FEATURING: Deanna Dickinson McCall, Matt Robertson, Gail Steiger, Jessie Veeder.

Ranching is not a solitary affair. After all you can't have a family ranch without a ranch family. And, in many families, traditions are handed down across generations, as they grow their agricultural work into creative work with love of land, animals, and each other as common ties. Bonding over the real meat from ranch country are poem-raiser Deanna McCall, musical-storyteller Matt Robinson, guitar-slinger Gail Steiger, and ranch-songbird Jessie Veeder. Get ready to get downright sociable.

Hosted by Jon Griggs.

From the 38th National Cowboy Poetry Gathering.

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PLAYLIST

Deanna Dickinson McCall
"Already There"
"Last Horse in Dad's String"
"She Really Needs to Ride"
"His Queen"

Matt Robertson
"Cowboyin'"
"Dayworkin' Cowboy"
"Lights of Town"

Gail Steiger
"Riding on the Wind"
"Cowboys and Cowpony Poems" (words by Paul Zarzyski + music by Gail Steiger)
"You're Still Gonna Die" (words + music by Shel Silverstein)

Jessie Veeder
"Nothing's Forever"
"Yellow Roses"
"Work"

ABOUT THE ARTISTS

Deanna Dickinson McCall
Piñon, NM
Deanna Dickinson McCall writes about both the past and current-day West. Coming from a family that began ranching in Texas in the 1840s, Deanna has cows, horses, and a love of the land bred into her. She has ranched in several western states, including 22 years spent raising her family on a remote Nevada ranch without phones or electricity. She now ranches with her husband in the Sacramento Mountains of New Mexico. Her writing and performances have won numerous awards, including the Will Rogers Medallion Award, NM/AZ Book Awards, Women Writing the West, and the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Wrangler Award. She is also co-author of the cookbook "Cowboy Cuisine: Beyond Biscuits & Beans."

Matt Robertson
Prescott, AZ
Raised in Wheatland, Wyoming, Matt Robertson roams the West cowboying and training horses. Since the age of 16, Matt has been writing and playing music for friends, family, and audiences across Canada and the United States. He grew up on the back of a horse, starting colts as a young teen and riding broncs in the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association throughout his youth. He currently enjoys ranch rodeos and working with young horses. Matt credits Chris LeDoux and Ian Tyson for inspiring his career as a songwriter. His experiences both on and off a horse have influenced him and his music. Matt’s heart is in the open country where a person can still feel inspired and free.

Gail Steiger
Prescott, AZ
Gail Steiger is a songwriter, filmmaker, and cowboy, and since 1995, foreman of the remote Spider Ranch in Yavapai County, Arizona. He has been playing guitar and writing songs for over 30 years and often recites works by his grandparents, Delia Gist Gardner and Gail I. Gardner. Gail also collaborates with his brother, Lew, on various film and media projects, including the acclaimed documentary "Ranch Album." He has released two CDs: "The Romance of Western Life" (1999) and "A Matter of Believin’"(2015).

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 three 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 and is a recipient of the North Dakota Governor's Award for Individual Achievement in the Arts. She is joined onstage with her father, Gene Veeder and Mike Enrud.

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Filmed in front of a live audience at the Elko Convention Center’s Laurena Moren Theater on Feb. 4, 2023.

Made possible by Alex Benna + Chrissy Menicucci Benna and The Nature Conservancy - Nevada and 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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