A Cowboy Needs A Horse

Lyrics: Paul Mason Howard, Billy Mills
Music: Paul Mason Howard, Billy Mills

A fragment played by the Grateful Dead as an instrumental at a rehearsal on 21 Feb 1992. Phil Lesh starts on the bass and the drums join in. Phil Lesh then says "A cowboy's gotta have a horse", followed by "Just keep riding" and "A horse and some spurs and a whip". He then explains "It's one of those ineffably lame Disney songs". The full band then picks it up as an instrumental, ending with Garcia saying "Along the Navajo trail"..

It was originally an animated Disney short, with lyrics:

Oh, a cowboy needs a horse, needs a horse, needs a horse
And he's gotta have a rope, have a rope, have a rope
And he oughta' have a song, have a song, have a song
If he wants to keep ridin'

Now a cowboy needs a hat, needs a hat, needs a hat
And a pair of fancy boots, fancy boots, fancy boots
And a set of shiny spurs, shiny spurs, shiny spurs
If he wants to keep ridin'

Oh, the fence is long, and the sun is hot
And the good Lord knows that a cowboy's gotta keep
Ridin', ridin' along

So he gets herself a horse, and a rope, and a song
And he finds herself a hat, fancy boots, shiny spurs
And there's nothing more he needs, or can have, or can get
If he wants to keep ridin', ridin' along

Spurs, shiny spurs
Boots, fancy boots
Sings a western song
Rope, oh, oh, oh
And a horse
If he wants to keep ridin', ridin' along



 


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