Coe's rebellious attitude, wild image, and unconventional lifestyle set him apart from other country performers, both winning him legions of fans and hindering his mainstream success by alienating the music industry establishment. Coe continues to be a popular performer on the country circuit.
Coe was born in Akron, Ohio. His favorite singer as a child was Johnny Cash. After being sent to the Starr Commonwealth For Boys reform school at the age of nine, he spent much of the next 20 years in correctional facilities, including three years at the Ohio Penitentiary. Coe claimed he received encouragement to begin writing songs from Screamin' Jay Hawkins, with whom he had spent time in prison.
After concluding another prison term in 1967, Coe embarked on a music career in Nashville, living in a hearse which he parked in front of the Ryman Auditorium while he performed on the street. He caught the attention of Shelby Singleton, owner of the independent record label Plantation Records and signed a contract with his label.
He is the father of Tyler Mahan Coe, who created the country music podcast Cocaine & Rhinestones. He has a daughter, Shelli Coe Mackie, and is father-in-law to the late Michael Mackie, formerly of Texas band 'Thunderosa'.
Coe's musical style derives from blues, rock, and country music traditions. His vocal style is described as a 'throaty baritone'. His lyrical content is often humorous or comedic, with William Ruhlmann describing him as a 'near-parody of a country singer'. Stephen Thomas Erlewine describes Coe as "a great, unashamed country singer, singing the purest honky-tonk and hardest country of his era […] he may not be the most original outlaw, but there is none more outlaw than him".
Coe's lyrics frequently include references to alcohol and drug use, and are often boisterous and cocky. Coe's debut album Penitentiary Blues was described as "voodoo blues" and "redneck music" by Allmusic's Thom Jurek. It focused on themes such as working for the first time, blood tests from veins used to inject heroin, prison time, hoodoo imagery, and death. The album's influences included Charlie Rich, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bo Diddley, Lightnin' Hopkins, and Tony Joe White. Coe later explained to Kristofer Engelhardt of Review: "I didn't really care for some of the country music until people like Kris Kristofferson and some of those people started writing songs. They had a little more to say than just, 'Oh baby I miss you', or whatever. I don't do anything halfway. Once I got into country music, I went back and researched it, and learned everything there was to know about it. I could do impersonations of Roy Acuff, Ernest Tubb, Hank Snow, Marty Robbins, just about anybody. I knew just about all there was to know about country music."
Coe's first country album, The Mysterious Rhinestone Cowboy, has been described as alt-country, 'pre-punk' and "a hillbilly version of Marc Bolan's glitz and glitter". Credited influences on the album include Merle Haggard. In his early career, Coe was known for his unpredictable live performances, in which he would ride a Harley-Davidson motorcycle onto the stage and curse at his audience. Coe has also performed in a rhinestone suit and a mask which resembled that of the Lone Ranger, calling himself the 'Mysterious Rhinestone Cowboy'.
The album Rebel Meets Rebel featured a song, "Cherokee Cry", which criticizes the United States government's treatment of Native Americans. When asked why he did not write more political songs, Coe replied, "I live in my own world, not thee world. I just write songs about what affects me in everyday life. At one point I wrote a song that was sort of a protest about when they were talking about drafting women into the military. It was about my son making it past the draft, but my daughter didn't. And I've done Farm Aid."
In his review of Coe's 1987 album A Matter of Life...and Death, Allmusic's Thom Jurek wrote, "Coe may have had some hits, but it is records like this that make one wonder if there was not a conspiracy to marginalize him and make him fail. Coe is a brilliant songwriter well into the 21st century, and deserves to be lauded along with the likes of [Willie] Nelson and [Waylon] Jennings and Kristofferson and Newbury – and even Cash."
The Rodeo Song
David Allan Coe Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Got a heater in my truck and I'm off to the rodeo
It's an alla man left and alla man right
Come on you fuckin' dummy get your right step right
Get off stage you god damn goof you know
You piss me off, you fuckin' jerk
Here comes Johnny with his pecker in his hand,
He's a one ball man and he's off to the rodeo
It's an alla man left and alla man right
Come on you fuckin' dummy get your right step right
Get off stage you god damn goof you know
You piss me off, you fuckin' jerk
You get on my nerves
Well it's 40 below and I ain't got a truck
and I don't give a fuck 'cause I'm off to the rodeo
Where it's an alla man left and alla man right
Come on you fuckin' dummy get your right step right
Get off stage you god damn goof you know
You piss me off, you fuckin' jerk
You get on my nervs
Here comes Johnny with his pecker in his hand,
He's a one ball man and he's off to the rodeo
It's an alla man left and alla man right
Come on you fuckin' dummy get your right step right
Get off stage you god damn goof you know
You piss me off, you fuckin' jerk
You get on my nerves
"The Rodeo Song" by David Allan Coe is a humorous song about one man's experiences at a rodeo. The first verse of the song describes the cold weather, but the singer doesn't seem to mind because he has a heater in his truck and is headed to the rodeo. The chorus repeats the phrase "alla man left and alla man right," which refers to a specific type of rodeo event where cowboys ride horses and attempt to lasso steers.
