The Ballad of Dan Lowe
Chorus: River pronounced Key-yip-pa-ha
Keya Paha River
Keya Paha River
Keya Paha River
The home of Dan Lowe's dream.
Narration:
When a cowboy's day is over,
And the campfire's burning bright,
We can see Dan sit and wonder,
What will spoil his sleep tonight.
Will a stampede caused by lightening,
Cracking high above their heads,
Rout him from his bed roll,
To run the race with death?
Or will the night be peaceful,
With the cattle singing low,
And Whip-poor Wills calling,
To the Mocking birds below?
Dreaming of his sweetheart,
And days that are to come,
Of the pretty little ranch,
They will settle on and run.
Down by the old Keya Paha,
With the rolling hills of green,
Where the springs are soft and gentle,
The winters hard and mean.
In summer how they sweat and slave,
To get in winter feed,
And stand by helplessly and watch,
Fire work it's deadly deed.
With calving time and branding time,
When northers fiercely blow,
They stand and watch together,
As their family starts to grow.
Then suddenly it happened,
That dreaded thundering sound,
We scrambled from our bed rolls,
And raced for higher ground.
Cut off from our horses,
It was our only chance,
I made a leap and hung on tight,
The herd was coming fast.
Flashing horns! Flying hooves!
Hot breath and eyes that glare,
Choking dust, frightened screams,
The smell of sweaty hair.
Quickly, it was over,
And stunned we gathered there,
Tom and Joe, Dick and Bill,
With thoughts we didn't dare.
When we all had wandered in,
We each knew at a glance,
The dream that we had listened to,
Would never come to pass.
It is a mystery how it happened,
And why it took Dan Lowe,
But each of us hold in our heart,
A dream that turned to gold.
When a cowboy's day is over,
And the campfire's burning bright,
We can see Dan sit and wonder,
What will spoil his sleep tonight.
Chorus:
Cile Beer
written l975
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