This archive report was first published on 15 September 2019.
‘A Cowboy Has to Sing’: Scenes From a Chuck Wagon Jamboree ¶
For decades, chuck wagons have been a staple of the American West, offering a unique blend of music, food, and nostalgia. Every summer night, hundreds of tourists and western music fans gather at these venues for a meal and a show, featuring house bands playing cowboy songs popularized by Roy Rogers and Gene Autry in the 1930s and '40s.
The chuck wagon season, which typically runs from Memorial Day weekend until Labor Day, wraps up each year with a two-night jamboree. This year's 43rd annual Chuckwagon Jamboree, held on September 3 and 4 at the Bar D in Durango, Colorado, drew 700 fans and six groups of performers.
The chuck wagon dinner and music business in the West can be traced back to 1953, when Ross Wolfe opened the Flying W Ranch in Colorado Springs, Colorado. Many of the current chuck wagons have their roots back at the Flying W.
One of the most iconic chuck wagons is the Bar D Chuckwagon, which was opened by Cy Scarborough in 1969. However, the Flying W Wranglers, who have been performing with the Bar D Chuckwagon, have had to play on the road for the last seven years after a fire burned down the ranch. Construction is underway to rebuild the venue, and next summer's Jamboree will be held there.
As the crowds wait for the dinner and music to commence, they can wander the grounds and take part in the activities the chuck wagons provide. At the Jamboree, fans could pose for photographs in a painted cutout of John Wayne, shoot an old-West-style six-shooter, practice lassoing, take a tractor ride, or buy belt buckles or CDs from the chuck wagons' various merchandise shops.
‘It's not Disney Land,' said Scott Humphrey, who now performs with and runs the Bar J Chuckwagon in Jackson, Wyoming. 'But with the gift shops, train rides, and things like that, it's not that different.'
The camaraderie runs deep among the bands. They will join each other for jam sessions in each other's gift shops, and this year, during the after-party at Francisco's Restaurante y Cantina in Durango, they joined forces to sing songs like 'Have You Ever Been to Colorado,' popularized by Merle Haggard.
The chuck wagons have truly devoted fans. Nirankar Ambriz, who started attending the Bar D with her family when she was just three years old, is now planning to have the Bar D Wranglers play at her wedding in October. Jean Rice, who started coming to the Bar D in 1974, has now been to 32 end-of-season gatherings.
Between the singing and yodeling, the bands joyfully tell groan-inducing jokes. As the Circle B Cowboys, from Hill City, South Dakota, told the crowd during a set that included 'Riders in the Sky' and 'Ride Cowboy Ride,' it would be 'corny cowboy jokes all night.'
And of course, there is the food. At this year's Jamboree, the $45 ticket got you a roast beef or chicken breast dinner. The menu over the years has hardly varied.
Though the chuck wagons have their die-hard fans, the demographic trends are a significant concern. Most of the musicians are above 50, and most of the fans above 60.
‘It gets tough getting younger folks excited about continuing this kind of business,' Scott Humphrey said.
But the chuck wagons exert a pull that the band members can't resist. Jeanne Martin, part of the Blazin' M Cowboys from Cottonwood, Arizona, who often open their shows with 'A Cowboy Has to Sing,' is one of them.
‘The annual Chuckwagons of the West Jamboree is very special to me, because it gives all of us that are passionate about keeping the music and culture of the American West alive a time to come together and share that love with our terrific friends and fans,' she said. 'When we are together, we share a special bond, and it is like coming home to family.'
