The
Olaf Wieghorst Museum
Foundation |
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Wieghorst
Western Heritage Days is pleased and proud
to honor Ken Graydon, a western
treasure, as our 2008 Performer of the Year.
Ken Graydon grew up in California’s San Joaquin Valley where he helped raise and train quarter horses with his dad. He learned to sing three-part harmony with his mom and brother while riding in their ’41 Pontiac.
As the cowboy poetry movement came to his attention, Ken began writing and then performing all over the country. Tales from his dad’s cowboy and rodeo days in Arizona in the 20’s have become part of the stories Ken now shares with us.
Ken appreciates all able men who can do things with their hands. He sees a comparison between cowboys on the open range and men at sea. Both set their course by the stars at night – both work ropes – and both are physically strong, independent and able. He appreciates his Scottish roots and the drama of western history and knows, off the top of his head, more western and train facts and lore than any one person should be able to remember! And then there are the stories and songs of the sea! What gifts he has to share.
His rich voice and command of the stage are wonderful to experience. Whether it is with poetry or song – he draws the listener right in.
His latest CD, “The Way I Heard It” talks about the West he loves in song and poetry. And there is a new book, with the same title, which includes the songs and poems from that album as well as other original creations.
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We, in Southern California, are fortunate that Ken and his wife, Phee Sherline now reside in Fallbrook, where they continue to influence the folk music scene. They are the producers of the Fallbrook Americana Music Series and also have years of involvement in bringing music to the Death Valley 49er Encampment, an annual 5-Day event in November. Both Ken and Phee are known all over the Southwest as entertainers, MCs, song writers and music promoters. And, they are directly responsible for introducing a number of other performers to the Western Music Association.
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As their name suggests, The Tumbling Tumbleweeds pay homage to the group they consider to be the “masters of cowboy music,” The Sons of the Pioneers. As vocalists they find the music and harmonies of the Sons of the Pioneers totally irresistible and as Westerners they find their songs a romantic tribute to the West that was. They have performed all over Southern California and were enthusiastically received at the Western Music Association’s Western Music Festival in Albuquerque, NM in November 2007.
The Tumbleweeds are currently celebrating the release of their debut album titled, “The Tumbling Tumbleweeds”, which features the original song, Golden Grizzly written by Wolfskill and Mills and is available anywhere they perform as well as at www.CDBaby.com or at www.thetumblingtumbleweeds.com.
“It is our belief that it is the “story” within each western song that makes it so uniquely “western” and gives it a life of its own. The cowboy era was a time of legend and folklore and it is that element of “story” that we Tumbleweeds wish to honor, as well as the integrity of the richly harmonious musical legacy of the Sons of the Pioneers themselves. Their sound transports us to a time and place that was so much more innocent and peaceful than that of our world today and it is that sound that drew us to their music and that which we also wish to carry on.” Robert Wolfskill, The Tumbling Tumbleweeds |
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Judy Taylor is an award winning singersongwriter and entertainer with over 20 years of professional entertainment experience. She’s a high energy performer as a solo or the leader of her band “The Wild Oats”. Her music of originals, classic standards, bluegrass, Cajun Spanish and folk, keep the audience tapping toes and clapping hands.
Dedicated to preserving the Wild West Arts, Judy Taylor performs Fancy Western Trick Roping and Gun Spinning in her show along with her traditional Cowgirl Western Music.
She engages the audience in teaching how to trick rope with extra ”special ropes” for kids and traditional ropes for the determined. Judy’s Gun show is a display of fancy gun spinning with music and is very entertaining to watch. Judy is also an Edutainer for Western History.
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Arizona singer-songwriter, Jon Messenger writes songs that reflect his love of the West and the American Cowboy. His writing has been favorably compared to the works of such notable contemporary Western songwriters as Jack Hannah, Michael Fleming, Dave Stamey, Curly Musgrave, and Bob Wagoner.
Jon’s work reflects his deep love and appreciation of the Western way of life. He writes some of the most hauntingly beautiful songs of our time, and is well respected as a performer and songwriter by cowboy poets and musicians across the west.
Jon Messenger served four years as a member of the Board of Directors of the Western Music Association, including three years as President of the Board of Directors.
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Having called Arizona, Texas, California, Alaska and Kansas “home” at one time or another, Tom Hiatt is a true “Son of the West”. The magnificent landscapes and the people who settled them fill the ballads Tom writes and sings: tales of cowboys, outlaws, lawmen, pioneers, wild broncos, and more.
