Happy Trails (song)
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (May 2021) |
| "Happy Trails" | |
|---|---|
theme song | |
| Label | RCA Victor |
| Songwriter(s) | Dale Evans |
"Happy Trails" is a song by
"Happy Trails" was released in 1952 as a 78 RPM and 45 RPM by Rogers and Evans with the Whippoorwills and Orchestra, on
Foy Willing's version
In 1951, Foy Willing had written a song titled "Happy Trails" for the Republic Pictures movie, Spoilers of the Plains, starring Roy Rogers with Foy Willing and the Riders of the Purple Sage. Subsequently, the first three notes of Foy's song and the title were used by Dale Evans in writing her version of "Happy Trails" for both the original The Roy Rogers Show and the short-lived The Roy Rogers and Dale Evans Show, which aired on ABC in 1962. Dale's is the version that is popularly played and sung today, albeit without giving credit to Foy Willing.[2]
Cover versions
| This section needs additional citations for verification. (March 2023) |
There have been numerous notable covers of Dale Evans' version of the song. For example:
- Quicksilver Messenger Service released an album called Happy Trails (1969), on which the song appears.
- On October 1, 1970, Janis Joplin left a taped recording of the song as a birthday greeting for John Lennon, three days before her death. Lennon, whose birthday was October 9, later told Dick Cavett that her taped greeting arrived at his home after her death.[3]
- Van Halen covered the song, a cappella in four-part harmony, as the closing track for their album, Diver Down (1982). The band usually ended live performances with their first lead singer, David Lee Roth, with that song.
- Randy Travis covered the song with Rogers on his album, Heroes & Friends (1990).
References
- ^ Western Writers of America (2010). "The Top 100 Western Songs". American Cowboy. Archived from the original on 19 October 2010.
- ISBN 1-58736-686-X.
- ^ "John Lennon and Yoko Ono Dick Cavett Show Excerpt 4 of 6". YouTube. 2006-12-08. Archived from the original on 2021-12-21. Retrieved 2016-06-09.
External links
- Evans, Dale. "Lyrics to 'Happy Trails' by Dale Evans". RoyRogers.com.
