Performers 2019

Cowboy Way Jubilee
May 2, 3, 4, & 5, 2019!

(First Weekend in May)

3 Fun-Filled Days Celebrating EVERYTHING  COWBOY!

(Scroll to end of page for Performers’ Schedules)

Performers Include:

Performers — individuals, poets, and bands — are listed in alphabetical order.
The Look-A-Likes are at the end of the Celebrities page.

3 Trails West

3 Trails West: Leo Eilts, Jim Winters, & Roger Eilts

The members of 3 Trails West are passionate about vintage Western Music. We’ve dug deep to uncover recordings that got left in the dust. Our journey has taken us down some old rutted swales, “Trails Less Traveled”, you might say.  We hope our music sounds familiar in the way that only a good Cowboy song can; like putting on a favorite shirt, a little faded and frayed at the color, but more comfortable for the wear.

Started in central Kansas by brothers Roger Eilts and Leo Eilts, the band is currently based in the Kansas City area. 3 Trails West is best known for their complex vocalizations inspired by Sons of the Pioneers, and has performed coast to coast for different concert venues and local watering holes.

Roger Eilts plays rhythm guitar/lead and sings harmony vocals. Leo Eilts keeps the beat on the upright bass and sings harmony vocals. Marvin Gruenbaum keeps the music dancing with his fiddle. Jim Winters sings lead while playing guitar. Ken Lovernadds his amazing accordion while Bill Dye compliments the band playing steel guitar and guitar.

www.3TrailsWest.com

Sara Abigail & Lindsey Briscoe

From Healdton, Oklahoma, 14-year old Sara Abigail has an adult size voice! We’re very excited to have her and Lindsey joining the Cowboy Way Jubilee music family! Homeschooled, Sara loves to learn, to get all ‘dolled up’, to write original music, and says “Music is my medication.”

Lindsey Briscoe is well-known on the Southern Oklahoma music circuit, he also hails from Healdton. He has played every sort of country music there is, rock and roll, and gospel, of course. He’s made Sara Abigail his ‘project’ and we think that’s right smart. Come out and support our local talent! You can find both on Facebook.

Gary Allegretto

Gary Allegretto, the Harmoicowboy

Gary Allegretto is an award-winning Western singer/songwriter/musician whose rare abilities on the harmonica are virtually one-of-a-kind. His jaw-dropping performances have captivated audiences at concerts and festivals all over the globe. American Cowboy Magazine calls him “Amazing. You’ve never seen or heard anything like him.” True West Magazine says “This harmonica wrangler is sure to impress the Cowboy hat off your head”. Indeed, Gary’s dazzling musicianship has earned him an Academy of Western Artists Award, a Best of the West Award, eight Western Music Association award nominations and two Grammy Award Nomination considerations. His songs have reached the #1 spot on the Western radio charts, and he has provided music to the soundtracks of TV and film including major motion pictures by Disney and Warner Brothers. Don’t miss your chance to witness the world’s top “Harmonicowboy”!

Gary will be attending the 2019 Cowboy Way Jubilee on Sunday, May 5, 2019 ONLY! Sign up for his Harmonica Workshop by clicking here. wwwGaryAllegretto.com

Randy Boone

Randy Boone

Born January 17, 1942, Clyde Randall Boone is an actor and country music singer. He is most well known for appearing in recurring episodes of all three 90 minute western television shows that aired during the 1960s: Wagon Train, The Virginian, and Cimarron Strip.”

At age twenty, Boone co-starred in his first acting role as Vern Hodges in the 1962–1963 NBC comedy-drama It’s a Man’s World, based on the activities of four young men living on a houseboat on the Ohio River. After It’s a Man’s World, Boone’s career skyrocketed. He guest starred on The Alfred Hitchcock Hour thereafter came his three Wagon Train episodes. Boone also appeared in an episode of The Twilight Zone. In 1963, Boone also joined The Virginian cast in its second season appearing in 46 episodes over three seasons as the singing cowboy Randy Benton, a romantic interest for a time for Betsy Garth, played by Roberta Shore.   Boone composed original songs that were featured in the series. For example, in a season four episode, “The Inchworm’s Got No Wings At All”, he sang and played his song during the opening credits, and the song’s melody continued throughout the episode, adding dimension and continuity to the story.

He won the Bronze Wrangler award from the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in 1966 for his acting in the episode titled “The Horse Fighter”.