Tom’s warm emotion-filled voice and high-energy performances have enthralled audiences at cowboy poetry and music festivals all over the country, as well as on TV and radio programs, at rodeos, in schools & universities, at museums and at guest ranches.
His CD, Cowboy Classics features some of the greatest cowboy songs of all time. Rugs, Wranglers and Rodeos, showcases contemporary western tunes. His performance repertoire always includes a mix of traditional and contemporary songs that are a “hit” with audiences of all ages. Some of his original cowboy ballads have been inspired by his own cowboying experiences as well as those of friends of his.
His band, The Sundown Riders, brings great talent to the mix in the persons of singer/songwriter extraordinaire, Marvin O’Dell, from the Palm Springs area on bass and vocal harmonies, and Steve Thomas on mandolin.
Visit
the website: www.tomhiatt.net to learn more
about Tom and the band’s current, future and prior events.
Visit:
www.westernmusic.org to learn more
about
the Western Music Association!
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Greg Crowder Photography
Ken
Wilcox, Bruce Huntington,
Walt Richards and Paula Strong
Without trains, the American interior would not have opened up when it did and our country’s history would have been quite different. Without trains, the cowboy as we envision him, on the long trail drive to Abilene, would not exist.
The four member Trails & Rails group, plays from a very large repertoire of cowboy and train songs. In their favorite ‘Quatro’ format, 2005 Western Music Association Duo Harmony Winners, Walt Richards and Paula Strong, are joined by Ken Wilcox on autoharp and guitar and Bruce Huntington on upright bass. Their 2007 CD Ghost of Tombstone features six original contemporary western songs by Bruce and two more by Walt in collaboration with Les Buffham – the featured poet at the Wieghorst Western Heritage Days celebration in 2007. Trails & Rails opened the Tombstone Western Music Festival in November 2007 with the title song from that CD.
Their prior CD “From Way Out West contains “Night Train Down The Yellowstone” – voted #3 of the Top Ten Single Western Releases for 2006 by the Heartland Public Radio panel.
Visit their website: www.trailsandrails.net to learn more about the group and to check out their past and future schedules. They have played at too many festivals and events to list - locally and all through the west – from Southern California to Arizona to Cody, Wyoming to Albuquerque.
All four sing lead and harmony and there are dazzling instrumental possibilities as well. You can listen to their sound on their website as well as linking to all their songs on CD Baby and iTunes. There’s also a link to February 2008’s San Diego Troubadour which featured the group in the cover article.
New cowboy, train and folk songs continue to be written to this day. Old and new, Trails & Rails enjoys them all. Come enjoy them with us and hear some of the stories behind the songs as well!
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Born in Oklahoma, George was brought up on western music. His uncles got him started on guitar when he was 10 years old and he has been playing ever since. He has currently been very busy performing at western music festivals throughout the Southwest.
George has had multiple nominations for Western Music Association awards, including: Traditional Album of the Year for ¬Keeping the Dream Alive, Song of the Year for the title track, and Best Collaboration of Poet and Musician for “San Joaquin Love Song” with Les Buffham. His song, “They Call Me Vaquero”, was recognized as the 2nd best Single release of 2005 by Heartland Public Radio.
Keepin’ the Dream Alive is a collection of mostly original songs about the many aspects of cowboy life in America. “They Call Me Vaquero” from that CD is a tribute to the first California cowboys who worked the ranchos in Kern County in the 1800s.
Besides performing and writing his own material, George was instrumental in developing the, "What A Cowboy Knows", Festival in Bakersfield, CA. Visit his web site at: www.georgedickey.com to learn more about George and his music, which is also available on cdbaby.com
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If you’ve been to the Adams Avenue Roots Festival in recent years, or the San Diego Bluegrass Society or the San Diego Folk Song Society meetings, you’ve experienced the golden voice and guitar of Tanya Rose. She’s been a guiding light for folk music in San Diego since the 1960’s. Premier folklorist, Lou Curtiss says, “She has a voice that stands up to the very best from any era”.
Tanya sings the American traditional music songbook - songs that touch your heart and soul. For Wieghorst Western Heritage Days she turns her talents westward to both cowboy themes and songs from our Hispanic heritage.
