Now, I'm not a working cowboy, and I don't own that big spread on the far side of the Divide. But growing up in northern California, the West has always been part of me, and no music is closer to my heart.
The rhythms of the Big Bands, in which my dad played, echoed through the house, as did the blend of The Sons of the Pioneers following every Roy Rogers movie we saw. Their harmonies captured a longing in my soul for vast and distant horizons.
Growing up, I heard some great songs, and while I've performed many kinds of music, from Broadway to doo-wop, the songs I sing to myself are mostly the ones on my album, "Yondering", songs of earth, sky, and the great lone places. No matter where the road has taken me, my heart always returns to the windswept prairies and the far peaks, and the call of new frontiers, within and without.
You can learn more about Rich Flanders by visiting the Official Rich Flanders website.