A Cowboy’s Heart

I probably ought to quit writing on the subject of this man. Some people might think it’s some kind of creepy crush. Have you not memorialized him enough? You could legitimately ask. We’ve produced a tribute on DVD. I’ve written articles for various publications and our office is a major contributor to the marketing of the art show, rodeo, and concert put on each year in his name. What else can we do to honor Chris LeDoux today, on what would have been his 59th birthday? Well there are a few things left to say that I believe are worth thinking about.

The songs are being played on the radio stations in the West. They’ll surely let ‘er rip with ‘Hooked on an Eight-Second Ride’ and slow it down for ‘Look at You Girl.’ You could even get an earful of ‘Copenhagen.’ So far today I’ve chosen ‘Little Long-Haired Outlaw’ and ‘You Just Can’t See Him From the Road’ to satisfy a deep-seated need to remember Chris not only for his music but for who he was, and what he represented, to Wyoming and to a way of living that is in such seemingly short supply these days.

He chose to live here with the woman he loved. He treated her with respect. She was always with him no matter the miles between them. His road manager and guitarist, Mark, said Chris would politely decline requests for hugs and kisses from female fans. He said those were for his wife, but he’d gladly shake their hand.

Chris LeDoux loved to laugh and pull practical jokes. He made fun of himself. He never took the whole celebrity thing to heart. He was a cowboy – a rodeo man. Once age prevented him from riding bareback horses he had to make a living somehow. Rodeo did not make a man rich in 1976. It doesn’t for most today. So storytelling, poems, and guitar-pickin’ were secondary passions that would move to the forefront.

To say there were a lot of lean years would be the ultimate in understatement. But he never quit. Chris believed in himself. A little extra effort here, some luck there, and who knows maybe someday the dust would settle in his favor. It better. There were more and more mouths to feed at home.

I remember clearly Chris and his dad coming into a Cheyenne radio station one day in the early ‘80s. I was a news reporter from the Midwest and did not know a thing about Chris LeDoux. We spoke briefly and he went on the air with the disc jockey to talk about the latest cassette. I got hold of a copy and listened. Didn’t think too highly of the singing but there was something about the songs. They had heart. The person singing them really lived that life. You could tell. And there was that sense of humor.

I started covering rodeos and learned to love the sport. The cowboy spirit of getting back up from every fall was easy to see; hard to do. Yet I think for me it was the start of a long and sometimes rocky road called becoming a man. A better man. One who had principles and stuck to them. Still have plenty of room for improvement but at least I know of a dang good model to follow.

Mostly though, it was about hard work, overcoming obstacles – perceived or real – and practice. A really good band, or team, of players on the stage and in the studio with Chris made a big difference too.

Same for all of us. If we’re lucky enough to find the right partner, co-worker or friend to count on – to trust – well, we’ve just about all we need to catch that elusive butterfly called happiness.

If you couldn’t feel that spirit coming from the stage during a Chris LeDoux concert, you could not feel. I felt. I hope you had the chance to see him and know what it’s like to be in the presence of a true cowboy.

If you’ll indulge me a moment more I hope LeDoux fans will try to find their way to the University of Wyoming Fieldhouse in Laramie for a free concert by Western Underground, October 12. The band, led by Mark Sissel, carries on smartly down their own road opened by Chris. They have a new CD called “Unbridled” and you can pick one up at the show or go online – http://www.westernunderground.com/