AMERICAN ROUTES
May the Fourth Be With Us! American Routes Independence Day Then & Now May the Fourth Be With Us! American Routes Independence Day Then & Now June 29th, 2022 (Hour 1)
May the Fourth Be With Us! American Routes Independence Day Then & Now

This July 4th weekend, we dive into the record crates to bring you music of celebration, hope and critique from Nina Simone, Randy Newman, Sly Stone and Jon Batiste. Then, the July 4th roots of American Routes as we go back to the 1990s, deep in the archive, for highlights from The American Roots Independence Day concerts at the Washington Monument on the National Mall in Washington, DC. Join us for spectacular stage performances by the urbane blues hero Charles Brown, the Texas Playboys with Johnny Gimble playing Western swing, Mexican-American Mariachi Los Camperos de Nati Cano, Young Tuxedo Brass with New Orleans jazz, and Hawaiian music and song of slack-key guitar master Ledward Kaapana.

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HORSEPOWER: THE COWBOY RIDES INTO THE FUTURE

December 1st, 2010

This week on American Routes we’re exploring the life of the cowboy. From the desert hills of Nevada to the swampy forests of Florida, the cowboy is an enduring symbol of American individualism and self-reliance. We’ll visit with several working cowboys, including a few who can sing a tune or two. Wylie Gustafson might be better known as the man behind the Yahoo yodel, but we’ll talk ranching and horses, as well as music. Then we’ll visit with Creole cowboy Geno Delafose to learn how he mixes zydeco with cattle raising. Plus a couple of Cracker cowboys share tales of cow-hunting, and lots of music to get you out on the trail.

  • Listen to Hour One
  • Listen to Hour Two

HOUR ONE

  • Open Bed: (Ghost) Riders in the Sky Ramrods
    Rock Instrumental Classics, Vol.2: the '60s, Rhino
  • The Old Timers Ken Trowbridge
    Celebrating 25 Years: National Cowboy Poetry Gathering, Western Folklife Center
  • When the Work's All Done This Fall Johnny Bond
    Country and Western: Johnny Bond Standard Transcriptions, Bloodshot
  • SEGMENT: J.M. Capriola Company with Paula, Doug and John Wright

    Listen
  • Back in the Saddle Again Gene Autry
    Songs of the West, Rhino
  • Instrumental: The Penny Opus No.1 Hank Penny
    Crazy Rhythm: The Standard Transcriptions, Bloodshot
  • SEGMENT: Paul Starrs
  • Buffalo Skinners Woody Guthrie
    My Dusty Road, Rounder
  • Oklahoma Hills Hank Thompson
    Greatest Songs: Vol.2, Curb
  • CLIP: Kelly Whelan on his handlebar moustache
  • I Want to Be a Cowboy's Sweetheart Patsy Montana
    Songs of the West, Rhino
  • SEGMENT: Susan Glaser-Church

    Listen
  • Even Cowgirls Get the Blues Emmylou Harris
    Songs of the West, Warner
  • Jacinto Trevino Johnny Whelan
    The Cowboy Tour, Rounder
  • El Paso Marty Robbins
    Gunfighter Ballads and Trail Songs, Columbia/Legacy
  • Instrumental: Buckaroo Buck Owens
    21 #1 Hits: The Ultimate Collection, Rhino
  • SEGMENT: Wylie Gustafson of Wylie and the Wild West

    Listen
  • Things of Intrinsic Worth Wallace McCrae
    Celebrating 25 Years: National Cowboy Poetry Gathering, Western Folklife Center
  • Little High Plains Town Ian Tyson
    Celebrating 25 Years: National Cowboy Poetry Gathering, Western Folklife Center
  • End Bed: Tumbling Tumbleweeds Johnny Bond
    Country and Western: Johnny Bond Standard Transcriptions, Bloodshot

HOUR two

  • Open Bed: Buffalo Gals David Bourne
    Saloon Piano Vol.II, Saloon Piano
  • High Tone Dance Glen Ohrlin
    The Cowboy Tour, Rounder
  • Big Balls in Cowtown Bob Wills & His Texas Playboys
    For the Last Time, Capitol
  • CLIP: Corb Lund
  • Steer Rider's Blues Corb Lund
    Recorded at the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Midnight Ramble,
  • SEGMENT: Florida Cracker Cowboys - with Buddy Mills and Billy Davis

    Listen
  • Banks of the Old Pontchartrain Brownie Ford
    Stories from Mountains, Swamps & Honky-Tonks, Flying Fish
  • Red Headed Stranger Willie Nelson
    Red Headed Stranger, Columbia
  • Don't Touch My Hat Lyle Lovett
    The Road to Ensenada, Curb
  • Take Me Back To My Boots and Saddle Screamin' Jay Hawkins
    I Put a Spell on You, Collectables
  • Instrumental: Out on the Open Range Johnny Bond
    The Heart and Soul of the West, Jasmine
  • SEGMENT: Creole Cowboys - with Boozoo Chavis, Elton Laday and Eugene Thibedeaux, and Joe Fontenot's trail ride

    Listen
  • CLIP: Geno Delafose
  • He-Haw Breakdown Geno Delafose & French Rockin Boogie
    Everybody's Dancin', Times Square
  • Instrumental: The Cowboy Waltz Les Amis Creole
    Les Amis Creole, Arhoolie
  • The Back Door Geno Delafose & French Rockin Boogie
    Recorded at the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering,
  • Bonsoir Moreau Geno Delafose & French Rockin Boogie
    Recorded at the National Cowboy Poetry Gathering,
  • Goodnight-Loving Trail Buck Ramsey
    Rolling Uphill from Texas, FRPS
  • The Trail the Sun Travels Down Cindy Walker
    The Swingin' Cowgirl from Texas, Bronco
  • End Bed: Mr. Steel Guitar Leon McAuliffe
    Tulsa Straight Ahead, Bear Family

THE LATEST STREAMS

  • June 29th, 2022

    MAY THE FOURTH BE WITH US! AMERICAN ROUTES INDEPENDENCE DAY THEN & NOW

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  • June 22nd, 2022

    EARL SCRUGGS & TOM RUSH

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  • June 15th, 2022

    SOUNDS OF FREEDOM: FONTELLA BASS AND FREDDIE HUBBARD

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