Tanya is one of a kind - a beautiful torch carrier for the best in folk music.
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Traditional, contemporary, and original songs of the American West are the music of award winning songwriter and cowboy & western balladeer, Rodger Maxwell. He blends his rich descriptive baritone voice with his unique guitar styling. Folks say that Rodger's songs take them back in time to the old west.
Rodger grew up in the era of Hoppy, Roy, and Gene. He enjoyed the old western songs he heard his dad sing and the recordings of the great early singers. When his life took him west, he got interested in the history and lore. So he started singing the songs himself and then writing his own story songs in the tradition and style of the old songs.
Rodger is a Past President, and a charter member of, the California Chapter of the Western Music Association. He comes from a tradition of Saturday night family sing a longs, where all the generations got together to sing, with his dad playing guitar. Rodger describes himself as a second-generation cowboy singer. “My dad had a show on WRNY radio, in the 30’s, singing cowboy songs, so I am the Son of a Cowboy Singer.”
Based in the San Fernando Valley of Los Angeles, Rodger performs regularly at many festivals, fairs, and clubs and hosts the 3rd Sunday of the Month Western Music Jamboree at the Museum of the American West (Autry). In performance, he just might surprise you with some whistling, banjitar, banjo, ukulele, mandolin, acoustic bass guitar, or whatever else he can get his hands on.
Says
one fan: John
Payne, President |
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Allen Singer plays guitar and sings folk, blues, country, western, traditional, old time, topical, and bluegrass music. His music is grounded in the songs of Woody Guthrie and Woody’s many musical children, like Bob Dylan. American Roots and Blues play an important role in Allen’s sets and performances. And what could be more representative of American roots than Western music!
He played his first guitar chords during the 1960s folk revival in New York City and has now added flat and finger picking, as well as harmonica.
His Down the Road CD takes you on a journey through American 20th century folk music, country blues, traditional and early country music and lets you listen to the songs and the music that set off the 1960’s folk revival.
Allen is the current leader of the San Diego Folk Song Society, created in 1957 by the great San Diego folk Singer Sam Hinton. He assists in booking acts for San Diego Folk Heritage and is a writer for the San Diego Troubadour.
Allen Singer’s Down the Road CD is available for listening and purchase at CDBaby.com and eFolk Music. Read more about Allen on his web site: www.allensinger.com
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Raised where wild huckleberries grow, Sara originally hails from Sumner, Washington – a tulip-farming town southeast of Seattle. Called a modern-day June Carter, she is a true Americana artist.
Sara's inspiration for songwriting comes from fond memories of home and her many travels throughout the United States, Canada, Mexico, Western and Eastern Europe.
Her song, Coming Home, was awarded the Grand Prize in the 2006 Portland Songwriting Contest.
Sara has been playing clubs, festivals, house concerts, pubs, dive bars and grocery stores from San Diego to Seattle, Portland, Los Angeles, Arizona, Nashville, Mississippi and has recently finished her third European tour.
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A dynamic trio, singing songs of the old west, gospel and familiar folk melodies, have been delighting audiences of all ages with their humor, wit and harmony for years.
Audience participation is guaranteed!
Don Halte, Lauren Krekelberg and Kevin Krekelberg have performed throughout the Southwest and continue to be hometown favorites.
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Music is a big old circle for Dale. He listened to his Dad and Mr. Flores play cowboy songs from both sides of the border with the sound of the guitar ringing in the Texas night air. Marty Robbins, Tex Ritter, Gene Autry and Roy Rogers soon gave way to all of the 1960s rock bands.
Then in early 1990s, there was a passion for bluegrass and all things acoustic including his version of western swing. Along the way Dale met Mehl Lawson who introduced him to cowboy music all over again. So now Dale is playing his version of the western legends and writing new material and having a real good time.
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Growing up in Oklahoma, I got my first taste of poetry by reading the simple lines in the Farm & Ranch magazines that lay around the house. I was more of a farm boy than a cowboy, but in Oklahoma there was a rodeo somewhere every weekend and we managed to make every one of them. I was encouraged to write poetry by Miss Campbell when I was in the eighth grade.
I left Oklahoma for California and the Navy when I was eighteen. Though I kept writing short stories and poetry through the years, I never thought of reciting in front of an audience. A few years ago, I got up at an open mic session where Ken Graydon was the Master of Ceremonies. He invited me to Descanso for Vaquero Days and, from his encouragement, I've recited all the way from Minden, Nevada to Tucson, Arizona. Since then I've had the opportunity to introduce cowboy poetry to many people and it is a joy to see how much it is appreciated.
