Cowboy Poetry Gathering

Friday afternoon, Guitar and I went to the Colorado Cowboy Poetry Gathering that was held in Arvada, CO. I had never been to an event like this and really didn't know what to expect. I didn't have very high expectations and thought that after an hour or so I'd be ready to say "Been there done that".

What a great, entertaining time it turned out to be. After the first hour I was sorry that I waited till afternoon to come and that I missed several hours of events. There was poetry all right, and there was music too.

The way this thing worked was that there were five sessions going on at any one time. Each session lasted about an hour and had a different theme. Several poets and/or musicians participated in each session. Some of the themes were, "Good Horses, Bad Rides", "Cowboy Humor", "Cowboy Songs & Range Ballads" and "Down Under".

The Down Under session featured poets from...you guessed it, Australia. There are plenty of ranches, cattle and sheep in Australia and the cowboys...and cowgirls there have a strong tradition of "Bush Poetry". Milton Taylor from Hartley, New South Wales kept me in stitches with wonderful rhyming stories. The delightful Aussie accent just made things even more interesting.

There were plenty of North American cowboys and musicians too. Most of the poets are or were actively engaged in ranching so the material was realistic....and often hilarious. About 40 entertainers participated.

On the musical side, one of the most entertaining artists was Chuck Pyle. I didn't think I knew anything about this guy until I read his bio and then I realized that I had listened to a number of his songs that were sung by other artists. He has written songs for John Denver, Chris LeDoux, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, and Jerry Jeff Walker to name a few. This guy is GOOD and to be able to listen to him in a room with only 30-40 other people was a real treat.

Guitar and I stayed until the last session at 5 pm and vowed to make sure we put this high on the priority list for next year. If you ever get the chance to attend an event like this....do. You won't regret it.

Thanks for visiting.