While on The Virginian, he guest starred on David Janssen‘s ABC series The Fugitive. He also starred in the film Country Boy as Link Byrd, Jr., a country singer. After The Virginian, Boone guest starred on episodes of Combat!, Bonanza, and Hondo. From 1967 to 1968, Boone co-starred in the western series Cimarron Strip in the role of 25-year-old photographer Francis Wilde, who is also a part-time deputy to Marshal Jim Crown, portrayed by series star Stuart Whitman. Boone made several television appearances, including Emergency!, Kolchak: The Night Stalker and the cult movie Terminal Island in 1973. The following year, he appeared as Deputy Dickie Haycroft in the television movie Savages, and starred in Dr. Minx in 1975. His last role was as Farkas in the 1987 film The Wild Pair (also known as The Devil’s Odds), about a narcotics officer and an FBI agent.

Teresa Burleson

Teresa Burleson

Class Act Dancers

Class Act Tap Dancers

Remember the saying “You’re only as old as you feel”?  Well, this group of young ladies are feeling as young as they look.  With the minimum age of this vivacious dance troop being 50 years young, they continue to show that “50 ain’t old” with their energy and talent.

They have been a hit at the regional events in the past and we expect this year to be no exception. This delightful group gives performances at no charge for a variety of charities and community functions.

Class Act Dancers have appeared in TV movies and been nominated for Volunteer Group of the Year in Dallas County, Texas.  They have also appeared on Good Morning Texas regional tv show and have received numerous awards for their talent, showmanship, and their unending generosity.

Cowboy Opry Band

Cowboy Opry Band: Gaylon Blankenship, Missy Frye, & Allen Wooten
The Cowboy Opry Band consists of Dedra “Missy” Frye who sings and plays guitar, ukelele, and percussion rhythm, Gaylon Blankenship who plays Bass and Allen Wooten who sings and plays guitar and fiddle. They have performed genres consisting of Country, Gospel, Cowboy, Bluegrass and Classic Rock for 13 years.
Allen Wooten is the owner of The Cowboy Opry & Music Store in Comanche, OK. He was the North America Country Music Association International 2006 Male Vocalist of the Year and the 2008 most promising co-songwriter. He was also the 2011 co-writer of the Moondance International Film Festival Gala Award Film Score.
Dedra “Missy” Frye entertains in nursing homes, assisted living facilities, nutrition centers, Bluegrass Festivals and churches. She has been the opening act for Richard Smith, Thom Bresh, and Edgar Cruz at the Cowboy Opry in Comanche, OK.

Gaylon Blankenship entertains at assisted living facilities, nutrition centers, Bluegrass festivals, churches and the Cowboy Opry. He has been a member of several local bands which were the opening acts for Reba McEntire, Marty Robbins, Kenny Dale, Ernest Tubb, Thom Bresh, Edgar Cruz and Richard Smith.

Belinda Gail

Belinda Gail

Belinda Gail was raised on ranches in Nevada’s Carson Valley and in the California Sierra Nevada foothills near Sequoia National Park. Her rich ranching heritage and love of the West runs deep in her music and evoke the character of the people, as well as the beauty, majesty, and deep connection to the land that only those who have lived the ranch life can truly capture. Ranching and the ‘cowboy life’ are very much part of the essence of this dynamic Western Performer.

Belinda is honored and humbled to not only be counted among the top female Western Music performers of this era, but she was recently listed as one of the top 50 Country and Western Entertainers of all time by American Cowboy Magazine in their collector edition entitled “Legends”. She has committed her full-time effort to this music for nearly two decades  and crisscrosses this country taking her special brand of Western Music to the masses.

Her numerous awards are evidence of the level to which she has risen not only with Western Music fans, but with her peers as well. Along with being a gifted singer/songwriter her warm and vibrant personality beautifully captures the ‘Spirit of the West’ and easily wraps itself around her audience. Belinda Gail is one of the most sought after women performing Western music today. A vibrant and natural entertainer with a dynamic and captivating voice, Belinda stirs the emotions and visions of the West in the heart of every audience she embraces. She truly is “America’s Western Sweetheart”.

