Whats a good source of "cowboy" type songs like Streets of Laredo? I have been fooling around with playing a Tex Mex style and I like it, but could use some more ideas. It works but there seems to be a limit on the keys available as opposed to a GCF button box.

Thanks

Cowboy and Western Songs by Austin E. and Alta S. Fife; Bramhall House, Pub.
Songs of the Great American West, Irwin Silber; Dover

These are at least two to start with. Somewhere I have a book by Glen Ohrlan (?) Called Ten Thousand Goddamned Cattle but I can't find it and I wish I could. The collection by Carl Sandburg has many as should the Lomax collections (Alan and/or John). I'll try to locate the titles tomorrow. I know of two sets of performers doing western music on concertina: Rex Rideout; and Call of the West. Rex plays an old 20 button German concertina as part of his recreation education effort and the woman in Call of the West has an old 20 button Lachanal.

At least this is a start.

Alan

Thanks Alan. I really enjoy the harmony, it's a welcome break from Irish fiddle tunes, and it doesn't sound bad. After a while you find the sweet spots to add thirds and sixths, and do melodic runs in between. The harmonies can be tremoloed as well. I have been looking at button accordions, but am resisting, since it may be a passing fancy

senor maestro

Check this out, it's pretty awesome. Mych of the accordion is played on the pull, so most would focus there first, but there is no law against developing another technique whuch incorporates the push to a greater degree....

I found the Glenn Ohrlin book, it is actually called "The Hell-Bound Train", University of Illinois Press. No Streets of Laredo (Tom Sherman's Barroom, The Lament), but a lot of good cowboy music, mostly tunes and words--no chords. And nicely, everything is in C or G (after I learned some of those songs in F.)

Alan

try thishttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=La4LlMCcd_s

jimmy brown

I like it. With a guitar accompaniment it would have even been better!

CowboyPoetry.com has a listing of western songbooks if you are still interested in the topic.

Alan