Eddy Arnold – Cattle Call

About the song

“Cattle Call” is a signature song for country music legend Eddy Arnold. Here’s a breakdown of its background and themes:

Background:

• The melody originated from a 1928 Polish song called “Pawel Walc” by Bruno Rudzinski.
• Arnold recorded “Cattle Call” four times throughout his career, with the most successful version released in 1955 with Hugo Winterhalter’s Chorus and Orchestra.
• This 1955 rendition became a chart-topping hit, spending 26 weeks on the country music charts and peaking at No. 1 for two weeks.
• The song’s success helped propel Arnold’s first album, also titled “Cattle Call,” onto the Billboard album charts.
• The Western Writers of America even recognized “Cattle Call” as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.

Themes:

• The Lonesome Cowboy: The song paints a vivid picture of a solitary cowboy working the vast range. Lyrics like “Where spurs are a jinglin’ And the cowboy is singin’ His lonesome cattle call” highlight the isolation and self-reliance of the cowboy life.
• The Importance of Cattle Drives: “Cattle Call” emphasizes the significance of cattle drives in the Wild West. The recurring line “Singin’ his cattle call” underscores the centrality of this practice in rounding up and moving herds.
• The Harsh Beauty of the Range: The lyrics evoke the vastness and challenging conditions of the cowboy’s environment: “The cattle are prowlin’ The coyotes are howlin’ Way out where the doggies roam.”
• Endurance and Determination: The song portrays the cowboy’s resilience in the face of long hours, harsh weather, and the ever-present call of duty: “For hours he would ride. On the range far and wide. When the night wind blows up and slow. His heart is a feather. In all kinds of weather.”

Video

Lyris