Join us National Cowboy Poetry Gathering 2025

Schedule:

10:00am-12:00pm Gary & Kurin Haleamau

Kī HōʻAlu (To Slack Or Loosen The Key) Is A Genre Of Guitar Music That Originated In Hawai’i Among Paniolos (Hawaiian Cowboys). When Mexican Vaqueros Visited Hawai’i To Teach The Paniolos How To Manage The Island's Wild Cattle, They Also Taught Them To Play The Guitar. Without Traditional Knowledge Of Guitar Tuning, Nā Paniolo Loosened The Strings To An “Open G Tuning” And This Unique Style Was Born. In This Workshop, Gary & Kurin Haleamau Will Teach The Hawaiian “Open G” Tuning, Similar To Bluegrass Dgdgbd. Using A Hawaiian Song As A Foundation, Students Will Also Learn Finger Picking And Chord Progression, Which Incorporates Playing The Top Three Strings For A Bass Rhythm. 

Photo By Jessica Brandi Lifland

10:00am-12:00pm Amy Mills

If You Can Count To Six, You’re Ready To Master Two Dance Rhythms For The Price Of One. Glide Around The Room To The Boom-Shik-Ka Of Your Favorite Two-Step. This Western Classic Will Have You Snuggling Close To Your Sweetie. Then, Jitterbug Your Heart Out To The Jumpier Six-Count Beats. Whether You Call It Jive, Lindy, Or Swing, This Versatile Dance Lets You Romp To Western Swing And Rockabilly, Hot Jazz And Sultry Blues. You Provide The Feet And Amy Mills Will Show You The Moves While Wylie & The Wild West Show You The Beat. Get Two-Stepping And Swinging In Time For Saturday’s Dance. All Levels Welcome. No Partner Necessary.

Photo By Jessica Brandi Lifland

1:00pm-2:30pm Jeff Cunningham

Do You Feel Like You Have Two Left Feet? You Don’t Need Elegance, Just A Willing Spirit For This Beginner Line Dancing Workshop. Jeff Cunningham Will Have You Kickin’ And Stompin’ To The Music With Simple Steps. You Will Build On These Steps To Create Choreographed Movements For Different Line Dances. Jeff Is Adept At Teaching Students With Little To No Experience. He Will Have You Ready To Jump In And Move With The Group At The Rodeo, Country Bar, Or Any Of The Many Occasions That Embrace Line Dancing. This Is An Opportunity To Learn To Dance And Get Your Heart Pumping, With Or Without A Partner.

Photo By Jessica Brandi Lifland

1:00pm-2:15pm Juni Fisher, Brenn Hill, Andy Nelson, Kye Rieff, Sandy Seaton Sallee

Horses May Be Glamorous And Flashy, Galloping Long Distances And Smoothly Jumping Barriers To Get Us Where We’re Going. But Mules, With Their Fortitude And Bullheadedness, Take Us All The Places We’d Never Get Without Provisions And Patience. Some Say Horses Are Smoother, While Mules Are Smarter. Some Say Horses Are More Ready, While Mules Are More Steady. We Say, Sometimes You Need A Bit Of Both. Juni Fisher, Brenn Hill, Andy Nelson, Kye Rieff, And Sandy Seaton Sallee Bring You An Entertaining, Equine-Heavy Afternoon Of Music And Verse In Tribute To Mules And Horses, And The Places They Carry Us.

Photo By Jessica Brandi Lifland

1:00pm-2:15pm Juni Fisher, Brenn Hill, Andy Nelson, Kye Rieff, Sandy Seaton Sallee

Horses May Be Glamorous And Flashy, Galloping Long Distances And Smoothly Jumping Barriers To Get Us Where We’re Going. But Mules, With Their Fortitude And Bullheadedness, Take Us All The Places We’d Never Get Without Provisions And Patience. Some Say Horses Are Smoother, While Mules Are Smarter. Some Say Horses Are More Ready, While Mules Are More Steady. We Say, Sometimes You Need A Bit Of Both. Juni Fisher, Brenn Hill, Andy Nelson, Kye Rieff, And Sandy Seaton Sallee Bring You An Entertaining, Equine-Heavy Afternoon Of Music And Verse In Tribute To Mules And Horses, And The Places They Carry Us.

Photo By Jessica Brandi Lifland

2:45pm-4:00pm Michael Martin Murphey With Special Guests

Join Michael Martin Murphey And A Bevy Of Special Guests For This Live Re-Recording Of Murph’s Quintessential Album, Cowboy Songs. First Released In 1990, Cowboy Songs (Vol. 1) Was A 21-Track Round Up Of New Hits Like “Cowboy Logic” And Good Ol’ Classics Like “Goodbye Old Paint.” The First Cowboy Music Album To Go Gold Since Marty Robbins, Its Success Spurred The Creation Of The Warner Western Imprint On The Warner Bros Label. Love For Cowboy Music May Ebb And Flow Among Mainstream Audiences, But Murph—And His Elko Audiences—Are Steadfast Admirers, Making The Gathering The Ideal Place To Recapture The Album. Warm Up Your Clappers And Tune Up Your Yappers—You Might Just Hear Yourself On The Live Recording. 