As a professional western entertainer Belinda continues to capture the attention of national venues. She tours the Midwest and Western United States extensively and has also performed in Iowa, Michigan, Florida, New York, Ohio, Illinois and Tennessee, as well as Canada and Austria. www.belindagailsings.com

    Belinda Gail’s Awards/Recognition include:

    WESTERN MUSIC ASSOCIATION

  • 1999 / 2000 / 2001 / 2002 / 2005 / 2008 / 2012
    Female Performer of the Year
  • 2005 / 2006 / 2008 – Traditional Duo/Group with Curly Musgrave
  • 2007 – Traditional Album – “Red Rock Moon” Belinda Gail and Curly Musgrave
  • 2014 – Traditional Album – “Granite Mountain”

    ACADEMY OF WESTERN ARTISTS
    1999 / 2005 / 2014 – Female Vocalist of the year

    AMERICAN COWBOY MAGAZINE
    Named Belinda one of the top 50 Country and Western Entertainers of all time.

Hanah and Hailee

Hanah & Hailee

Two sisters from the piney woods of east Texas, Hanah and Hailee write their own songs, and sing their own style of traditional country, blues, and pop. Known as the Texas Dynamic Duo, their passion for music and writing is easy to see—a guitar, pad and pen is with them wherever they go.Hanah is a petite dimple faced, redhead, with a big voice. She plays rhythm and finger picks on her favorite Taylor guitar while singing old country best, some current country, and, harmonizing with her sister Hailee. Hailee, known as the promoter, plays bass, ukulele and some acoustic working the audience with her many facial expressions, and fun personality. A blonde beauty, Hailee likes to sing blues, pop, and country with a resounding low pitch. Together, she and Hanah work the crowd, large or small, many times bringing them out of their seats with the beautiful harmony of sisters. Hanah & Hailee (and Scatter Proof Band), play a variety of country, old and new, blues, some 70’s 80’s rock, and pop, with a mix of their own. Always closing with a patriotic favorite. They leave the stage with the audience wanting more.

website www.hanahnhailee.com

Kristyn Harris 

Kristyn Harris

Texas-bred musical powerhouse, Kristyn Harris, is noted for her shimmering vocals, solid swing rhythm guitar style, unique songwriting, award winning yodel, and captivating stage presence. At 22 years, she is the youngest person in history to be awarded the Western Music Association Entertainer of the Year (2016) and only the second woman to have received this honor. In 2017, she was honored with the Ameripolitan Music Western Swing Female Award at the AMA started by Dale Watson in Austin, TX. She is also a 2-time recipient of the WMA Female Performer of the Year (2014, 2015). Her singing has been praised as “timeless” with “the warmth and power of Texas sunshine”. 

Though not raised in a musical household, Kristyn began singing and playing at age 14 when she felt strongly inspired to pick up a guitar–and it has rarely left her hands since. Discovering an instant passion, she launched into a headlong pursuit of the music that grabbed her–primarily the vintage arrangements, captivating chord structures, ranching themes and uplifting melodies that cornerstone western swing and cowboy music (later, throwing in country, 1940s big band, gypsy jazz, and traditional folk song influences to her music, and building a gospel repertoire). Somewhere along the way it became her career path. 

In June of 2015 Kristyn released her 3rd solo album, Down the Trail, which went on to be named the WMA Western Album of the Year a few months later, as well as the Rural Roots Music Commission Pure Country & Western CD of the Year, and charted #1 on the western music DJ charts for Fall 2015. The same year, she became the Cowtown Society of Western Swing Rising Star of the Year. She has received the 2013 Cowboy Swing Album of the Year for Let Me Ride, the 2012 Crescendo (Rising Star) Award and 2012 Female Yodeler of the Year from the Western Music Association, as well as being named Western Female Performer of the Year by the Academy of Western Artists in 2013. National television appearances include RFD-TV’s The Penny Gilley ShowThe Shotgun Red Variety Show, and Nickelodeon’s popular game show, Figure It Out. She has been featured in multiple western documentaries, including a film that aired throughout four European countries in 2014. In 2016 and 2017 she toured Europe in concert sharing her unique cowboy music.  In 2018 Harris appeared on two episodes of American Idol, introducing yodeling and cowboy music to an International audience.

www.KristynHarris.com

Buck Helton, Co-Master of Ceremonies

Buck Helton

Buck Helton was born in Texas, but moved to Tucson with purple mountains majesty and towering saguaros the backdrop for a John Ford movie where he likes to ride and sing with John Wayne, Marty Robbins and Mr. Spock. Helton is an award-winning singer, songwriter, poet, and disc jockey with a distinctive baritone.

www.BuckHelton.com

 

 

 

Billy Holcomb

Billy Holcomb

A lifetime resident of Sherman/Denison, Texas, Billy Holcomb has been a Gene Autry fan since he was four years old and he still has the autograph to prove it! He has become one of the foremost collectors of cowboy movies memorabilia. He can name ALL of the horses as well as ALL of the performers. He has an incredible database, built with love starting at age ten and still going. He wrote the book, Theater Row: Movie Palaces of Denison, Texas in 1999.

