Lyr Req: 'I am a vaquero, I wear a sombrero...'

Subject: 'I Am a Vaquero' sought
From:
Date: 11 Feb 01 - 04:09 PM

Hoping the Mudcat can lift this one from beneath the ooze...

As a kid, 1940s, I remember hearing a pop-cowboy song on the radio:

I am a vaquero, I wear a sombrero, My (dee da da da da), My pony is Taw...

or something like that. Does anyone know what this song is really called, or where lyrics can be found? (Note: have checked all available vaults including Digitrad, Bagaduce, LC/Duke, without success Hey, it can't have been THAT obscure...can it?)

Prefer replies to: [e-mail], if you will.

Thanks fellow singers! —

Bob Coltman

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'I Am a Vaquero' sought
From: Sorcha
Date: 11 Feb 01 - 06:15 PM

Well, there is this Curly Fletcher one in the DT called The Open Book. It has vaquero and sombrero in it, but it is a really nasty multi ethnic slam. I don't think it's what you are looking for, but it says that Curly wrote a "clean" version of it. Maybe that's it?

Nothing at Cowpie with both of those words....

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'I Am a Vaquero' sought
From: GUEST,Bob Coltman
Date: 11 Feb 01 - 06:39 PM

Thanks, but no, the Curly Fletcher song's not it. I checked. (It's Digitrad's only Vaquero reference to date.) This one, to repeat, had a stanza whose first two lines were A-B-A-B rhymes.

I am a vaquero, I wear a sombrero, My ............... my pony is Taw,...

By the way, it shares a tune with (may have swiped it in true Tin Pan Alley fashion from) an old 19th century humorous(?) song "Mother in Law" that goes:

I'd rather be sent off to jail or to Congress Than to live another month with my mother-in-law.

But I have been totally unable to find the Vaquero song, though it was a pop song on the radio in the 40s. It's a puzzle! Hope someone can help. —Bob

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'I Am a Vaquero' sought
From: Dicho (Frank Staplin)
Date: 11 Feb 01 - 08:08 PM

The Univ. of Illinois Press published a wonderful book by Guy Logsdon called "The Whorehouse Bells Were Ringing" which contains the Curly Fletcher song-recitation mentioned by Sorcha, "The Open Road" alternate title "The Open Ledger." As the author says, the song reflects the cowboy's ability to laugh, not only at himself, but at everybody else. It is typical cowboy, not a cleaned up version for the uptight. The "clean" version is also printed in this book, but in part it is by Sonny Hancock; a pale reflection of the original and not worth noting.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'I Am a Vaquero' sought
From: GUEST,Bob Coltman
Date: 12 Feb 01 - 10:06 AM

I've remembered a fraction more of the song I'm seeking. (Again, emphatically not the Curly Fletcher...)

I am a vaquero, I wear a sombrero, My spurs are of silver, my pony is gray...

Not "Taw," as I misremembered before. Does this help anyone pick it out of the mists of time? Or any suggestions where else to look?

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'I Am a Vaquero' sought
From: GUEST,Ray Winter
Date: 21 Mar 05 - 05:57 PM

It sounds like there is a take-off from the old song:

My home's in Montana. I wear a bandanna.
My spurs are of silver. My pony is gray.
When riding the ranges, my luck never changes.
My foot's in the stirrup. I gallop, hooray!

There's more to it but I can't remember right off more then just fragmented pieces. I heard this as a child 65 or so years ago in Montana. This probably doesn't solve your quandary but may give you a new direction to go.

Good luck, my friend.

Ray

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: 'I Am a Vaquero' sought
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 21 Mar 05 - 06:15 PM

Ray, I think, has the right idea. I Am a Vaquero first lines suggest a parody of "My Home's in Montana." The latter song is discussed, with sets of lyrics, in thread 42786: My Home

I have searched for the vaquero song, but have only found it in dialog.