2008 Big Bear Cowboy Poetry & Music Gathering
The 9th Annual Big Bear Cowboy Poetry and Music Gathering will be September 18 – 21, 2008 in the mountain resort town of Big Bear Lake, California. 

The ninth annual Big Bear Cowboy Poetry and Music Gathering will be on September 18 – 21, 2008 in the mountain resort town of Big Bear Lake, California.  The centerpiece evening shows will be headlined by Red Steagall and Dan Roberts, joined by a long list of terrific performers and cowboy poets.  The Saturday and Sunday daytime events include a Mercantile and entertainment under the pines, with activities for the whole family, plus food and drink, workshops and, of course, Cowboy Church – and admission to this daytime fun is free!  Jack Terry’s painting, “Autumn at Big Bear Lake,” perfectly represents the theme of this year’s Gathering, showing the natural beauty of this special place in the forest in the fall. 

We are thrilled to have Red Steagall as our headlining entertainer for the 2008 Big Bear Cowboy Gathering, playing on Saturday night.  Red’s music and poetry career spans 35 years and the entire world, having performed at the White House for President Reagan and on three overseas tours for the USIA.  In fact, Red has performed an average of 200 days per year over the past 30 years!  He is a world renowned songwriter, recording artist, entertainer, radio, television and motion picture personality whose credits span from Texas Swing Dance Music, writing the National Finals Rodeo title songs, author of western lifestyle songs and poetry books, syndicated radio and television shows and much, much more!  Before Saturday evening’s performance, there will be a special reception for attendees, with box dinners from Jasper’s Smokehouse Restaurant and a no-host bar available in the gardens and front steps of the theater.  The Western Mercantile will also be open inside the lobby throughout the evening.

The kick-off event for the Gathering will be quite a wild affair!  On Thursday, September 18th, we’ll be having a “Floatin’ Gamblin’ Saloon & Dinner Cruise” on the authentic paddle wheeler “Miss Liberty,” out of the Pine Knot Dock Club.  This evening is the major fundraising event for the Cowboy Gathering and the High School Scholarships we provide local students.  We invite you to dress in your Cowboy best and cruise Big Bear Lake, enjoying dinner from Jasper’s Smokehouse Restaurant and entertainment by Lincoln Bond, Dave Bourne, Yvonne Hollenbeck, and Michael Tcherkassky.  We’re aiming for the raucous fun and libations of an authentic “Saloon Cruise.”  Expect the unexpected and prepare to have fun Old West style!  Tickets for this event are quite limited – be sure to order early.

On Friday night, the action moves over to the beautiful Big Bear Lake Performing Arts Center.  Before the show begins, there will be a welcome reception on the entry steps and grounds.  There will be time to enjoy a no-host bar and light appetizers while you check out the Western Mercantile in the lobby and be amazed by the magic of Lincoln Bond in the crisp autumn air.  Once everyone heads into the 400-seat state-of-the-art theater, nationally recognized and captivating western poet Yvonne Hollenbeck will open with her humorous and sometimes serious stories of life on the cattle ranches of South Dakota.  Yvonne will be followed by the up and coming Nancy Lee, whose outstanding voice and energy make for a great set of old west entertainment and fun

Our headliner for Friday’s “official” opening evening is songwriter and entertainer Dan Roberts.  Dan spent 18 years in Nashville writing songs for many, including country superstar Garth Brooks.  In fact, Dan Roberts was Garth Brooks’ opening act for two years on world tour – the longest opening act of Brooks’ touring career.  Dan has since launched a very successful career of his own, writing songs and producing numerous CD’s from his home in Texas.  His musical talents have won him many awards including 2001 Male Vocal of the Year and 2002 Entertainer of the Year from the Academy of Western Artists, three Grammy Award nominations, and the 2004 Terry Awards Entertainer of the Year.  Come find out why!

