Old Corrals and Sagebrush & Other Cowboy Culture Classics

Old Corrals & Sagebrush & Other Cowboy Culture Classics is a CD reissue of Ian Tyson's 1983 album Old Corrals & Sagebrush, plus all but three tracks from his self-titled album from 1984. Old Corrals was Tyson's first album devoted entirely to western material, and includes classics such as "Whoopee Ti Yi Yo" and "I Ride an Old Paint" (as "Leavin' Cheyenne"). The original composition "Alberta's Child" pays tribute to Canadian country star Wilf Carter, and "Gallo de Cielo" is an epic story-song written by the like-minded Tom Russell. "Night Rider's Lament," later revived on Nanci Griffith's Other Voices, Other Rooms, ends with a demonstration of Tyson's yodeling skills on the fade-out. The songs from Ian Tyson are similarly Western in theme, including the traditional "Colorado Trail." The electric guitar and pedal steel throughout give some of the songs a pure country rather than Western flavor, but the former folk artist (who started out as a rodeo rider) handles both styles convincingly. Tyson's contribution to the Canadian country music tradition may come as a surprise to those who remember him from his Ian & Sylvia days, but the world of Western music should be glad to have him.