Mule Train

"Mule Train"
Single by Tennessee Ernie Ford
from the album Sixteen Tons
B-side"Anticipation Blues"
ReleasedNovember 1949
RecordedOctober 18, 1949
GenreCountry, folk
Length3:04
LabelCapitol
Songwriter(s)Johnny Lange, Hy Heath, Ramblin' Tommy Scott and Fred Glickman.
Tennessee Ernie Ford singles chronology
"Smokey Mountain Boogie"
(1949)
"Mule Train"
(1949)
"The Cry of the Wild Goose"
(1950)

"Mule Train" is a popular song written by Johnny Lange, Hy Heath, Ramblin' Tommy Scott and Fred Glickman. It is a cowboy song, with the singer filling the role of an Old West wagon driver, spurring on his team of mules pulling a delivery wagon. As he goes about his work, the driver mentions the various mail-order goods he is delivering to far-flung customers. "Mule Train" was originally recorded by Ellis "Buz" Butler Jr. in 1947. Butler was the original writer of the song along with Fred Glickman. The original recording was released by Buz Butler on Decca Records.[citation needed]

The song was featured in the 1950 Republic Western Singing Guns (where it was sung by Vaughn Monroe) and nominated for the Academy Award for Best Original Song in 1950, but lost out to "Mona Lisa".

Western Writers of America chose it as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.[1]

  1. ^ Western Writers of America (2010). "The Top 100 Western Songs". American Cowboy. Archived from the original on 19 October 2010.