The Big Bear Cowboy Gathering is full weekend of fun for the whole family.  In addition to the Friday and Saturday night shows, there will be two days of an Outdoor Mercantile and entertainment under the huge pines and open area on the grounds of Big Bear Lake’s City Hall, overlooking the lake.  Admission to the outdoor activities on both Saturday and Sunday is free for all.  The lively and diverse characters from Pistols and Petticoats will set the stage and keep everyone laughing with their skits and their Old-Time Town.  A genuine stage coach will be making rounds, taking folks on rides.  Many purveyors of fine things Western will tempt you with their wares.  Children’s activities will range from rope tying, pony rides/petting zoo and bounce houses to magic.  There will be workshops on playing the harmonica, writing and performing cowboy poetry, cowboy magic, line dancing and more.  And throughout the two days, there will be live entertainment on the outdoor stage by Nancy Lee, Gary Robertson, Jim Brooks, Michael Tcherkassky, Gary Allegretto and Lincoln Bond.  To keep your whistle wet, beverages will be available, and Jasper’s Smokehouse Restaurant will be there with their terrific barbeque.  On Sunday morning, in addition to the Mercantile and other outdoor activities, there will be a hot and hearty camp-style Cowboy Breakfast from Jasper’s.  Right after breakfast, there will be a non-denominational Cowboy Church under the pines, led by the weekend’s MC and preacher, Ken Bruner, and enriched by performances by Nancy Lee, Gary Allegretto and more.  At all Gathering events, you’ll find yourself savoring cups of Big Bear’s own cowboy Joe, Sarkisian Coffee.

The Big Bear Lake Cowboy Poetry and Music Gathering has earned its reputation as a quality event, drawing folks from around the country to experience the best of Cowboy musicians and poets in a unique setting.  This 2008 Gathering offers even more reasons to put it on your calendar, especially with the presentation of such a world-famous and talented artist as Red Steagall.  Red may be best known for his wonderful Texas Swing dance music and such songs as "Here We Go Again," "Party Dolls and Wine," "Freckles Brown," and "Lone Star Beer and Bob Wills Music," but he is beloved by Texas cowboys for the quiet times they have spent with him around chuck wagon campfires.  More than 200 of his compositions have been recorded, both by Red himself and by other artists, and his songs have been heard in many movies.  He has had 26 consecutive records on the national charts and released a total of twenty albums, with the latest entitled WAGON TRACKS, in the fall of 2002.

Red has won too many awards in too many fields to be able to mention them all here.  Among the highlights, The Texas State Legislature named him the Official Cowboy Poet of Texas in 1991 and he is the official Cowboy Poet Laureate of the City of San Juan Capistrano, California.  He was inducted into the Texas Trail of Fame in 1999.  The Academy of Western Artists named his book in collaboration with Pulitzer Prize winning photographer Skeeter Hagler, "Born To This Land," as the recipient of the Will Rogers Award for best book of 2003.  That same year, Red was officially inducted into the Hall of Great Westerners at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma City.  The men and women honored within the Hall of Great Westerners, the national museum's highest honor, represent the heart and spirit of western heritage and include such notables as Will Rogers, Teddy Roosevelt, Charles Goodnight and Charlie Russell.  This ultimate acknowledgement of Red Steagall’s lifetime commitment to the preservation of the western lifestyle is to him the equivalent of an Oscar, Grammy, CMA Entertainer of the Year, and ACM Lifetime Achievement Award all rolled into one special recognition.  It is his most cherished honor.  Red Steagall was named “2006 Poet Laureate of the State of Texas.”  Steagall is especially honored to be the first “cowboy” poet to be named poet laureate of his state and hopes it will open the door to honor others of this genre.

All in all, with a great line-up of talent, lots of activities and western vendors, natural beauty and crisp fall weather, this promises to be a fun, full weekend of the Cowboy Way for the whole family.  Don’t miss it!

Liz Harris, Co-founder and Director of the Big Bear Cowboy Committee, was a featured guest on Southwest Blend Magazine’s online radio show ‘Champagne Sundays’. To listen to the entire, unedited show, click here. To listen to her interview about the 9^th Annual Big Bear Cowboy Poetry & Music Gathering, double-click on the play button below.






To purchase tickets and for more information, please go to www.BigBearCowboyGathering.net   
If you’d rather talk to a person, leave a message at (909) 866-4970 and we’ll call you back!