Cowboy Song (Thin Lizzy song)

"Cowboy Song"
Single by Thin Lizzy
from the album Jailbreak
B-side"Angel from the Coast"
ReleasedSeptember 1976[1]
Genre
Length3:17 (single)
5:16 (album)
LabelMercury
Songwriter(s)Phil Lynott and Brian Downey
Producer(s)John Alcock
Thin Lizzy singles chronology
"Jailbreak"
(1976) 		"Cowboy Song"
(1976) 		"Rocky"
(1976)

"Cowboy Song" is a song by hard rock band Thin Lizzy that originally appeared on their 1976 album Jailbreak.

Released as a single in an edited version, it reached No. 77 on the US charts, but at the time did not gain as much attention as two of their most popular songs on the same album, "The Boys Are Back in Town" and "Jailbreak". The song was written by frontman Phil Lynott and drummer Brian Downey.

Written from the perspective of a cowboy, the lyrics tell of his wandering across the United States through various adventures and romances. The song begins with a mellow acoustic, country music-style introduction before a transition to up-tempo hard rock.

"Cowboy Song" has since been described as one of Thin Lizzy's great songs because it has "one of the catchiest, most memorable twin-guitar harmony leads ever".[3] AllMusic described the song as turning the commonplace into legend, or bringing myth into the modern world.[4] The author of Phil Lynott: The Rocker, Mark Putterford, described the song as "a cross between Clint Eastwood and Rudolph Valentino, with a bit of George Best thrown in for good measure".[5] Rolling Stone magazine called the song "definitive".[6]

Over time, it has become a fan favourite and one of Thin Lizzy's signature songs.[2] The song is now one of their most popular and referred to as a classic.[7]

  1. ^ Strong, Martin Charles (1995). The Great Rock Discography. Canongate Press. p. 829. ISBN 9780862415419.
  2. ^ a b Sullivan, Denise. "Cowboy Song by Thin Lizzy - Track Info | AllMusic". allmusic. Retrieved 1 April 2023.
  3. ^ Melin, Eric (3 November 2010). The Great Songs: Thin Lizzy - The Cowboy Song. Scene-Stealers.com. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  4. ^ Thomas, Stephen (2015). Thin Lizzy - Jailbreak. AllMusic, a division of All Media Network, LLC. Retrieved 2016-01-25.
  5. ^ Putterford, Mark (1994; pp. 114 & 115). Phil Lynott: The Rocker. Published by Castle Communications Plc, Great Britain. OCLC 32203220. ISBN 1-898141-50-9.
  6. ^ Brackett, Nathan (2004, page 809 ). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide: Thin Lizzy. Retrieved 2016-01-29.
  7. ^ Prato, Greg (2015). Thin Lizzy - One Night Only. AllMusic, a division of All Media Network, LLC. Retrieved 2016-01-26.