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Diamond W Wranglers
Diamond W Wranglers
The band that took Cowboy Music to Carnegie Hall and the Great Wall of China are coming to Ouray and Montrose. The Diamond W Wranglers will perform in Montrose at the Pavilion on July 24th, in Ouray at the Wright Opera House on July 25th, and Ouray Main Street Theater nightly July 27th-31st.
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Diamond W Wranglers return to Southwest Colorado
The well-known Western Music group, the Diamond W Wranglers, is returning to Southwest Colorado for the third time to perform in Montrose and Ouray. The show combines traditional western classics with Diamond W Wranglers' originals and home-spun humor as they present "A Tribute to the American Cowboy."
Winners of the 2008 Western Album of the Year award from the Academy of Western Artists, the Wranglers have been delighting audiences since 1999.
The music they perform is a combination of traditional Western music that pays homage to the Sons of the Pioneers and other Western greats, and their own Western originals, like "Deep in the Saddle", which was the title song of their award-winning album.
Most of the year the Diamond W Wranglers make their musical home at the Old Cowtown Museum in Wichita, Kansas - an authentic Western town of the 1870's. There they operate the Diamond W Chuckwagon Supper and entertain thousands of people a year with their stunning musical harmonies, great showmanship, and quirky humor.
Known as the Prairie Rose Wranglers from 1999-2007, the Wranglers have promoted Western Music across the globe. They were the first musicians from the western hemisphere to perform cowboy music in China, as well as the first musicians to have a concert ON the Great Wall of China.
In 2003 and 2004, the Wranglers led a troupe of Western entertainers to Carnegie Hall in New York City, to sellout crowds. Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius appointed them "Official Musical Ambassadors for Kansas". They have headlined 3 Cowboy Cruises in the Caribbean, and have performed recently at the Country Music Hall of Fame and Tennessee Performing Arts Center in Nashville. Their appearance on the Ernest Tubb Midnight Jamboree (the 2nd longest-running radio show in America) generated more calls than the program had seen in years. In May, two busloads of people traveled to Branson with the Diamond W. Wranglers, where they performed with Roy Rogers, Jr. at the Roy Rogers-Dale Evans Happy Trails Theater. The group also makes regular visits to popular venues around Kansas, Oklahoma, Nebraska, and Colorado.
Although the group members have each played other genres of music in the past, Western Music is their passion. "It's Cowboy Comfort," says harmony specialist and the group's arranger, Jim Farrell. "The music is extremely nostalgic for baby boomers and seniors, but the kids like it too. It's not uncommon for us to see three generations in our audience, and they're all having a ball."
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STU STUART – Lead and harmony vocals, lead acoustic & electric guitarist, fiddler
Raised in Kansas, Stu has cowboy music in his blood. His grandfather Hal O’Halloran was chief announcer on WLS Radio in Chicago for years, hosting the famous WLS Barn Dance. Hal became friends with great Western singing stars like Gene Autry, Patsy Montana, Smiley Burnette and Rex Allen, and loved to sing cowboy songs himself. In fact, his recording of “Ghost Riders in the Sky” was the first recorded music that Stu ever heard.
Stu began playing the guitar when he was a child, and started his first rock and roll band in high school. He continued to hone his musical skills in the Navy, and later played in a series of bluegrass and country bands, ending up in Nashville. There he helped form a country band called Hank Flamingo, which recorded an album for Giant records. This led to singles on the record charts, videos on CMT, and appearances on the TV shows of Crook & Chase and Conan O’Brien.
Stu met Jim Farrell while in Nashville. They quickly discovered a common love of cowboy music, and formed a group called J38 Land & Cattle Company, which performed together for several years. Stu later recruited Jim to come to Kansas.
JIM FARRELL – Vocals, rhythm guitar, musical arranger
“Tennessee Jim” was born and raised in Nashville, where he grew up surrounded by harmony. His father sang in a championship barbershop quartet, and led the church choir. Jim played guitar, bass and piano, and was a working musician by the age of 14. At 15 he began apprenticing with a master recording engineer, Ben Hall (producer of Alabama’s first two albums; “Wind Beneath My Wings”; and “Behind Closed Doors”). Jim later spent 17 years working with Hall’s music publishing company and performed on hundreds of recording sessions.
Jim has become recognized as one of the finest producers and recording engineers in Western Music. The National Cowboy Hall of Fame awarded him “Western Music Producer of the Year” in 2005, and he has produced highly regarded CD’s for Rex Allen Jr. and Roy “Dusty” Rogers Jr., among many others.
Jim owns a recording studio in Towanda, KS (Jim Farrell Studios) and is responsible for producing all of the Diamond W recordings. He is also a gifted songwriter. “Deep in the Saddle”, the title cut of the Wranglers’ award-winning album, is a Jim Farrell original, as are fan favorites “Full Gallop”, “Trail Dust” and “Cabezon”.
Jim is committed to seeing Western music grow internationally, and is keen to see the Wranglers perform with a symphony orchestra.
STEVE CRAWFORD – Drums and percussion, harmony vocals
“Stevie C, the Rhythmic Cowboy” picked up his interest in music from his mother, an accomplished pianist and organist. In grade school he began acting, singing, and playing the French horn. At 12 Steve build his own drum set out of oatmeal boxes, round baskets, tin pie plates and anything remotely resembling a drum or cymbal. His parents eventually surrendered and got him his own drum set. Steve played in the jazz band and sang in musical productions throughout high school.
Associated with the Chuckwagon when the Wranglers were founded, Steve joined them full-time in 2003. When he’s not on his throne as the “King of the Cowboy Drummers”, Steve practices his quick draw skills as an architectural draftsman.
Jim, Stu, and Steve are also kept very busy as the three owners of the Diamond W Chuckwagon, which they operate at the Old Cowtown Museum in Wichita.
CHIP WORTHINGTON – String bass, vocals
The newest and youngest member of the group, Chip also grew up with music in the house. He started playing the string bass in the 4th grade, and is accomplished on the piano. He was active in both orchestra and choir throughout high school.
Chip attended Wichita State University on a Vocal Music Education scholarship, where he studied music theory under the Pulitzer prize-winning professor, Dr. Walter Mays. He was a member of the prestigious Madrigal singing group and Wichita State’s barbershop quartet. He also played in an alternative bluegrass band for a year and a half. Chip was delighted to join the Wranglers, and feels it has opened
a whole new door for him musically. His youth, wit, and fluent Spanish have added new energy and fun to an already dynamic group.
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Guest Appearances: Paul Nystrom at the Pavilion in Montrose and Alice Billings at shows in Ouray.
Presented by Diamond W Wranglers
970-325-7255 • vjast@ouraynet.com
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