Since the mid-60s, Billy has been one of the foremost Gospel artists. He’s worn just about every kind of hat there is: band leader, singer, songwriter, musician, disc jockey, author, businessman, you name it, Holcomb’s done it. Billy is a former president of the national Gospel Music Association and founded the Texoma Music Association in 1977. Both Billy and The Bordertown Music Band and the Texoma Music Association can be found on Facebook. www.facebook.com/groups/TEXOMAGMA

Daryl Knight

Daryl Knight

Daryl Knight was raised in the cattle country of southeastern Colorado in the Comanche National Grasslands. He got into Cowboy Poetry when he worked as a rodeo bullfighter and would write poems about the cowboys. The rodeo crowd liked his poems, so he kept it up. His deep affinity for the history of the cowboy and the pride in his country inspire a lot of his work. Daryl currently lives in Gravette, Arkansas.

Curtis “Curt” Krigbaum

Curtis Krigbaum

Curtis Krigbaum is a “true cowboy” he lives and breathes the cowboy life everyday – that’s how he makes his living at the Longview Ranch in Dustin, Oklahoma. He has practiced his cowboy trade throughout the west which includes Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Oklahoma. Curt says “it just seems natural that when you’re saddling up before sunrise and unsaddle after sundown you don’t have time for TV even if you can get reception –  but you do have a lot of time to think and experience God’s creations.”

This experience is the driver for Curt’s latest CD, God Loves Cowboys Too! Along the way Curt has been penning and singing songs of the western experience most of his life. Friends such as Buck Ramsey, R.W. Hampton, Red Steagall , and other working cowboys have influenced his music.

Cochise County Arizona holds a special place in the heart of this cowboy – there he fully learned to embrace and absorb the history of the early days when cowboys and cattle were king of the range. Curtis easy going and always has a story to share that will make you laugh and sometimes cry. Curt currently ministers through his music and shares how accepting God has impacted his life.

www.CurtisKrigbaum.com

Roy Madden

Roy Madden

A native Oklahoman Roy enjoys studying the old west, playing the guitar, singing/writing cowboy songs and sharing cowboy humor through poetry. He says, “I just likes living the “cowboy way” and having fun with life.”  Madden has preformed at cowboy gatherings in Texas, California, Wyoming, and Oklahoma. “My greatest honor was performing a ballad I wrote for the late great l6-time world champion cowboy, Jim Shoulders, before his death in June of 2007″, says Roy.  In addition to entertainment, Madden has worked as a stuntman, wrangler, and animal trainer for TV commercials and films. When it comes to rodeo, Roy says, “ I’ve worn out a lot of trucks and had the honor of riding some great roping horses while following the rodeo road.” He is a published author of several equine training articles. And Madden conducts communication skill demonstrations to equine oriented organizations and corporations seeking team building! Roy currently serves as the Equine Program Director for the Tiger Mountain Recovery Center, manages his ranch, and serves as the Chamber of Commerce Executive Director, in Henryetta, Ok.

Stan Mahler

Born in Haskell, Texas and now living in Olney, Texas, Stan Mahler has cowboyed a little and still raises a few cows with his Dad. He has performed his music from the Big Bend country to the corners of Texas and New Mexico. Stan has shared the stage with western artists like Leon Rausch, Don Edwards, Waddie Mitchell, R. W. Hampton, Dan Roberts, Jeff Gore, and let’s not forget Wrangler Roger Banks and the Pards from San Angelo.

Stan’s powerful tenor voice and yodeling talent makes him a sure fire hit with every audience as he sings about the history and lifestyle of the West.

Bobby Marquez

Bobby Marquez

Bobby Marquez has a magnetic smile and refreshing tongue-in-cheek, but heartfelt, honky-tonk style that stirs an energy with audiences singing and dancing along. The Texas-born singer/songwriter is reaching crowds far and wide on radio, national television appearances and tours across the U.S., Australia and Ireland. 

2018 was a stellar year for the singer/songwriter.  Not only was his highly-acclaimed album, The Cowboy Way, released, one of the tracks co-written by Bobby Marquez was up for a Grammy nomination.  The song titled, For Awhile is a heartfelt duet with the Queen of Bluegrass, Rhonda Vincent.  For Awhile was also awarded Duet of The Year by the CMA of Texas. 