Sponsored By Carole Anderson

Photo By Marla Aufmuth

3:00pm-4:30pm Sherry Hooper

Step Up Your Line Dancing Skills And Learn Some Moves You Can Take Home To Your Local Honky-Tonk. Sherry Hooper Will Guide You Through More Intricate Turns And Steps, Starting With Step-By-Step Instructions, Before Kicking It Up A Notch By Adding Fast-Paced Music. Sherry’s Classes Are Always Lively, Fun, And Full Of Line Dance Favorites Like “Kick The Dust Up,” “Aww Naw,” “Flatliner,” “If You’re Going Through Hell,” “Any Man Of Mine,” And More. Best Suited For Students Who Have Some Previous Dance Experience, Either Line Dance Or Other.Boots Not Required.

Photo By Marla Aufmuth

6:00pm-7:30pm Adrian Brannan, Dick Gibford, Deanna Dickinson Mccall, Katie Mccall-Owen, Dave & Tris Munsick

Love Has Lasted A Lifetime For These Pairs. From The First Moment They Met, They Were Bound Together. By Blood Or By Love, There’s A Special Connection That Forms Between Generations. One Minute, One Begins As A Mentor Holding A Baby. The Next, That Baby Is Holding Them Steady. The Roles Switch Back And Forth As They Bring Each Other Guidance, Mentorship, Fresh Eyes, And New Perspectives. Adrian Brannan & Dick Gibford, Deanna Dickinson Mccall & Katie Mccall-Owen, And Dave & Tris Munsick Honor Their Lifetimes Of Shared Craft, Shared Advice, Shared Admiration, And That Greatest Gift, Shared Time Together. Join These Bonded Pairs For An Evening Of Music, Poetry, And Rapport That’ll Hold You Close And Help You Grow.

Photo By Jessica Brandi Lifland

6:00pm-7;30pm Doug Figgs, Yvonne Hollenbeck, Jarle Kvale, Jake Riley, R.P. Smith

Making A Living In Agriculture Isn’t For The Faint Of Heart. Nor Is It For The Humorless. Some Days The Ups And Downs Happen With The Intensity Of A Bucking Bronc Buzzed By A Bee. To Keep Cool While The Ranch Tests Your Good Nature, It Helps To Find A Little Humor In The Crises. So, Cinch Up Your Sunny Disposition And Join Lovelorn Troubadour Doug Figgs, Witty Wordsmith Yvonne Hollenbeck, Self-Effacing Sonneteer Jarle Kvale, Playful Poet Jake Riley, And Genuine Jokester R.P. Smith For An Evening That Will Have Both Your Heart And Your Sides Aching With Hysterics. 

Sponsored By Blach Distributing Co

Photo By Charlie Ekburg

8:00pm-9:30pm Margo Cilker, Sterling Drake, Lara Manzanares, Ed Peekeekoot

Close Out The 40th By Gathering In The Spirit Of The Gathering’s Essence, By Gathering For The Good And The True. Here, The Creative Possibilities Are Endless. The Inspiration Of Everyday People Is Epic. The Poetic Expressions Become A Medium Through Which We Envision, And Enact, New Possibilities For The Communities That Feed Us And The Communities That Are Fed. Join Musicians Margo Cilker, Sterling Drake, Lara Manzanares, And Ed Peekeekoot, Along With All The “Old Ghosts And Young Cowpunchers” That Haunt These Halls, To Soak Up The Artistic Life And To Conjure The Next 40 Years. 

Sponsored By Alex Benna & Chrissy Menicucci Benna

Photo By Jen Borst

8:00pm-9:30pm Dom Flemons, Ross Knox, Matt Robertson, Trinity Seely, Gail Steiger

Isolated In The Vast Backcountry For Large Periods Of Time, Entertainment For Cowboys Consisted (And Still Consists) Of Spinning Yarns, Crafting Poetry, And Passing The Time In Song. These Compadres Recreate The Creative Recreation And Cultural Production Of The Cattle Trail. Dom Flemons Provides Sustenance Around The Campfire With His Songster Lore. Ross Knox Drives Tradition With His Poetic Stylings. Matt Robertson Wrangles The Musical Wilds With His Bronc Scholarship. Trinity Seely Keeps The Crew In High Spirits With Her Whistling Ways. And, Gail Steiger Refuses To Let A Verse Straggle Behind. They’ll Transport You To The Space Where The Oral Tradition We Know As Cowboy Poetry Began, In The Cow Camp And Along The Cow Trail. 

Sponsored By The Nature Conservancy-Nevada

Photo By Jessica Brandi Lifland

10:00pm-12:00am Wylie & The Wild West

Get In One Last Dose Of Dancing Before The 40th Comes To A Close. Dancers And Wallflowers Alike Can’t Resist The Supremely Danceable Sounds Of Wylie & The Wild West. So, Get On The Floor And Give It Your Best Spin, Shake, And Shuffle. If You’re Better At Busting Broncs Than Busting Moves, Don’t Worry, Wylie’s Got Enough Moves Of His Own To Keep You Entertained. This Is The Place To Fling Off Your Troubles, Recharge Your Soul, And Store Up That Gathering Spirit To Carry You Through The Rest Of The Year. Come One, Come All, And Close Out The 40th With This Cowboy Ball. 

Photo By Jessica Brandi Lifland

Click here to buy tickets