FEATURING: Margo Cilker, Wylie Gustafson, Jonathan Odermann, Jessie Veeder, and Special Guests.

It takes a bit of java to get perking on a Friday morning at the Gathering. These poets and musicians will caffeinate you with their performances. Guest poets George Wallace and Karen Stockett open the show with their verse. Host and poet Jonathan Odermann dishes up a large dose of his North Dakota Badlands poetry. In the music portion of the show Montana's Wylie Gustafson, Washington's Margo Cilker, and North Dakota's Jessie Veeder get your toes tappin' to two-step through the rest of the day to the Friday Night Dance.

Hosted by Jonathan Odermann.

From the 38th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering.

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PLAYLIST
George Wallace
"Enjoying the Work" (English + Spanish versions)

Karen Stockett
"Scars"

Jonathan Odermann
"Remembering"
"The Legend of Poker Jim"
"Dancing to Mother Nature's Call"
"Grocery Run"
"Lulu On the Loose"
"The Dog-Gone Fencing Blues"
"Charlie's Ride"

Wylie Gustafson
"Ribbon of Darkness" (words + music by Gordon Lightfoot}
"I Get High"
"Two Hundred Tons To Go"
"The Bucking Horse Moon" (words + music by Paul Zarzyski + Tom Russell)
"Straight Up Country Music"

Margo Cilker
"Lowland Trail"
"Here in Baker"
"Barbed Wire"
"Tehachapi"

Margo Cilker with Wylie Gustafson
"Road to Las Cruces" (words + music by Ian Tyson)

Jessie Veeder
"Winter's Sweet"
"Boomtown"
"A Girl Needs a Dog"
"Indian Cowboy" (words + music by Joe Ely)

artists return to stage for group number

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ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Margo Cilker
Goldendale, WA
Originally from California, singer-songwriter Margo Cilker has spent the last few years on the road–from South Carolina to Montana, then the Basque Country and back to the American West. She says she pines for “Basque wine, music, and cowboys.” Forging a path that is at once deeply rooted and ever-changing, Margo recently alighted in southern Washington. Influenced by the poetry of Lucinda Williams, Gillian Welch, and Townes van Zandt, her music reflects a restlessness and continued yearning for the road. Margo’s second album, Valley of Heart’s Delight, refers to a place she can’t return, a place that saw five generations of Cilkers born there–California’s Santa Clara Valley, as it was known before the orchards were paved over and became more famous for Silicon than apricots.

Wylie Gustafson
Conrad, MT
Wylie Gustafson is an American original. He was born into a fourth-generation ranching family on the empty sprawl of northern Montana. A singer, songwriter, rancher, horseman, and world-famous Yahoo! Yodeler, Wylie has led the musical outfit known as Wylie and the Wild West for over 30 years. With more than 50 guest appearances on the Grand Ole Opry and performances in 46 states and five continents, Wylie has spread his unique brand of American music worldwide. But it is raising a family, feeding horses, doctoring cattle, changing wheel lines, baling hay, and repairing broken-down equipment that keeps him grounded. His music rings with authenticity and, as one writer quipped, “He is ‘old-school-cool’ without being a tired period piece.”

Jonathan Odermann
Medora, ND
Jonathan Odermann is a third-generation rancher who raises cattle in the Badlands of western North Dakota, running cows about 25 miles north of Medora and sharing the landscape with Theodore Roosevelt National Park. He was moved to start writing verse after hearing cowboy poetry at the Dakota Cowboy Poetry Gathering. Jonathan’s original work runs the gamut from short, funny pieces to longer, epic sagas, and he likes to amuse and delight his audience with a blend of humorous and thought-provoking poems inspired by his real-life experiences. Jonathan really enjoys cowboy poetry and encourages others to share their stories through written and visual art.

Jessie Veeder
Watford City, ND
Jessie Veeder writes and sings about the Badlands of western North Dakota where she grew up as the fourth generation on her family’s cattle ranch. She released her first original album at 16 and has gone on to tour nationally, releasing four more original albums and two books about rural living. Blending western, rock, blues, and heartfelt, honest lyrics, Jessie sings, writes, and talks about raising cattle, kids, and community. She and her husband work alongside her father on the ranch, raising their two young daughters and Angus cattle. She chronicles life on the land with her popular blog, column, and podcast, all titled Meanwhile, back at the ranch.... Jessie was voted North Dakota’s favorite folk musician.

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Filmed in front of a live audience with help from the E. L. Wiegand Foundation at the Western Folklife Center’s G Three Bar Theater in Elko, NV, on Feb. 3, 2023.

Made possible by the multitude of staff, artists, volunteers, and community members working behind the scenes to make this show happen.

Brought to you by the Western Folklife Center, using story and cultural expression to connect the American West to the world.
www.westernfolklife.org

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