Also titled The Cowboy's Soliloquy, this song originated in the 1880s.  It describes a cowboy's way of life and philosophy, or, as my father put it, "A Life in the Day of a Cowboy" (word order intentionally reversing Life and Day!).  My father, Hank Meredith, was a genuine old-time cowboy who rode mustang cow ponies and performed ranch work the old-fashioned way.  He was also a musician and a singer with a resonant low range who knew all the cowboy songs by heart, and sang them (and many other types of songs) for his family and friends (and sometimes for the cattle).  This song is the first of 29 that I recorded him singing in 1968.  The collection forms the basis of a book available from Tellwell Publishing (Victoria, BC) called "A Cowboy and His Songs - Tuneful Tales of the Old West."  The compendium contains information about Henry Meredith's life, a musical transcription of each song, plus a thorough discussion about the music and the lyrics, along with a glossary and a bibliography.  As a professional musician and educator, and his namesake son, I have written this book to preserve his legacy and share his unique voice and songs.
Henry Meredith, Jr., author.

01 - The Cowboy (The Cowboy's Soliloquy) - Hank Sr

My dad was the only one I know of to sing this song as a parody of 'The Battle Hymn of the Republic' melody.  It is less about a bucking Zebra dun horse than about its rider.  Remember how, in The Strawberry Roan, appearances could be deceiving?  In this case, all the cowboys assumed this stranger, who dropped in on their encampment, was a city slicker who could use big words but couldn’t ride.  When he asked to borrow a horse, they all thought that it would be a great practical joke to give him the outlaw dun horse in their remuda that was known for throwing all riders.  They were proven wrong, however, and discovered that “every educated feller ain’t a plumb greenhorn!”  I equate my father with the educated feller, as Dad got an honours degree at Rutgers University and had forgotten more about riding horses than most cowboys would ever know.  This comical song was one of Dad’s favourites.  It is #8 in the book about Dad and his songs, published by Tellwell, subtitled “Tuneful  Tales of the Old West.”  Hank’s choice of the melody to parody adds to the humour.
Hank Jr., author of the book, “A Cowboy and His Songs.”

08 - The Green Horn (The Zebra Dun) - Hank Sr

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