By Barb Hauge
Remember when we used to get together with family and neighbors just to recreate and enjoy some home-spun entertainment? During Havres Festival Days well have a Western Heritage Roundup where we do it again.
Saturday, Sept. 18, well be at the Student Union Building on the MSU-Northern campus starting at 1 p.m., followed by a 7:30 p.m. roundup of poets, pickers and fiddlers from across Montanas back country and beyond.
Weve got musicians comin that make all kinds of musical instruments stand up and sing. Theres Dave and Norma Robertson and Russ and Sara Baxter from Lewistown. Russ plays a whole lot of things, but hes a real whizz on spoons. Weve even got Tom Jones comin all the way from Colorado. Tom originated in Miles City and tells about places hes been and people hes met and horses hes ridden. Jeff Streeby, editor of Cowboy Gazette, is chairman of the Charley Russell Western Heritage outfit and hell tell us a tale or two. J.R. Strand will be here and hes the Baxter Black of Lewistown; a great one to spiel rhymes and music. Were planin on door prizes and a 50/50 raffle so join us for fun and lots of good old country music.
At 8 a.m. Sunday morning therell be Cowboy Church, where the preachin is unlike any youve ever heard before with lots of singin and stompin. Itll probably revive whoevers lucky enough to be down-wind of our sound.
Arnold Hokanson from Big Sandy tells me around 30 musicians and cowboy and cowgirl poets have signed on. Arnold has his own brand of humor and does some numbers he calls Mutilated Music. A Geoff by the name of Haggard will be a new face this year.
It was early mountain men who started western gatherings which pretty much roped in everyone in sight, both Native American and white and sometimes a pet bear or two. Montana has been holding official gatherings for the past 15 years
Heres how I summed up the 1990 gathering. In August, the Cow Crowd, they held it again; another gathering for cowgirls and cowmen. Big Timbers Legion, they hosted the show with Patsy Montana a-singin, you know. Cowgirl Gwen said she needed, for hiding her tush, a horse and a dog and a very large brush. Wally told us Montana forever will thrive with promotions like that there Big Cattle Drive. Mike Logan was round and smiling and bland; great pictures and poems just spewed from his hand. The Ringling Five sang of cowboys, in chaps so cool with pantyhose under so all played the fool. Sandy from way down Yellowstone way had cooked and fought fires for many a day. Stan hated That Ranch and he hated Those Cattle; for his right to drink booze hed forever do battle. Bob knew about outhouses, be they cruddy or neat and bout paint that dont dry on the toilet seat. Dwanes Little Joe was a sad cowboy song; them doggies stomped Joe stead of gettin along. Pauls Roughstock Sonnets were hard as a rock. That young guy sure has mastered that old cowboy talk. Jake got hisself interviewed by the Billings Gazette. He was the youngest cowboy The Gazette ever met.
Then theres Cowboy Clyde from Austin who ate baked beans from Boston. Clydes condition was dire; he blew out the fire and a whole pot o beans when he lost em!
Come join The Bunch thatll be Gathered for Havres Western Heritage Roundup!
