Origins of "Riders in the Sky"

In this episode we take a look at the history of one of the most widely post WWII, "Covered" popular songs in the ASCAP publishing database.

From its humble beginnings as a European folk song to its re-appearance during the American Civil War asa melody for a drinking song, to its eventual use as she basis for a song about a cautionary tale warning a cowboy that if he doesn't change his ways, who will one day join the damned cowboys doomed to try to “catch the Devil”s herd across these endless skies.

Music Videos

While not an official video production from the estate of Marty Robbins, I really do think that this visual interpretation captures some the essence regarding "Riders in the Sky"

From a September 1990 episode of the CBS Television show "Hee Haw".  Glen Campbell & Roy Clark play "Ghost Riders in the Sky", with some help from Jeff Dayton. Glen & Roy's version of this song is on the soundtrack album for the 1985 movie "Uphill All the Way", available at finer retailers everywhere!

This is 1961... (Restored footage). Levang was hired as a temporary guitar and banjo player on The Lawrence Welk Show when Buddy Merrill left to serve in the United States Army. Welk was so pleased with his ability that he hired Levang on a permanent basis when Buddy completed his tour of duty in 1961. Levang stayed with the Welk Band until its final show in 1982.

That same year, at the Country Music Association Awards he was nominated for best artist on a specialty instrument, the mandolin.

He was also an accomplished studio musician, playing on several records for artists such as Glen Campbell, Frank Zappa, Bobby Darin, Bobbi Gentry, David Clayton Thomas, Neal Hefti ("Batman Theme"), Elvis Presley, Dean Martin, Neil Diamond and Noel Boggs. Levang died in Canyon Country, California at the age of 83.

The ill fated reboot of the Blues Brothers movie franchise in the late 1990s tried to recapture the romance and legitimacy of the original film by relying on trade and true musical icons such as "Riders in the Sky".

Filmed in Toronto, Ontario Canada, most of which was shot in the Cherry Street area of Toronto in what is now the "Distillery District". The timing was right and so were the surroundings. The area had been a staging ground and ancillary storage and processing to the nearby Docklands south of Lakeshore Drive.

I watched the movie filming evolve on a daily basis during 1996/1997 as I drove Cherry St. Daily on my way to work. Sets going up and then controlled destruction of the concert hall included in this clip.

One of the first appearances of "Riders in the Sky" came during a 1949 episode of the movie by the same name. Singing Cowboy Gene Autry sings the Western Classic song "Ghost Riders in the Sky" from his movie "Riders in the Sky" from Columbia Pictures 1949.

By the mid 1980s, Duane Eddy had entered a new career awakening after his work with the Art of Noise and their reworking of  the "Peter Gunn Theme". This time out we catch Duane flying his stylings all over our featured track. This video is from an American TV appearance in 1996.

In the USA, and more specifically, Texas is full of lore, legends, and ghost stories. The tale of the Ghost Riders is by far the saddest, most evil, not to mention, the most famous one in the country. This legend is sadly true, a senseless ghoulish tragedy which took place in Crosby County, Texas. You may know it as Stampede Mesa. The legend inspired the classic song “Ghost Riders in the Sky.”

Playlists

Perhaps the most telling statistic I’ve come across about disco and more specifically about the Montreal disco scene was that the police reported in 1970 that 80% of Montreal’s missing young people could be found in discothèques.

During the 70s, for some people, disco was all empty glitz and glamour, smoke and mirrored balls and the pinnacle of 70s exhibitionism. Montreal exemplified those qualities during a time when the the city’s greatness was dissolving after reaching its high watermark during Expo 67. Moreover, disco’s origins were far grittier than the slick veneer of the well know Studio 54. Before your mom was doing the YMCA at weddings, disco was the beating heart of the Montreal underground. It was the music of liberation, inclusiveness and empowerment with a four-on-the-floor bassline as its rallying cry.

Expo 67

In1967 the world came to Montreal for Canada's Worlds Fair. Read about the event and its impact on the city of Montreal and the explosion of cultural awareness that helped usher in the disco era.

Disco TV Shows

Check out this clip of CFCF Montreal's CTV network show "Feel Like Dancin'"from 1977! They were actually pretty cutting edge . . . In this episode they introduce Grave Jones.

Disco Life

If you really want to get a look at the extravagance of the Disco era take a look at these pictures That Show Just How Crazy 1970s Disco Really Was.

Spotify Playlist

Apple Music Playlist

In this episode of the Buster Mungus Diaries I take a look at 4 of my favourite live recordings of all-time.

The albums are fabulous in their own right, but they do provide a glimpse at musicians/bands when the material is paired with great engineering and a fantastic performance. Consider the variety and range of performances by the likes of, Jerry Lee Lewis, The MC5, Deep Purple and the Allman brothers Band.

      

      

I grew up during the decade of the live album. As an Artist you were nobody until you had a live album in late 1960s into the late 1970s. It announced your triumphs over the previous album releases and marked your maturity as an artist, usually with a multi gate fold, poster sometimes included, double LP.

Jerry Lee Lewis

Jerry Lee Lewis (born September 29, 1935) is an American rock and roll and country music singer and pianist. An early pioneer of rock and roll music, Lewis was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 1986 and his pioneering contribution to the genre has been recognized by the Rockabilly Hall of Fame. In 2004, Rolling Stone Magazine ranked him number 24 on their list of the 100 Greatest Artists of All Time.

Someone in the studio (with the initials W.K.) got tired of watching "KOTJ" being taught incorrectly on YouTube. So, on a challenge, that same complainer taught our "resident youth" William Olivas to play it correctly. If William can do it, anyone can. And now you can, too. Finally! Now, once more, with feeling...

Deep Purple

While Deep Purple have been copied and imitated by many artists and bands throughout the years, none have captured the essence and feel of the Mark II lineup.

This lineup is considered the "Gold Standard" among longtime fans of the band. The Mark II produced two of the 1970s greatest albums, "Machine Head" and our pick, "Made in Japan"

The Allman Brothers Band

While some of the greatest live performances during a bands history are never recorded on audio tape of film, sometimes we get lucky and find the next best the next best thing. Most of the early film of the band live is either from super 8 film of just plain horrible quality due to low light levels, there are a few worth watching. In this clip 1971, Duane and Dicky illustrate their guitar prowess without walking over each other. Moreover Dickey hasn't yet entered his "I'll play as loudly as I want to" phase so there is some noted restraint while playing in the shadow of the great Duane Allman.