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.
Home On the Range
Sons Of The Pioneers Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Where seldom is heard
A discouraging word
And the skies are not cloudy all day
How often at night
When the heavens are bright
With lights from the glitterin' stars
Have I stood here amazed
If their glory exceeds that of ours
Home, home on the range
Where the deer and the antelope play
Where seldom is heard
A discouraging word
And the skies are not cloudy all day
The Red man was pressed
From this part of the west
'Tis unlikely he'll ever return
To the banks of Red River
Where seldom if ever
Their flickering campfires burn
Home, home on the range
Where the deer and the antelope play
Where seldom is heard
A discouraging word
And the skies are not cloudy all day
"Home on the Range" is a classic country-folk song that evokes the idyllic and pastoral landscapes of the American West. The opening lines of the song paint a picture of the natural beauty of the region, with mentions of deer and antelope playing and a sky that is not cloudy. The singer marvels at the glittering stars in the sky and wonders if their splendor exceeds that of our daily lives. The chorus repeats the title phrase, emphasizing the singer's longing for a home in this peaceful place.
However, the song also acknowledges the displacement of Native American communities from their ancestral lands. The verse mentions the likelihood that these communities will never return to the banks of the Red River, where their campfires once flickered. The song can be seen as a nostalgic tribute to the American West, while also acknowledging the history of violence and colonization that occurred in the region.
Overall, the song depicts the American West as an idyllic but fading dream, a place of serene beauty but also of sadness and loss.
Line by Line Meaning
Where the deer and the antelope play
A place where wild and free animals live and roam around with ease.
Where seldom is heard
A place where negative words and criticism are infrequent and rare.
A discouraging word
A place where people try to uplift and motivate each other instead of putting them down.
And the skies are not cloudy all day
A place where the weather is usually good and bright, with clear blue skies.
How often at night
A frequent experience at nighttime.
When the heavens are bright
When the sky is full of stars and planets.
With lights from the glitterin' stars
The sky is full of bright and shining stars that light up the night.
Have I stood here amazed
I have been left speechless and awestruck by this sight.
And asked, as I gazed
I have wondered and pondered as I looked at the stars.
If their glory exceeds that of ours
I wondered if the beauty and wonder of the stars exceeded that of our world.
The Red man was pressed
The Native American people were forced or pushed out of their lands.
From this part of the west
From the western part of the United States of America.
'Tis unlikely he'll ever return
It is unlikely that the Native American people will ever get their homes and lands back.
To the banks of Red River
To the area near the Red River, a significant river in the Great Plains region of North America.
Where seldom if ever
Where very infrequently or almost never.
Their flickering campfires burn
The Native American people's campfires barely burn in the same spot now because they have lost their home.
Home, home on the range
A song about a place where people reminisce about the home they experienced.
Where the deer and the antelope play
A natural and serene place where land animals thrive and enjoy freely and elegantly.
And the skies are not cloudy all day
A clean and bright place where the sky is not covered with clouds all day long.
Lyrics © Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: BREWWSTER HIGLEY, WALTER H. MCEUEN
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
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)