I've spent these many years in California in the construction industry, but my heart seems to be out there behind that herd of longhorns or swaggering down the streets of Dodge City
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A retired Master Sergeant, Harvey served in the US Marine Corps for two years, then joined the California Army National Guard and served another 28 years. He was employed by the National Guard for 26 years of that time.
Harvey has been writing poetry most of his life, and only recently started sending things out for publication. His poetry has already appeared in Tale Spinner and The Log magazines and on the British Columbia Cowboy Heritage Society web site.
He enjoys writing all types and styles of poetry, but his favorite is the traditional Cowboy Poetry
One of the staples of life in the late 18th Century in the Old West was the blacksmith. The blacksmith was an important member of the farming community who built and repaired farming equipment, forged branding irons and nails, and repaired almost anything, including wagon wheels.
To preserve, exhibit the tools, skills and traditions of the blacksmith trade, the Bandy Blacksmith Guild was formed in 2001 as part of the Escondido Historical Society. Guild members are current and former blacksmith students who have taken blacksmithing classes in the Escondido Historical Society’s Bandy Blacksmith Shop. These blacksmiths display their talents at the Wieghorst Western Heritage Days on both Saturday and Sunday.
The Bandy Blacksmith Shop takes its name from Tom Bandy who opened his Escondido blacksmiths shop in 1908. Although Tom was not the first blacksmith to come to Escondido, he was the first to stay in the young community. Running the operations now is Phil Ewing who worked with Albert Bandy for many years before purchasing the Bandy Blacksmith Shop.
Mountain Men needed to possess many skills to survive. They were trappers and woodsmen without equal and they were also traders, blacksmiths, horse wranglers, gunsmiths, tailors, explorers, packers and often guides.
The Mountain Men invite everyone to visit them at their camp and to learn more about the skills they had to learn in order to make it in the early days of the West.
From San Diego’s back country past, a contingent representing the Buffalo Soldiers are an important part of the celebration of Wieghorst Western Heritage Days.
The “Buffalo Soldiers” were members of the American Army’s 9th, 10th, 24th and 25th Cavalry Units made up of exclusively African Americans. During almost a century of service, they became one of the most decorated U. S. Army units.
Eighteen members received the Medal of Honor and they had the lowest desertion rate of any Army unit between 1867 and 1898.
As elite troops, the Buffalo Soldiers were called upon to chase Pancho Villa in Mexico, fight with Teddy Roosevelt in Cuba and to serve in the Philippines. During the early years of World War II some units were stationed at Camp Lockett in San Diego’s back country near Campo. During those years they patrolled the strategic San Diego and Arizona Railroad, guarding against potential sabotage.
During Western Heritage Days, representatives of the Buffalo Soldiers participate in a parade that opens the two-day festival and are available to answer questions and tell the story of these famous infantry regiments.
At the Children’s Pavilion, kids ten and younger will have a chance to create their own craft projects, play old-fashioned games, and have special hands-on lessons in some of the skills needed by frontier youngsters and their families to survive. Games and crafts are free for the kids at the Children’s Pavilion.
And don’t forget the pony rides. This is one of the favorite rides for the kids. Tickets are available onsite.
Gunfight
skits are performed throughout the weekend
and before each skit information
and demonstrations on gun safety is presented.
Four gunfighter groups are
featured this year:
Sweet Revenge & Company is an 1880s and 1920s reenactment group. For skits and most public appearances they represent the Old West in the 1880’s. In parades they showcase the Buffalo Bill and Pawnee Bill’s 101 Ranch Wild West Show of the 1920s, featuring the daredevil performers of the time.
Sweet Revenge & Company enjoys keeping those wonderful moments in time alive for audiences. The group raises funds for the San Diego Humane Society.
The Southwest Ghostriders are a reenactment group based in Southern California.
This dedicated group was formed to continue the Living History of the Old West. They have performed in front of large audiences, including those at the Annual “Gathering of the Gunfighters”, held at the Yuma State Territorial Prison in Yuma, AZ, the Old Tucson Studios Event held each Spring, as well as various events held within San Diego and Riverside Counties and Tombstone, AZ.
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