Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie

"Bury Me Not on the Lone Prairie" is a cowboy folk song. Also known as "The Cowboy's Lament", "The Dying Cowboy" and "Bury Me Out on the Lone Prairie", the song is described as the most famous cowboy ballad. Members of the Western Writers of America chose it as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time. Based on a sailor's song, the song has been recorded by many artists, including Moe Bandy, Johnny Cash, Burl Ives, The Residents, Tex Ritter, Roy Rogers and William Elliott Whitmore.

The ballad is an adaptation of a sea song called "The Sailor's Grave" or "The Ocean-Burial", which began "O bury me not in the deep, deep sea.", The Ocean Burial was written by Edwin Hubbell Chapin, published in 1839, and put to music by George N. Allen.

A version of the song was published in John Lomax's "Cowboy Songs and Other Frontier Ballads" in 1910. The melody and lyrics were collected and published in Carl Sandburg's 1927 American Songbag.

An article published in the Uvalde, TX Uvalde News-Leader in 1928 suggests that the origin of the song was the small town of Lohn, TX. The article states that the song was originally about the Lohn Prairie, and was later changed to "Lone Prairie."

Originally collected with different music than that widely known today, Bury Me Not On the Lone Prairie first appeared in print with the present melody in 1932, with a likely origin of North Carolina, though the speaker at that time requested—contrary to other renditions—to "bury me out on the lone prairie."

The Bury Me Not On The Lone Prairie music was adapted for the soundtrack to John Ford's 1939 western film classic Stagecoach - its haunting theme is repeatedly heard throughout the movie.

The song has been a popular recording, having been released on album by Moe Bandy, Johnny Cash, Burl Ives, Tex Ritter, and Roy Rogers, among others. Even avant-garde musicians, The Residents, have covered the song for live performances. Under the alternate title "Bury Me Out on the Lone Prairie", it has been recorded by Johnnie Ray.

...
Wikipedia