The second verse introduces a character named Johnny who is described as having only one testicle. The chorus repeats again with the addition of the phrase "come on you fuckin' dummy, get your right step right," which serves as a humorous commentary on the perceived lack of intelligence of the rodeo performers. The song concludes with a final chorus and the repeated phrase "you piss me off, you fuckin' jerk, you get on my nerves."
Overall, the song is a tongue-in-cheek portrayal of the rodeo world and the colorful characters who inhabit it. The use of profanity and crude humor adds to the comedic effect of the song.
Line by Line Meaning
Well it's 40 below and I don't give a fuck,
I don't care that it's -40 degrees outside
Got a heater in my truck and I'm off to the rodeo
I have a heater in my truck and I'm going to the rodeo
It's an alla man left and alla man right
The dance steps for this song are all left and all right
Come on you fuckin' dummy get your right step right
Come on, stop messing up the dance steps
Get off stage you god damn goof you know
You're embarrassing yourself, get off the stage
You piss me off, you fuckin' jerk
You're making me angry with your incompetence
You get on my nerves
Your behavior is irritating me
Here comes Johnny with his pecker in his hand,
Johnny is coming over here with his penis exposed
He's a one ball man and he's off to the rodeo
Johnny only has one testicle and he's also going to the rodeo
Well it's 40 below and I ain't got a truck
I don't have a truck and it's still -40 outside
and I don't give a fuck 'cause I'm off to the rodeo
But I don't care because I'm still going to the rodeo
You piss me off, you fuckin' jerk
You're still making me angry
You get on my nerves
You're still being irritating
Contributed by Christian C. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
@scottfortress9010
I am 59 years old...randomly sang this song tonight and my 30 year old daughters thought I was crazy.
Thanks to this, I proved it was not my doing... Kept me out of the asylum ...for now.
@TheBsparks72
Love it
@copyrightfreevideobyttf
I literally thought my former coworkers were crazy, especially because they were singing it AT WORK and square dancing behind the front counter at a fast food restaurant! 🤣
@MariposaEtc
when I was a kid I went to school singing, Here comes Johnny with his pecker in his hand he's a one ball man and he's off to the rodeo. I was teaching the other kids...My dad had this tape and would play it when he was driving in the middle of nowhere and didn't have a good radio station (he was a trucker). I was told by my mom who had a meeting with my teacher that I wasn't allowed to sing that song at school anymore hahahaha
@JessBecause77
My mom used to wake us up for school singing this 😂
@mykaylaspurgeon2745
My dad was a trucker. I was potty trained in a big rig. My brother was a rodeo boy and introduced me to many cowboys. To top it off, my grandpa was a one balled man🤦🏼♀️🤣) my dad CRACKS up when I sing this song.
@staceyduncan7490
My dad was named Johnny, so you know we loved singing this song to him. He was a cowboy through and through. As far back as I can remember, he wore his cowboy hat and boots every day from sunny California to busy New York to scenic Idaho and on and on. I always put this on when I need to remember the great life I had because I was raised by my fun-loving, hard-working, angel-hearted pop!
My Daddy raised us from babies to teens without the help of a mother or a whole lot of family. He will forever be on the highest pedestal to me, his lil tomboy, who always loved to sing naughty songs with my sweet, silly saint of a dad. When this one came out, he'd crank it up and we'd all chime in, " Weeeeeeeelllllll, it's 40 below and I don't give a fck got a heater in my truck and I'm off to the rodeo!" Good freaking times ❤😅 Damn I miss him! This makes me smile and reminds me of his great ability to make the boring stuff hilareous.
@Treevors30
My dad used to play this on a tape that had nothing but dirty songs and vulgarity so when I was on my way to Catholic school we would listen to this your comment brought nostalgia thank you I'm glad I'm not the only one probably different times but heading to school this song yep
@dustin1385
My grandma played this for me recently and said she didn't know where it came from but that she's had the tape for decades. She died this week. I sure am glad she showed me this.
@JenAmazed42
I'm sorry for your loss.