The Sons of the Pioneers are an American cowboy singing group founded in 19… Read Full Bio ↴The Sons of the Pioneers are an American cowboy singing group founded in 1933 by Leonard Slye (better known by his later screen name Roy Rogers), with Tim Spencer and Bob Nolan. They were soon joined by others including Karl Farr, Hugh Farr, Lloyd Perryman,and Pat Brady They remained popular into the 1950s. A group with the name is still in existence today (2003) and gives occasional concerts in Branson, Missouri and other spots. Although best known as an actor, Ken Curtis was a member of the Sons from 1949 until 1953.
The Sons of the Pioneers did several songs for the John Ford movies Wagon Master (in 1949) and Rio Grande in (1950).
The six members who made the Sons of the Pioneers famous in the late 1930s with their close-harmonied western style music were elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1980. In 1995, they were inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
In 1977, the Smithsonian designated the Sons of the Pioneers as "national treasures". Through many changes to the line-up, the Sons of the Pioneers have continued to perform.
The Sons of the Pioneers did several songs for the John Ford movies Wagon Master (in 1949) and Rio Grande in (1950).
The six members who made the Sons of the Pioneers famous in the late 1930s with their close-harmonied western style music were elected into the Country Music Hall of Fame in 1980. In 1995, they were inducted into the Western Performers Hall of Fame at the National Cowboy & Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma.
In 1977, the Smithsonian designated the Sons of the Pioneers as "national treasures". Through many changes to the line-up, the Sons of the Pioneers have continued to perform.
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Sing Legends Of The West
Sons of the Pioneers Lyrics
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Bill Akins
on The Devil's Great Grandson
"The Devil's Great Grandson" (Lyrics)
Recorded by Roy Rogers & The Son's Of The Pioneers
(Lyrics submitted by Bill Akins)
(The Devil's Great Grandson performed by the Sons Of The Pioneers and written by Bob Nolan. The tune was recorded in Los Angeles on December 14, 1937 and the group at that time was Roy Rogers, Bob Nolan, Lloyd Perryman and the Farr brothers.)
Old Skyball Paint was the devil's saint
His eyes were a fiery red
Good men have tried this horse to ride
And all of them are dead
Now I won't brag but I rode this nag
Till his blood began to boil
Then I hit the ground and ate three pound
Of good old western soil
Singin' Hi-ho lad don't you make me mad
I'm the devil's great grandson
And I'm doin' my best to tame the west
With my great big forty-four gun
(Light group harmony yodel)
I swore by heck
I'd break his neck for the jolt he gave my pride
I threw my noose on that old cayuse and once more took a ride
He turned around and soon
I found his tail where his head should be
So says says I Perhaps he's shy or he just don't care for me
Singin' Hi-ho lad don't you make me mad
I'm the devil's great grandson
And I'm doin' my best to tame the west
With my great big forty-four gun
(Only Roy Rogers STRONG yodeling, group harmony humming and ahhing along)
In town you see just to have a spree when
I meets old Sheriff Jim
With fistic fun and my big six-gun
I buys the town from him
For a whoop and a holler and a counterfeit dollar
Then I ask for a bill of sale
But my face turned red when the contract said just thirty days in jail
Singin' Hi-ho lad don't you make me mad
I'm the devil's great grandson
And I'm doin' my best to tame the west
With my great big forty-four gun
(Light group harmony yodel again)
Where the greasewood bats wear
Stetson hats and the bad men all run free
Where they sold the jail at a bargain sale
That's the land for me
Where the desert ants wear buckskin pants and help me rule the land
With the ants and the bats and my two gats
I'll rule with an iron hand
Singin' Hi-ho lad don't you make me mad
I'm the devil's great grandson
And I'm doin' my best to tame the west
With my great big forty-four gun
(Only Roy Rogers STRONG yodeling, group harmony humming and ahhing along)