Bobby Marquez added to the honors with the Academy of Western Artists Pure Country Male Vocalist award and the CMA of Texas Cowboy/Western Artist award.  Both honors celebrate his self-penned tribute song, The Cowboy Way, which celebrates the lessons of standing by your beliefs and keeping your word. The Cowboy Way is the official theme song for the Cowboy Way Jubilee.

The most recent accolades for Bobby Marquez follow-up on his self-titled, debut album which was not only chosen as the album of the year in European ‘Country Music People” magazine, but it was also a top-seller across the UK.  The album produced the top ten Texas Chart and Music Row Chart hit, She’s Not From Texas. 

Bobby Marquez ’s songwriting has been recorded by everyone from Alan Jackson and Ty Herndon to George Strait, Johnny Rodriguez and Rhonda Vincent. Bobby has shared the stage with Ray Price, Mel Tillis, Johnny Rodriguez, Martina McBride, David Ball, Janie Fricke, Johnny Lee and Lonestar… just to name a few.  

Bobby is also the host and founder of the annual St. Jude Children’s Hospital benefit, Country With Heart. 

www.BobbyMarquez.com

Miss Devon and The Outlaw

Miss Devon & The Outlaw (Jesse)

Devon Dawson, aka “Miss Devon” of Fort Worth, Texas, is a top entertainer in western music, and has been recognized by the Academy of Western Artist “Female Performer of the Year 2009”.

Noted for her very rhythmic vintage ‘sock rhythm’ guitar style, and warm swing time cowgirl vocals which bring to mind Dale Evans, Rosalie Allen, and Patsy Montana, her lively persona intrigues and engages both kids and adults in her audience. She holds a Grammy certificate for her participation in the Disney CD Woody’s Roundup featuring Riders in the Sky, as the singing voice of Toy Story 2’s “Jessie the Cowgirl”.  Devon has performed in and out of that character “coast to coast”, and all across the American West, including at the renowned Grand Ole Opry in Nashville, Tennessee, and at Pixar Studios in Emeryville, California.

Around her home stompin’ grounds, she makes time to mentor youth performers of western music, and has made many personal appearances with Radio Disney, Imagination Celebration, libraries, schools, public festivals and private events.  She has appeared on stage at the Bass Hall with Riders In The Sky and Michael Martin Murphy, and has performed several dances with the legendary western swing group, “The Texas Playboys”.  She is also frequently seen on Encore’s The Western Channel, and RFD-TV.

Her duo with “Outlaw Jessie Del” Robertson, known as “Miss Devon and the Outlaw”, was given the prestigious 2013 ‘New Horizons’ Wrangler Award from the National Western Heritage Museum.  Their debut cd release, Where in the Dickens R U?, has achieved the Western Music Association “TOP 10’ DJ list in the summer of 2014, the listing for popular airplay of cowboy & western swing music styles.

www.MissDevonAndTheOutlaw.com

Steve Mitchell

Steve Mitchell

Steve Mitchell bills himself as “America’s Singing Cowboy,” and with his vocal style reminiscent of the Western balladeer Gene Autry, he captivates crowds of cowboy music fans. Affable and unpretentious, Steve sits and strums his guitar as he croons soothing cowboy tunes of years gone by. Frequently joined in harmony with his wife every melodic note and inflection of voice portrays visions of the open range, mesquite trees, sage brush and golden sunsets.

Born on generational lands, Steve grew up on the family ranch between Wichita Falls and Jacksboro, Texas. His ancestors arrived in 1852 to help settle the Texas frontier and establish the famous cattle trails such as Goodnight-Loving, that herds followed to the rail-heads His great uncle, Joseph Carroll McConnell, was a Texas legislator and wrote a history of the West Texas frontier. Other members of his family continue to raise cattle on the large spread that boasts three historical markers. As a young man Mitchell spent many nights sleeping on the range. Although he and his talented wife, Eileen, call the STM Ranch in Jacksboro home, the couple is on the road 10 months out of the year.

In the early 1970s Steve took a job riding broncos, both bareback and saddled, with the Lone Star Heritage Wild West and Rodeo Show. When the show went on the road, he also drove the chuck wagon and later became a cowboy singer. In 1983 he won a country music award as the most promising cowboy solo artist, but rather than pursue a high-profile recording career he said he decided to remain independent. “In my heart, I’ll always be a cowboy. After praying a lot about it, I decided this was the best way.”

