Performers by Name

Original and classic music of the American West.

Jim was born in Cherokee, Iowa, a descendant of 1840s homesteaders, then moved soon after by well intentioned parents to California for the benefits of city life. Primarily he writes poetry, but he also writes songs, essays, short stories and novels. He has performed original Cowboy Poetry at venues throughout California and Nevada. From 2002-2004, he hosted a live radio poetry program featuring some of the finest talent in cowboy poetry and music.

The Carr Family Cowboy Band", Anna (15), Abby (11), Walter (9) and their dad Ronn Carr. Each play the violin along with guitar, mandolin and harmonica. They perform authentic and original songs that reflect the romance of the cowboy life intertwined with long hours of ranch life. They also play a wide variety of western, gospel and bluegrass music. Ronn and his wife Judy raise Angus cattle in the Sandhills south of Whitman, Nebraska.

WMA Founding President

Cisco Jim performs an extensive repertoire of trail songs and buckaroo classics. His smooth baritone voice can draw the audience back to a simpler life, a time when pioneers crossed the prairie and tamed the West, when cattle was king and man's best friend was his horse. Cisco likes to research the history and authenticity of western songs. Like cowboys of old, he writes of horses he's ridden, experiences on the trail, and the western way of life.

Patty Clayton was named Western Female Vocalist of the Year for the Academy of Western Artists in 2007 and Female Performer of the Year for the Western Music Association in November of 2004. Her music is a blend of original ballads and borrowed songs about today and yesterday in the West. Patty’s renditions have delighted audiences in a career that has spanned several decades, both as a solo artist, and with her band “Cimarron Wind”.

Classically trained and world-renowned, Judy Coder hits the stage with style and grace, and an enthusiasm for western music which energizes her performances.  Early in her career she was named the Patsy Montana National Yodeling Champion and the WMA International Yodeling Champion. She expanded her performances by leading that fabulous cowboy band, "Pride of the Prairie" for five successful years.  Her vocal arrangements for the band twice helped them to earn the title of WMA Harmony Singing Champions.  Once again Judy is striking out solo, this time adding a new dimension to her performances as an up-and-coming songwriter.  Look for her co-write with Les Buffham, "The Mourning Dove" on her newest recording, released in August 2008.

Richard's vocal style is remaniscent of the great Marty Robbins, Smooth and Powerful. With pasion and conviction Richard is able to lead you down a musical trail that'll leave you wanting more.
His performances on stage or around the camp fire are... "UNFORGETABLE".

Dean is a performing songwriter, storyteller and cowboy poet. A native Arizonan, he weaves his life experiences into songs and stories about the West as it was, is, and should have been. Dean is a regular at cowboy gatherings, music festivals, and historical events around Arizona and the Southwest. His original songs are being performed and recorded by other western musicians, including several WMA performers, and a number of his songs are receiving national airplay.

Ken ranches in southeast Bennett County, SD. His wife Nancy has all four of their kids pert near raised -- Ken on the other hand will probably never grow up! Ken's cowboy poetry cuts a wide path, from the humorous "who'd a thunk it" mishaps involving kids, cattle and horses, right down an emotional trail reliving the years he spent horseback with his grandpa, Frank Buckles.

I have been in love with all music genres since I was a youngster. The two that influenced me the most were Honky-tonk country and western (Cowboy). I grew up listening to Country. I used to sing along with my cousins. Since embarking on this career, I have been fortunate to have played at places like: The Gene Autry Museum, Taste of Encino, and various benefits. My group and I have entertained at many venues.

Jan was born in Michigan and lived on a small farm. In order to hear country music from the Southern States, he would fill his ‘49 Ford with nineteen-cent a gallon gas and drive all night into the country so that his AM radio would pick up the stations from down south. He owned and operated a machine shop in Mesa for 31 years and is now retired and can pursue his passion, Classic Cowboy Poetry.

Nominated For:

1999 Songwriter of the Year

1999 Song of the Year ("A Cowboy Knows There's a God Above")

Catherine "Lilbit" Devine is an Arizona native, raised on Tucson's eastside and the Rincon Valley on its eastern border. Gerald "Casey" Allen was raised on cow/calf operations in Kansas, Missouri, Texas and Washington State. Music has always been a large part of his life. Together, Bit & Casey have created Cowboy Craic, a rollicking good time that will lead you from the Campfires and cattle trails to the Silver Screen and into the Honky Tonks.

"Cowboy Keith is like Roy Rogers meets Spike Jones." - JJ Johnson International Magician and Snake Oil salesman. Yes, Cowboy Keith sings the classic songs of cowboy singer and the silver screen cowboys like Roy Rogers and Gene Autry, plus a holster full of fun and funny tunes guaranteed to make you smile.

Hank Cramer is a national-touring cowboy singer from Winthrop, Washington. His wide repertoire includes songs of the people who opened the American and Canadian frontiers: cowboys, soldiers, miners, sailors, and just plain drifters. Those songs match Hank's life experience: at one time or another, he has been an underground miner, a professional soldier, wrangler for a high-country outfitter, and shanty-man on a square-rigged sailing ship. When not on the road performing, Hank lives on a ranch in Washington's Methow Valley.

Those who have seen Van perform have commented that: "Your voice is one of those voices that you just have to listen to." "You are so comfortable to listen to that I felt like I was in my front room listening to a cowboy share stories of his experiences on the ranch and on the range. "You had me bawling one minute and laughing hysterically in the next minute, Van is a performer who delivers more than the audiences expect.

The Cross Town Cowboys record and perform original and traditional Western music. The boys believe very deeply in the positive power of music to inspire. It is the band’s sincerest wish to help return Western music to the forefront of American culture. The band hopes to lend a hand to our fellow countrymen in the return to the values set by our cowboy heroes. The Cross Town Cowboys are out to “Save The West!”

Clark Crouch, Cowboy Poet, delivers the reality of the West through his western and cowboy poetry. His performances are drawn from more than 400 original poems which capture the humor and the pathos of the west of yesterday and today. A member of the Washington Poets Association and the Columbia River Cowboy Heritage Society, and author of several prize-winning poems, he has performed throughout the Northwest and has five books of poetry in print, three of which contain western poetry.