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| “(Ghost) Riders in the Sky: A Cowboy Legend” | |
|---|---|
| Song | |
| Published | 1948, Edwin H. Morris & Co Inc |
| Released | June 5, 1948 |
| Genre | Country, Western |
| Songwriter(s) | Stan Jones |
“(Ghost) Riders in the Sky: A Cowboy Legend” is a cowboy-styled country/western song written in 1948 by American songwriter, film and television actor Stan Jones.
A number of versions were crossover hits on the pop charts in 1949, the most successful being by Vaughn Monroe. The ASCAP database lists the song as “Riders in the Sky” (title code 480028324), but the title has been written as “Ghost Riders“, “Ghost Riders in the Sky“, and “A Cowboy Legend“. Members of the Western Writers of America chose it as the greatest Western song of all time.
Overview
The song tells a folk tale of a cowboy who has a vision of red-eyed, steel-hooved cattle thundering across the sky, being chased by the spirits 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 these endless skies”. The story has been linked with old European myths of the Wild Hunt and the Dutch/Flemish legend of the Buckriders, in which a supernatural group of hunters passes the narrator in wild pursuit.
Stan Jones stated that he had been told the story when he was 12 years old by an old Native American who resided north-east of the Douglas, Arizona border town, a few miles behind D Hill, north of Agua Prieta, Sonora.
The Native Americans, possibly Apache, who lived within Cochise County, believed that when souls vacate their physical bodies, they reside as spirits in the sky, resembling ghost riders. He related this story to Wayne Hester, a boyhood friend (later owner of the Douglas Cable Company). As both boys were looking at the clouds, Stan shared what the old Native American had told him, looking in amazement as the cloudy shapes were identified as the “ghost riders” that years later, would be transposed into lyrics. The melody is based on the Civil War-era popular song “When Johnny Comes Marching Home“.
Hundreds of performers have recorded versions of the song. Vaughn Monroe reached number 1 in Billboard magazine with his version (“Riders in the Sky” with orchestra and vocal quartet). Other artists that made the charts with the song include: The Outlaws,
Bing Crosby (with the Ken Darby Singers),
Burl Ives (two different versions),
and Johnny Cash.
Notable and charting recordings
- The original version by Stan Jones was recorded in late 1948 or early 1949. A recording by Stan Jones and his Death Valley Rangers issued on Mercury 5320 in May 1949. Fellow songwriter Eden Ahbez sent the song to Burl Ives, who recorded his own version in early 1949.
- The Peggy Lee version was recorded on April 18, 1949, and released by Capitol Records as catalog No. 57-608. It reached No. 2 on Billboard‘s Most Played By Disc Jockeys listing without appearing in the retail Top 30.
- Lawrence Welk and His Orchestra released an instrumental version in 1961, featuring Neil Levang on guitar, which spent three weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, reaching No. 87.
- An instrumental version by the Shadows reached No. 12 on the UK Singles Chart in January 1980.
- The Blues Brothers Band recorded the song as part of the film Blues Brothers 2000
- Slim Whitman – Ghost Riders in the Sky
Glen Campbell & Roy Clark Play “Ghost Riders in the Sky”
Dean Martin – Ghost Riders in the Sky
Ghost Riders in the Sky (Guitar instrumental)
Riders in the sky Old Guitar Monkey
Ghost Riders in the Sky – Southern Raised (bass singer cover)
Neil LeVang – Ghost Riders In The Sky (Official Video)
Willie Nelson & Johnny Cash – Ghost Riders (In the Sky)
Sons of the Pioneers — Ghost Riders In the Sky
Ghost Riders in the Sky – pedal steel guitar
Roy Clark “Ghost Riders in the Sky” ~ smoking hot in Branson 1990s
Duane Eddy – Ghost Riders In The Sky
HERB KRAUS & THE WALKIN’ SHOES – Ghost Riders In The Sky
Gene Autry – Ghost Riders in the Sky (from Riders in the Sky 1949)
JUDY COLLINS – “Ghost Riders In The Sky” 2010
Ghost Riders in the Sky (From “Riders in the Sky”)
Riders in the Sky (film)
By IMDb – CC BY-SA 4.0, Link
| Riders in the Sky | |
|---|---|
| Theatrical release poster | |
| Directed by | John English |
| Screenplay by | Gerald Geraghty |
| Based on | based upon a story by Herbert A. Woodbury |
| Produced by | Armand Schaefer |
| Starring | Gene AutryChampionGloria HenryMary Beth HughesRobert LivingstonAlan Hale, Jr.Pat Buttram |
| Cinematography | William Bradford |
| Edited by | Henry Batista |
| Music by | Paul Mertz (musical supervisor) |
| Production company | A Gene Autry Production |
| Distributed by | Columbia Pictures Corporation |
| Release date | November 29, 1949 (N.Y.C) |
| Running time | 70 minutes |
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
Riders in the Sky is a 1949 American Western film directed by John English and starring and co-produced by Gene Autry; featuring Gloria Henry, and Pat Buttram. Based on the song by Stan Jones, the film is about a murder, of which rancher Ralph Lawson (Steve Darrell) is accused, and Gene Autry attempting to clear his name.
Cast
- Gene Autry as Gene Autry
- and Champion World’s Wonder Horse
- with Gloria Henry as Anne Lawson
- Mary Beth Hughes as Julie Stewart
- Robert Livingston as Rock McCleary
- Steve Darrell as Ralph Lawson
- Alan Hale, Jr. as Marshal Riggs
- Tom London as Old Man Roberts
- and Pat Buttram as Chuckwalla
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