Mitchell’s credits include appearances on the CBS Morning Show, Good Morning America, the A&E Channel, the Nashville Network and many others. He has been inducted into the Gene Autry Museum in Gene Autry, Okla., and has been performed in Branson for 10 years, starting with the Mutton Hollow Theatre and at Silver Dollar City.

Authentic to the true cowboy way, Steve Mitchell strives to preserve cowboy music as “a wholesome, clean, colorful part of Western history, honoring both God and country,” in his own words.

Pam Ozment

Pam Ozment

Pam Ozment is a local Ardmore area musician and native Oklahoman. She says, “Music has influenced my life for as long as I can remember. I started playing guitar at 17 an wrote my first song shortly after that.” It was several years later that her music career took off. In 1998 she was recruited into the Shadow Mountain Band, touring with Dale Lay. Ozment credits Dale for truly launching her career as both a musician and an actress. For ten years Pam toured Oklahoma and Texas. Bands in which she has played include Xecutive Decision, Red Dirt Road, Chris Miller, US 199, Charlie Tanner, along with her own band. Johny Barbata played on her CD, a “real honor” for Pam.

“Something happens when I get on stage, it’s pure magic. It’s where I belong,” exclaims Pam. She has a powerful voice and we are delighted she is performing at the 2019 Cowboy Way Jubilee.

Nikki Pelley

Nikki Pelley as Gail Davis’ Annie Oakley & Minnie Pearl

Known as the Hollywood Cowgirl Nikki Pelley is a versatile entertainer. From appearances as Gail Davis, Patsy Cline, or Minnie Pearl to costume designer, Nikki can do it! Singer, songwriter, actress, stuntwoman, storyteller, are some of her many titles.

Pelley designed costumes for Western Religion, Hickok, and Alien Nation, among her many movie credits as designer and/or wardrobe mistress. She has appeared in dozens of movies and television commercials. And if you need an event organized, she can do that too.

Full of energy and always professional, she can be reached through her website,  www.NikkiPelley.com

Gary S. Pratt

Gary S. Pratt

A working cowboy since the age of 18, Gary has been involved in breeding and training quarter horses, paints, and appaloosas on his ranch near Madill, Oklahoma since 1975. For the last decade Gary has managed all Ranching Operations for the Chickasaw Nation. Pratt is a member of the Oklahoma Arts Council’s Touring Program and through this program presents workshops and concerts across the state. Rancher, Veteran, Singer, Songwriter, Musician, Actor, Gary Pratt does it all, genuinely.

In 2002 he entered the studio for the first time with a catalog of original cowboy songs and produced his first commercial album titled “The Family Ranch”. That same year; he was cast in his first film production as a riding outlaw in The Black Marshal; Hunt for Dozier. Since then Gary has worked on numerous films and commercials; along with producing 4 additional albums, of original and century old Cowboy Songs. In addition to his numerous performances across the Midwest, Gary has appeared in two RFD-TV series, Best of America by Horseback and Extreme Cowboy Race.  He has also appeared in several television commercials along with two films, The Black Marshall along with Trail End, for which he composed the title song. An award-winning singer/songwriter who draws upon his military and ranching experience, Pratt offers original and traditional cowboy and western music performances for audiences of all ages.

Gary has produced five studio albums, including his latest album, God Made the Sunset and his popular album, Lomax. He is currently working on the title track for an upcoming full-length feature film. His achievements include the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum’s 2008 Wrangler Award and Outstanding New Artist Award. A touring member of the Mid-America Arts Alliance, Pratt is sponsored by Purina Mills, Twisted X Boots, and Alvarez Guitars.

www.garyspratt.com or on Facebook

Stephen Pride

Stephen Pride

Stephen Pride, was born in Marks, Mississippi. Like most of his family, Stephen was musically inclined and grew up singing in the choir at church and school.

Stephen played alto saxophone in his high school band. He graduated on to college and started playing with a band on weekends playing rhythm and blues. After graduating from college, Stephen worked for a few years in his field of Biology and Environmental Sciences while maintaining his desire to continue pursuing the country music field. Stephen moved to Dallas in 1980. In 1982 he married the love of his life, Pam, and started his family. Texas soon became his home and he began performing in the area part-time while dedicating himself to his family.

The combination of Stephen’s vocal range and the haunting “Pride” timbre makes for a soulful treat that’s hard to beat. Stephen has had the opportunity of opening for great country music legends/artists such as Charley Pride, Louise Mandrell, Charlie Daniels, Ricky Van Shelton, Billy Joe Royal, Roger Miller, Desert Rose Band, and Johnny Rodriguez.

