Love of the West (Warner Western, 1999)

Red Steagall sets out to remind one and all that there wouldn't have been cowboys at all without cowgirls. For these rugged western males, the days were filled with roping, riding and fighting. But even the toughest of these critters needed love, so many nights were equally packed with rough and tumble romance.

The majority of these selections stick to straight ahead storytelling, set to a steady beat highlighted by a little fiddle here, and a touch of Spanish guitar there. But in some places, as on "Grandmother's Trunk," Steagall forgoes musical accompaniment altogether and reads the story of one women's treasure chest like it was a short story. Steagall gets personal with "My Pardner," a spoken word piece where he imagines what life would be like without his wife, Gail. "The bed was empty where she ought to be" he recites. "I thought I'd felt alone before but this was something else."

Long nights in these unpopulated wide open spaces would have indeed been "something else" had these cowpokes remained single. "Love of the West" shows a deep appreciation for the romances that bloomed like a roses within the hearts of cowboys and cowgirls of the west.