Don Edwards "Live At The White Elephant" (Texas Skyline Records, 1977) (LP)
This was apparently the first album by singer and actor Don Edwards (1939-2022) a New Jersey-born cowpoke who moved to Texas in his teens and later went on to become a star of the western scene's cowboy-poet circuit. It's a live album recorded at the White Elephant Saloon, in Fort Worth, Texas, with Mr. Edwards accompanied by several local lads, including drummer Billy Cave, Joe Connor (bass), Wade Dawson (lead guitar), and Howard Gregory (steel guitar). While the set includes sentimental oldies like "Gonna Find Me A Bluebird" and "Blue Eyes Crying In The Rain," he didn't yet have his narrower focus on western-themed cowboy material, and was working in the broader, more widely encompassing country tradition.
Don Edwards "America's Singing Cowboy" (Texas Skyline Records, 1978-?) (LP)
(Produced by Tommy Allsup)
Don Edwards & The Reinsmen "Happy Cowboy" (Sevenshoux Records, 1980) (LP)
(Produced by Larry Scott)
Like all the best singing cowboys, Don Edwards "went Hollywood" for a while... Well, kind of. His label, Sevenhoux Records, bore an address in Fort Worth, but Edwards himself rode the range all the way out to Southern California to cut this all-western set, with some of the top talent in that region's lingering cowboy music scene. He's backed by a vocal group called The Reinsmen, whose work centered around the SoCal dude ranches which often severed as rural getaways for LA's rich and famous. The group had already made records of their own, and had connections to LA's studio musician and country-rock scenes. The backing musicians on this album are pretty impressive: session player Al Bruno on guitar, as well as rhythm guitar from Gene Davis, longtime leader of the Palomino Club house band, Joe Holley on fiddle, Red Rhodes (steel guitar), Jimmy Snyder (rhythm guitar) and jazz/country bassist Red Wooten. The repertoire is strictly cowboy material, heavily weighted towards classics such as "Cattle Call," "Strawberry Roan," "Red River Valley" and "Ghost Riders In The Sky," with a few slightly more obscure tunes added into the mix. Also worth noting in producer Larry Scott, who was a longtime host on one of LA's most popular country radio stations, and a recording artist himself.
Don Edwards "Desert Nights And Cowtown Blues" (Sevenshoux Records, 1990)
(Produced by Don Edwards, Tommy Morrel & Bob Sullivan)
Don Edwards "Songs Of The Trail" (Warner Nashville, 1992)
Don Edwards "Goin' Back To Texas" (Warner Nashville, 1993)
Don Edwards & Waddie Mitchell "The Bard And The Balladeer: Live From Cowtown" (Warner Nashville, 1994)
Don Edwards "West Of Yesterday" (Warner Nashville, 1996)
Don Edwards "Saddle Songs" (Shanachie/Western Jubilee Records, 1997)
A little on the smooth side, sure, but Edwards has a simplicity and sincerity that makes his records very compelling. This 2-CD set is one of his best records. If you want to give a contemporary cowpoke a listen, try this out.
Don Edwards "My Hero, Gene Autry: A Tribute" (Western Jubilee Records, 1998)
Don Edwards & Waddie Mitchell "A Prairie Portrait" (Shanachie Records/Western Jubilee, 2000)
With the Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra...
Don Edwards/Various Artists "ON THE TRAIL: SONGS OF THE AMERICAN WEST" (Western Jubilee, 2001)
With Waddie Mitchell, The Sons Of The San Joaquin, Rich O'Brien, Tom Morrell and others...
Don Edwards "Kin To The Wind: Memories Of Martin Robbins" (Western Jubilee, 2001)
Don Edwards "Last Of The Troubadours: Saddle Songs, v.2" (Western Jubilee, 2004)
A 2-CD set...
Don Edwards & Peter Rowan "High Lonesome Cowboy: Appalachia To Abilene" (Western Jubilee, 2004)
With guitarists Norman Blake and Tony Rice...
Don Edwards "Moonlight And Skies" (Western Jubilee/Sevenshoux Records, 2006)
Don Edwards "Heaven On Horseback" (Western Jubilee/Sevenshoux Records, 2009)
An all-gospel album...
Don Edwards "American" (Western Jubilee/Sevenshoux Records, 2010)
Don Edwards "Just Me And My Guitar" (Sevenshoux Records, 2013)
Don Edwards (1939-2022) was originally an East Coaster, born in Boonton, New Jersey, although he found himself drawn to the wide, open West and became one of country music's best-known cowboy/western revivalists. In his teens Edwards headed out west to Texas to work as an oil industry roughneck before discovering his knack as a performing artist. After working several years at a large Texas amusement park, he headed to Nashville to try and make it as a country star. Like many before him (and many after) Edwards found Music City to be a tough nut to crack, and didn't cut his first solo album (an indie release) until 1977 by which time he'd returned to Texas and delved into his newfound range-riding retro persona. Here's a quick look at his work...
