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Show Old Puncher's Reunion tfo reflect cowboy , Songs, tall tales, fiddling, and poetry " will fill the air as "The Old Puncher's "Reunion" rides into Vernal for a free performance at the Bicentennial Pavilion Friday, May 20, at 7 p.m. Chosen for their authenticity by the "National Council for the Traditional Arts, the eight punchers on the tour . present the rich forms of artistic ex-" ex-" pression common on the range and in bunkhouses for over a century. Tbelastof a breed, all of these men " are working or retired cowboys and - buckaroos. They have roped, bulldogg-i bulldogg-i ed, branded, ridden broncs and been homed on spreads all over the West. They've spent decades learning how to lie properly and writing songs and special forms of verse known as cowboy poetry. Hosting "The Old Puncher's Reunion" Reu-nion" will be Glenn Ohrlin. Ohrlin began buckarooing in Nevada at age r 16, served in World War 1 and afterward after-ward worked on spreads big and small, taking time off to tour the rodeo circuit as a bronc rider. He owns his own spread now, living in a stone house he built himself, and spends part of every working day on his horse. Recently he has been away playing at countless music festivals, where he is now a storyteller and a performer of cowboy songs. Duff Severe's saddle shop near Pendelton, Ore., is a barracks-like building with workspaces and rooms for visiting rodeo riders and buckaroos in need of a place to stay. At cowboy gatherings, in the shop, Severe is frequently fre-quently heard telling jokes, picking his guitar and singing songs learned from his father and other cowboys many years ago in Idaho. Severe is among the most respected saddlemakers in the United States. The beautifully decorated equipment he and his brother have produced over the past 30 years was made famous by word-of-mouth among cowboys and buckaroos. Last July 4, he was one of the 15 American artists to receive the National Heritage Award in Washington of the National Endowment Endow-ment for the arts. His saddles will be on display at the concert. Johnny Whelan of East Carbon, Utah represents the oldest of the cowboy traditions, the vaqueros, who first herded cattle in the United States and Mexico and developed many of the skills cowboys everywhere use. Though he has his Irish-American grandfather's name, he is Hispanic, and there are several generations of Hispanic cowboys on both sides of his family. Johnny's father started him on the fiddle at age 9, but he eventually turned to the guitar, often playing it " along with a rack-mounted har- monica. He sings corridos, the story songs that are a rich tradition of his people. He also writes and recites poetry. Karin Haleamau is a working paniola, cowboy, on the Huehue Ranch, Island of Hawaii where the largest individually owned ranches in the United States are located. A cowboy all his life, he is noted among paniolas not only for his skills with ropes and horse, but also for his guitar playing and singing of Hawaiian cowboy songs. He also plays the uke and can do some hula, a traditional dance for men and women on the island. Ken Trowbridge of Darby, Mon., claims that the lying field is overrun with amateurs these days. That may be the case, but it certainly isn't his fault, as he brings an old cowpuncher's sense of professionalism and timing to the bunkhouse art. He is 71 and his ex- perience includes wrangling, cowpun-ching, cowpun-ching, working as a mountain guide and horsepacker. He sings the old songs a capella and recites poems written in bunkhouses generations ago. Everett Brisendine was born at Read Out, Oklahoma Territory, in 1906. In 1917 his family moved to Colorado Col-orado in covered wagons. He walked most of the way, driving two milk cows. At age 77, Brisendine says he is "broke up pretty bad" from the years of ranching and rodeoing, but she still enters roping contests and works rawhide. An outrageous sense of humor makes him a fine man with a story, and he has written some of the best poems ever penned by a cowboy. Louisiana swamp cowboy Thomas Edison (Brownie) Ford is half-Indian and at 79 is still training horses, braiding rawhide, picking guitar and singing songs he learned from older cowboys when he was a lad. His cattle cat-tle country is unique grassy hammocks ham-mocks in swampland and he sometimes wears spurs over rubber boots. The group will perform for Uintah High School students Friday afternoon. after-noon. At the pavilion concert, people are invited to sit on the lawn or tables and bring a picnic. l.......-., k. ....,. ..j - |
