Riders in the Sky

Last weekend Wade and I traveled to Athens, GA to see Riders in the Sky, the premier Western band in the world today. They are a strange combination of Western music in the style of Gene Autry, Roy Rogers and The Sons of the Pioneers, and ADD-inspired humor that is funny to the young, and the juvenile. The last time I saw them was in Virginia at a Borders Bookstore with my Pop, and it was one of the most fun shows I've ever been to! At a bookstore!

This show was better-attended. In fact, they played to a full house of geezers and little kids. And us. The audience was a strange mix. As you can see, our seats were on the second row!

Those of you who would love Riders already know about them, so I won't bore the rest of my huge readership. Anyone interested can go to their website http://www.ridersinthesky.com/ .

The show was fantastic. Even after 28 years, they still sound fresh. Ranger Doug's yodeling was superb. They played Ghost Riders in the Sky, Wahoo, I've Got Spurs that Jingle, Woody's Roundup (from their Grammy-winning soundtrack to Toy Story II), Call of the Canyon, Tumblin Tumbleweeds (acoustic), Happy Trails, Davy Crocket, Rawhide (a crowd pleaser), That's How the Yodel Was Born, Early Autumn, Deep in the Heart of Texas, Cowboy Camp Meetin' (in the sky), Biscuit Blues and many others.

Sidemeat the Sidekick's Sidekick made an appearance, but sadly, none of the other alter-egos (Drywall Paul, Charlie & Slocum) were able to make it. Too Slim rapped about meeting Eminem at the Grammys. There were new jokes and old ones, including the one about the circus train crashing in Ranger Doug's "portrait of the America West." I nearly wet my pants I laughed so hard.

I have to say that even though Joey the Cow Polka King has been with them for 10 years, hearing accordian in every tune is a bit strange. It's just not what I'm used to. Joey is a great personality and a gorgeous voice. He doesn't sing much with the other guys ... I don't know if that's because his voice is too close to Doug's in pitch, or whether he sounds too much like Tony Bennett to blend.

After the show we hung out to get autographs and pictures with the band. I really wanted to invite them out for a beer, but since I'm not at all familiar with Athens, I was afraid they'd say yes! It was a good thing, because there wasn't much open by the time we left.

We'll definitely go see them when they get near Atlanta again!

First set Sidemeat the Sidekick's Sidekick
The band

Acoustic number. Very Cool.
Ig with the band, minus Woody Paul.
Ig with Too Slim, Joey the Cow Polka King, Ranger Doug and Woody Paul.