Post by Doris McCraw
writing as Angela Raines
To let readers know, this is a subjective list of my favorite Singing Cowboys, and why I have listed them as I have. This list is based on their singing. I will do an additional post on who I believe were the top five actors. To make it easy I've limited the list to five and they needed to have made movies in which they sang.
5. Gene Autry. I know some will wonder why he is so far down on the list. I confess, his voice is too 'reedy' for me. He doesn't have much of a range, unless yodeling, but he was smart and found songs that fit his voice. That he was a fabulous businessman is undeniable. We have him to thank for the whole Singing Cowboy genre. He was the first and made more films any others.
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| Gene Autry - en. wikipedia.com |
4. Herb Jeffries. Such a lovely tenor voice. Smooth and strong. Jeffries made four films as a singing cowboy. He also wrote a lot of his own music. He is one that a lot don't know about, but I do like his stylings.
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| Herb Jeffries - Wikipedia.org |
3. Rex Allen. Allen's voice was powerful and his vocal stylings were top-notch. The thing that disconcerts my ear is the break between his chest and head voice. One thing about Allen, he was the real deal when it came to being a cowboy. Also, in case you recognize his voice, he did a lot of voice-over/narration for the Disney documentary.
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| Rex Allen - en.wikipedia.org |
2. Roy Rogers. One of the best. Lovely voice, nice vocal stylings. He was one of the original 'Sons of the Pioneers'. He was known as Leonard Slye back then. He went on the make a number of the singing cowboy movies just behind Autry. He also acted in some of those early Autry films.
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| Roy Rogers - Wikipedia |
1. Eddie Dean. Even before I read that both Roy Rogers and Gene Autry claimed Eddie Dean was the best singer, I loved his voice. Melodious, rich, and he could go from low to high with no break in his voice at all. His vocal stylings were outstanding and he could sing almost anything and make it sound amazing. In addition, Dean also wrote or co-wrote a number of his songs.
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| Eddie Dean - Wikipedia |
Below are links to each of the above-mentioned. Enjoy.
Gene Autry: Back in the Saddle
Herb Jeffries: Got the Payday Blues
Rex Allen: Wandering Buckaroo Yodel
Roy Rogers: Don't Fence Me In
Eddie Dean: Let's Go Sparkin , Cool Water
This is my list, and I enjoy those old 'Singing Cowboy' movies. They are just so much fun. It would be great to know who would be on your list and in what order.
Colorado and Women's History
4 comments:
Hi Doris: What a fun topic. I really don't have a favorite movie/singing cowboy (unless you count George Strait) but I do remember a few of these me, mostly Gene Autry. My parents had Gene's Christmas album and my brothers and sister and me listened to that over and over every Christmas season.
Thank you, Julie. I grew up with music and the joy never left. Even now I search out these older films just to hear these folk sing. It is so much fun for me. Doris
I wasn't familiar with two of your choices, so I went to check them out and agree, Eddy has a beautiful rich voice. That aside, my favourite singing cowboy remains Roy Rogers. I like Gene's Rudolph Christmas song and heard that a lot growing up. A fun blog.
Elizabeth, I'm glad you checked them out. The minute I heard Eddie's voice I knew his was a special voice. Since I was a vocal and acting teacher these are fun posts for me. Doris
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