked him extra crispy/and served him with cole slaw".
It was also recorded by Johnny Cash in 1979, and by the rock band The Outlaws in 1980. Both modern versions are faithful to the original. A bit different was the version of the German metal band Desperados, which featured members of Sodom. Their version's style can be described as a mix of country and thrash metal.
Deborah Harry, lead singer of Blondie, recorded a techno version of the song which features on the soundtrack to the film "Three Businessmen". The song is available for free on her website deborahharry.com.
Impaled Nazarene recorded a black metal version of the song, which was released on Sadogoat EP in 1993. Later it was included in the CD version of their bonus album Tol Cormpt Norz Norz Norz.
The Boston Pops, Lawrence Welk, REM, and The Dixie Chicks [2] have all added versions demonstrating the wide range of artists who have enjoyed Stan Jones' piece.
The Irish Brigade, an Irish Republican band, recorded the song with different lyrics and named it "The S.A.M. Song" referring to Surface to Air Missiles which had been procured by the Provisional IRA.
The heavy metal band Die Apokalyptischen Reiter recorded a version that was released on their 2006 single, Friede Sei Mit Dir.
The Blues Brothers performed the song in the movie, Blues Brothers 2000. Similar to the Rawhide scene in the first movie, the band is mistakenly booked at blue grass festival (announced to the crowd as the "Bluegrass Brothers").
Ned Sublette included a merengue rendition on his Cowboy Rumba (1999).
The Ventures made a surf rock cover of the song.
Me First and The Gimme Gimmes covered the song on their 2006 album Love Their Country
Raphael recorded a version in Spanish.
Milton Nascimento recorded a version in Portugese as Cavaleiros Do Céu on his 1981 album Caçador de Mim