Ramblin' Ralph

"The World's Oldest Living Cowboy"

Ramblin' Ralph was born at an early age and a long, long time ago, in the mountains of Kentucky.  He personally experienced much of the history of the American West, and knew a number of famous Westerners including Coronado, Pope, Lewis and Clark, Sacajawea, Davy Crockett, Kit Carson, Geronimo, Buffalo Bill, Billy the Kid, Cochise, Wyatt Earp, Calamity Jane, Wild Bill Hickok, John Wayne - well, maybe not John Wayne.

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He tells and sings all about it with tunes and tales, true history blended with humor and song, accompanied by autoharp and guitar.

Click here for a
one-page flyer

Ramblin' Ralph - large image

New Mexico Humanities Council
Chautauqua Troubadour

Western Music Association

Wild West History Association

Ramblin has performed at the Lincoln State Monument Old Lincoln Days, Ruidoso's Hubbard Museum of the American West, Ghost Ranch, Albuquerque Folk Festival, Red River Days of 1895, Albuquerque Museum, University of New Mexico, the Western Music Association International Music Festival, various state parks & monuments

Some of Ramblin's  programs

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  • The West: Singing Its Story
  • Me and Billy
  • My Life As a Cowboy
  • Cowboy Campfire Singalong
  • The Autoharp & the Carter Family
(see below for more detail)

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Click here for a  sample
of "The West"		 
Programs of story and song, by Ramblin' Ralph
Appropriate for museums, festivals, monuments, federal, state, county and city parks and campgrounds; house concerts, libraries, senior centers, schools and colleges, RV resorts, conventions, corporate retreats
  1. Western programs with autoharp and guitar

    2.
    1. "The West: Singing Its Story" - Take a trip through a thousand years of the American West, from Anasazi Indians to the Atomic Age.  Like the Indians and cowboys, the trappers and traders, we'll sing as we go because their songs tell a big part of the story.  We'll visit the ancient ones, whose lives we can envision in places like Chaco Canyon.  We'll see Coronado, with his padres and conquistadores, searching for the Seven Cities of Cibola.  Lewis and Clark, guided by the Shoshone girl Sacagawea.  The Alamo, Santa Fe Trail, the forty-niners followed by thousands of settlers.  We'll saddle up and ride through the cowboy era, and meet characters like Wyatt Earp, Doc Holliday, Calamity Jane, Wild Bill Hickok, Geronimo, Billy the Kid, Buffalo Bill, Jesse James.  And we'll ponder how atomic power, developed in our West, changed the world and often leads to a longing for a more innocent time.  A longing that causes many of us to turn our faces to the West.   [click here for an audio sample of the program]
       
    2. “Me and Billy” - As "The World's Oldest Living Cowboy" Ramblin' sings and tells of his days as Billy the Kid's best friend during and after the Lincoln County War (approximately 50 minutes).  Ramblin' knew the real Billy, not the one depicted in so many books, movies, and song.  For a program flyer that can be printed and posted, click here

      3.
        [Programs 1 and 2 are New Mexico State Humanities Council Chautauqua programs, largely funded by the state (schools pay $50, other nonprofits $100).   For a Chautauqua program booking guide and online application, click here (rough estimates should be fine in the "Cost Share" section).  For full information about the Chautauquas including a catalog of performers, go to nmhum.org]

    3. "My Life as a Cowboy” - experiences of a cowboy including driving herds up the Chisholm Trail, stampedes, flooded rivers, Wichita, Wyatt Earp, the Goodnight-Loving Trail, and yes, Billy the Kid (50-60 minutes)

    4. “Cowboy Campfire Singalong” - Songs that take us back to our youth, the western movies, radio serials - or brand new treats for those too young to have experienced this music firsthand.  We’ll all sing great old numbers like “Don’t Fence Me In,” “Cool Water,” I’m An Old Cowhand,” and “Back In the Saddle Again.”  Variable length as appropriate.
II.    “The Autoharp and the Carter Family” - Music of the Carter Family is used to demonstrate the autoharp, its history,  construction, importance as a folk instrument, and accessibility for personal accompaniment and pleasure. Audience is encouraged.to sing along with familiar songs.
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Ramblin' can provide a personal sound system suitable for most indoor venues but iffy for wide open outdoor sites.  Most programs will also work well in venues in which amplification is not required.  Question and answer or simple conversation sessions between audience and Ramblin’ are usual, and enhance the educational value of the programs.  Home is in Corrales, New Mexico.

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Here's an Albuquerque Journal article that tells a lot more
about Ramblin' than you would ever want to know

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Contact information:
ramblin@ralphestes.com
(505) 792-1480