In the course of his career, Stephen has made a lot of friends in the music business, who have encouraged and given support to him in his musical journey. Stephen gives thanks to God everyday for all of this.

www.StephenPride.com

Francine Roark Robison

Francine Roark Robison, Oklahoma’s Cowgirl Poet Laureate

Francine Roark Robison has been designated Oklahoma’s Cowboy Poet Laureate (May 2000) and is endorsed by West Quest. She took her retirement from teaching high school English and humanities, seriously trading in her classroom to go on the road with Cowboy Poetry. However, retirement didn’t last long, as she is now an adjunct teacher at Oklahoma Baptist University teaching summer sessions in Mexico and China.

Francine’s background includes a farmer dad and a schoolmarm mom. She writes from personal experience or from family stories passed down from her parents, with most of the settings in southern Oklahoma and the Arbuckle Mountains. Farm life for Ms. Robison included a horse, a collie dog, and numerous cats.  She didn’t walk five miles in the snow to school, but she did walk down to the cattle guard to catch the school bus, carrying her homework and Roy Rogers lunch box. 

The Oklahoma and Texas State Fairs, the Red Steagall Gathering in Ft. Worth; Cowboys, Heroes, and Friends in Branson; the Chisholm Trail Festival in Yukon; the Poetry Society of Tennessee in Memphis; the Farm and Ranch Heritage Gathering in Las Cruces; Festival of the West in Scottsdale; Echoes of the Trail in Ft. Scott; National Cowboy Hall of Fame in Oklahoma City; Western Heritage Classic in Abilene, Texas; Bookfest 2000 in Dyersburg, Tennessee, are only a few of Francine Roark Robison’s public appearances.  She has a book, The Quilt and Other Pieces, Original Stories and Poems by Oklahoma’s Cowboy Poet Laureate and CD of original poetry, Night of the Cowboy

www.cowboypoetry.com/frr.htm

Hailey Sandoz

Hailey Sandoz

Hailey Sandoz is a Texas-bred musician, following a less-trodden path among millennials. Her music is rooted in western swing, bluegrass, jazz, and celtic music. This remarkable young performer captures the attention of audiences young and old through her dynamic performance and representation of “the official music of Texas.” Known for her exciting fiddling, charming personality, jazzy vocals, creative composing and arranging skills – there’s not much this young artist can’t do. Western swing is her most fun wheelhouse, but her multi-genre versatility is also being recognized in Country, Bluegrass & Jazz. Her versatility and ability to improvise lends to guest performances, album recordings, and custom ensembles. Making her way around the world, Hailey has performed internationally at the Equiblues Festival in France and travels full-time with Grammy-Award Winner Bobby Flores and his Yellow Rose Band; as well as appearing as a solo artist with various artists. Hailey has been awarded for her achievements by earning the awards: 2016 Academy of Western Artist Young Artist of the Year, 2015 Western Music Association Crescendo Rising Star, 2015 Western Music Association Youth Harmony winner, and numerous Celtic fiddling wins.

Throughout the years Hailey has had the privilege performing with notable artists such as Leon Rausch, Tommy Allsup, Dick Gimble, Liz Carroll and many more. Sandoz has also had the honor of opening for Michael Martin Murphey, Billy Dean (Heber Valley Cowboy Festival) and Crystal Gale (Lincoln County Cowboy Symposium w/Dave Alexander).

Starting in 2007, Hailey began pursuing classical violin, eventually focusing her interests more on folk styled genres. A few years later Hailey started Irish Dancing with Shandon-O’Regan School of Irish Dance, where she began competing in numerous competitions around the U.S. After four years, she was competing in the Championship levels. Due to frequent exposure to the music, Hailey began playing Irish music. By nine years old, Hailey was a member of the cowboy church worship team as well as a privileged member of the T.I.M.E.S. Session Players, which features the top traditional Irish musicians in Dallas/Ft. Worth. Later she started a duo with guitarist Joseph Carmichael (Óga). They debuted their first album Fingerprints in December of 2014; which received outstanding reviews from International Radio Show Live Ireland plus publications in Western Way and The Ceili. Their CD has been played around the U.S. & on international radio stations.

