Performer Information

Arizona born Stan Jones’ name may not be a household word, but one of the tunes he wrote is one of the most famous Western songs ever recorded. While working as a park ranger in Death Valley, he would often sit out and watch the sunset. On the evening of his 34th birthday, as he watched the clouds building for a storm, he recalled another time, when he was 12 years old and out riding with a weathered old cowboy. They were on the top of a hill and the clouds were towering dark and threatening in the afternoon sky. His cowboy compadre told the boy that the rolling thunder was the stampeding of the devil’s herd, and that if he didn’t watch himself, he would be up there someday chasing cattle for all eternity with the sweat-soaked “(Ghost) Riders in the Sky”, and that evening, a song was born.  

Stan served as the Park Service representative to Hollywood film crews and his song caught the attention of the legendary director John Ford. As a result, he was hired to write music for some of Ford’s most famous Westerns – The Searchers, Wagonmaster and Rio Grande. The songs in each of these were recorded and sung by the Sons of the Pioneers.

After moving to Los Angeles to write full-time, he also did music for other movies, TV shows and record albums. He wrote over 200 songs, including “Song of the Trail,” “Cowpoke,” “Lillies Grow High,” “Saddle Up!” and the tv theme “Cheyene.” He also worked for Walt Disney and produced and was featured in the TV show Sheriff of Cochise. Stan was only 49 when he died, but his music left an indelible impression of the real West on the minds of the entire world and there are few places one can go where that haunting melody and the vision of a darkened sky and wild-eyed steers are not recognized.
Michelle Sundin