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Odessa's
WPA mural: "Stampede" (detail) by Tom Lea
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For
all the various romantic portrayals of cowboys, some people have seen
them as tragic figures. Evidently, this is a common thought, albeit
one that is seldom discussed. In McCabe and Mrs. Miller, Keith
Carradine’s hapless tenderfoot being tricked into “pulling” his gun
comes to mind. Then there’s the unnamed dying cowboy in the song Streets
of Laredo. Forget the adventure and romance of Saturday matinees.
Being a cowboy was lonely, tedious – and then you died and were buried
in an unmarked grave.
Here in the Odessa
mural by El Pasoan Tom Lea, we see one particular cowboy’s end in
a stylistic but classical form. Totally devoid of gore, the depiction
is nonetheless sobering and the viewer is left with no doubt of the
outcome. |
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| The clean-shaven
cowboy with his fresh shirt, un-scraped chaps and slicked back hair
is frozen in time like the “ghost portraits” of people left in mineral-laden
glass panes of pioneer houses. With the positioning of the cowboy’s
body one could easily imagine a graceful trapeze artist who lost his
footing or Icarus falling to earth. |
The sea of glistening
cow horns hammers home the obviousness of a fatal ending just as surely
as the horns of the upended steer in the foreground will pierce the
cowboy’s falling hat. We needn’t witness the act of goring. (Hey,
people are trying to buy stamps here!)
A second human in the canvas would’ve been a distraction and Lea (if
he considered one) was right in keeping the tableau simple. The cowboy’s
horse in its panicked stare offers no help even as the cowboy reaches
out as if to protect his equine friend. |
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“Their brands
were still on fire and their hooves were made of steel
Their horns were black and shiny and their hot breath he could feel
…”
From the song Ghost Riders in the Sky lyrics by Stan Jones
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| The prominent
steer is death personified. No mercy or pity comes from the eyes made
red from the flash of lightning. It is as if Lea had been inspired
by the song Ghost Riders in the Sky, a postwar hit very popular
with men. But the song was written nearly seven years after this canvas
was painted. |
Odessa
Post Office Mural: "Stampede" by Tom Lea, 1940
Click on photo for large image |
The song, written
by composer Stan Jones, was a cautionary tale of changing one’s ways
before it was too late. The lyrics are simple with no preaching. Just
the threat of eternal damnation and the Sisyphean task of chasing
the devil’s herd through eternity. What part is unclear?
The composer is said to have stated that an old cowboy told him the
story when he was still a youngster and while there’s no record of
lyricist Jones seeing artist Lea’s painting – it wouldn’t be surprising
that such a stirring image would affect the composer’s lyrics. |
A portion
of Stan Jones’ lyrics:
“An old cowboy went riding out one dark and windy day
Upon a ridge he rested as he went along his way
When all at once a mighty herd of red eyed cows he saw
A-plowing through the ragged sky and up the cloudy draw.
Their brands were still on fire and their hooves were made of steel
Their horns were black and shiny and their hot breath he could feel
…” |
For
those who remember the song, it made #1 on the Billboard chart in
1947.
It was first recorded by Burl Ives, then Vaughn Monroe (who made it
famous) and over the years it has been recorded by notable singers
like Frankie Laine, Marty Robbins and Johnny Cash. |
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| Tom
Lea's brand-like Signature |
Photographer's
Note:
Subject: Odessa: WPA Tom Lea Mural
The display of this mural is the best I've seen so far. It was moved
from across the street to the new Post Office, not unusual. It is
well lit, accessible, well preserved and well mounted. It is in a
wide area where one can stand back and admire it. - Barclay
Gibson, December 15, 2009
Our thanks to photographer Barclay
Gibson for his trip to Odessa
to photograph this mural.
©John Troesser
Photos ©Barclay
Gibson |
Stampede
Mesa - A Ghost Story
by C. F. Eckhardt
Texas is a land of many legends. Some of them are just that-legends.
Some of them have a germ of truth in them-and some of them are entirely
true. At one time, when I was a young man, I had the opportunity to
hear what some would call a legend from a man who experienced it...
more |
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