Hailey’s gifts aren’t limited to music. At 18 months Hailey’s love for horses began. Her passion for the western lifestyle and natural ability to work with horses opened many opportunities to work with a variety of horseman in the area. Now she trains with horseman, Greg Robinson, honing her Horsemanship skills in a variety of western disciplines.

www.HaileySandoz.com

Ron Secoy

Ron Secoy

Ron Secoy lives in Central High, Oklahoma, not far from the famed Chisholm Trail. A physician assistant by profession, a soldier by history, an author by notoriety, a Christian cowboy poet by calling, and a cowboy at heart, Ron has written three volumes of Christian cowboy poetry. These are Cowboy Psalms, The Cowboy, the Creation and the Creator, and Cowboy at Heart/Tales from the Trail.

A IWMA member of both Western Wordsmiths and Oklahoma chapters, Secoy is active in promoting the cowboy music and poetry in his state. Ron has been a performer, emcee, and coordinator for the Campfires, Cattle and Cowboys Gathering at the Chisholm Trail Heritage Center for the last three years.

Starz Over Texas

Starz Over Texas, Senior Baton Twirlers

The Starz Over Texas are a touch of ‘southern glitz puttin on the ritz’, senior ladies baton twirling group, who all hail from the same part of Dallas, Texas called “Oak Cliff”. Four out of five of these ladies went to the same high school and were members of the same twirling drill team of days long ago, spanning a 20 year time frame. These senior ladies reconnected over the past few years to form Starz Over Texas, where they enjoy performing and fulfilling their volunteer, community service to western and patriotic themes at every opportunity. Starz performers at this year’s festval are Deanna Venable, Charmaine Schultz and Sue Roberts. Deanna is a consummate performer of tap n twirl at the Dallas Senior Follies, and a proud repeat performer over the years locally. Charmaine Schultz and Sue Roberts round out this trio of cowgirls, who salute God and country with the flash of silver batons and Texas glitz. The Starz Over Texas are thrilled to perform at the 2018 Cowboy Way MayFest.

Steeldust

Steeldust: Jim, Donnie, & Bill Poindexter

The three oldest of five Poindexter brothers, Jim, Bill, and Donnie have been cowboying and playing music most of their adult lives.  All of the brothers have raised both horses and cattle.  The oldest brother, Jim, still runs cattle on his ranch in Hiwassee, Arkansas and the four younger brothers still own and ride their horses.  The band, Steeldust, is the product of over forty years of playing everything from rock, country, and bluegrass to western, or what the brothers refer to as “Cowboy Music”.  Their music is heavily influenced by music legends such as Marty Robbins, Ian Tyson, Don Edwards, Tom Russell and Chris LeDoux.  Their goal is to entertain and preserve the heritage of the “Great American Cowboy”. Donnie Poindexter is president of the Oklahoma Chapter of the Western Music Association.

Bob and Johnie Terry

Bob & Johnie Terry

Bob and Johnie Terry are both native Texans born and raised in the Fort Worth area and love the western way of life.   Bob grew up listening to western music and began playing guitar when he was seventeen years old after he found an old guitar in the rafters of an old barn. Bobs musical heroes were Johnny Horton, Sons of The Pioneers and last bust certainly not least Marty Robbins, Marty’s song  The Masters Call was Bobs inspiration for learning guitar.  Johnie Terry met Bob the summer of 1988 and not only fell in love with him but fell in love with his music as well and learned how to play guitar and later on discovered the stand up bass and started playing with Bob at western gatherings and cowboy churches

Bob and Johnie ,when not playing music make western toys made from the original molds that were made in the 1950’s, cowboy cap guns, western forts and cowboy and Indian figures to name a few. They have been featured on Texas Country Reporter and How it’s Made with their toys.
Bob and Johnie also have an online movie site titled Westerns On The Web. There you can view over 1,000 western movies for free and see wonderful interviews with some very special celebrities like Cheryl Rogers Barnette, James Drury, Robert Fuller , Alex Cord and James Hampton and many others. So if you love western movies ride on over to www.thewesternschannel.com.  Bob and Johnie produce a western series titled Sundown that can also be viewed on Westerns on the Web that is written and directed by Bob. Sundown is a western produced in the fashion of the television westerns like Rifleman, Gunsmoke and Paladin just to name a few.  Bob and Johnie live in Springtown Texas and love what they do. “When you do what you love you never work a day in your life”. We thank the Lord for what we do.

 


 

Note all appearances are posted in good faith–health and work schedules permitting.

Click here to download the 2019 Cowboy Way Jubilee Performers’ Event Schedules.  

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For more info or questions, email CowboyWayFest@gmail.com, or call or text Leslei Fisher, 580.768.5559