By MAGGIE MCMURRAY
Moapa Valley Progress
Cowboy poetry is alive and well if the fans in Mesquite are anything to go by. The recent Mesquite Western Roundup featured three completely sold-out performances by area cowboy poets. These bards of the west were joined by musical group Strings ‘N’ Things and western singer/songwriters Richard Elloyan and Steve Wade.
It was the twelfth year for this event, which continues to get bigger and better. Last year the sold-out shows had to turn people away. So this year the group added a third performance which also was quickly sold out.
This event began in 2006 when the late Butch Burkholder began offering workshops in writing and reciting cowboy poetry in Mesquite. About a dozen people showed up to learn how to write their own verse and how to recite it. The next spring, the budding poets presented their works at the first “Cowboy Poetry Hootenanny” at the Mesquite Community Theater.
Although their membership has changed over the years, the group has continued growing and performing. In 2011, they teamed up with the Mesquite Arts Council. The name of the show changed from the “Hootenanny” to the “Mesquite Western Roundup.” But the same elements of original poetry, western music, and great performances persist.
This year’s performance featured eight cowboy poets and plenty of Western music. Poets included event organizer Russ Westwood, Lee Kimberlin, Marleen Bussma, Mike Prince, Hap Stuart, Brice Wilson, Farrel Bott, and Mark Kerr. Poets were mainly Mesquite area residents, but some traveled from farther away.
A pre-show performance by western artists “Strings ‘n’ Things” delighted the crowd with their fiddles, guitars, banjos, and even a washtub.
Each of the eight poets had a chance to present two poems, one in each half of the show.
Musical duet Elloyan and Wade also sang several songs in the middle of each half, dividing the poets and providing variety to the show.
During the first half of the show, each poet got their chance in the spotlight. They appeared on stage one by one and stood next to an American flag while a video presentation on a screen in the background played slides chosen by the poets that accompanied and coordinated with the poems they were reciting.
The second half transported the audience to a scene around a campfire. All poets and musicians were on stage seated while they took turns at the microphone.
At times hilarious and at times nostalgic, the poems always held the audience spellbound. Some poets performed original works and others recited poems written by others that had special meaning to them. But all poems were memorized and presented professionally.
Dr. Brice Wilson shared a poem about a cow that he said singlehandedly helped him choose his profession as a dentist. He said the cow was so awful and he had to milk her every day growing up. He disliked her so much that he looked around town and the only person who didn’t own a cow was the dentist. So that is the profession he chose. Wilson then shared his ode to “Old Janie.”
Russ Westwood shared a poem based on a true story about when he and his friends took a trip to Yellowstone in their teenage years. The events that ensued following a well-placed shot with a slingshot to the hind end of a bear. He ended the poem saying the friend who had made the lucky shot put his talent for marksmanship to good use later in life by joining the FBI.
Elloyan and Wade sang many original songs that Elloyan had written, as well as some by other artists. Wade specialized in the guitar and added some pretty fancy playing to Elloyan’s words and melodies.
One audience favorite was called “Forty Miles of Famous.” Elloyan explained that once he was driving through Nevada and turned on the radio near Tonopah and heard himself singing one of his songs. On the way back, he tuned in at Goldfield and heard himself again singing a song. He decided that if no one else had ever heard of him, there was at least one forty mile stretch in Nevada where he was famous. His song included the lyrics, “There’s places where my songs aren’t played at all, but I’m forty miles of famous between Goldfield and Tonopah.”
The organizers of the evening were thrilled with the turnout of the event. “We have some really loyal fans and a lot of people that come from all over and we’re really grateful for their support,” Westwood said. “It’s been a great event and we’re looking forward to next year.”
Fans were also equally excited about the show. Some traveled from far away to attend. Cindi Paice, of Henderson, bought her tickets several months ago because she knew the show would be sold out and she didn’t want to miss it.
“I came last year and it was wonderful,” Paice said. “This year was just as good or maybe even a little better. It’s a great event and I’m so glad I could come.”
Paul Muije came from Wyoming and was enjoying the show for his first time. “I liked it very much,” he said. “I thought it was great.”
Dr. Brice Wilson, the oldest presenter at 92 years, summed up what cowboy poetry means to him. “I write poetry for my grandkids so that they can remember me and some of the experiences I had when I was their age,” he said. “It brings back great memories of growing up.”
