YULE ON THE RANGE
Angel Fire hosts Michael Martin Murphey’s ‘Cowboy Christmas’
For 24 years, Michael Martin Murpheyhas toured his “Cowboy Christmas” show.
It’s become of his greatest joys.
In fact, it’s an event that he sees himself doing until he retires.
“It’s great to see that I’ve become a tradition,” he says with a laugh. “I enjoy this time of year because of the tour. It’s a special time, for sure.”
Murphey has been a major part of America’s musical landscape for four decades.
His hits include “Wildfire,” “Carolina in the Pines,” “Long Line of Love,” “What’s Forever For,” “Geronimo’s Cadillac” and “Cowboy Logic.” He’s also been nominated for Grammys a few years as well as being a member of the Western Music Hall of Fame, the Texas Country Music Hall of Fame. He says that this philosophy of keeping Western and cowboy music alive has a strong impact on his holiday show, as does his own family background.
The touring tradition was born in the early 1990s, when Murphey produced an album of cowboy Christmas songs (he has since produced two holiday-themed albums and one DVD, all available on his website), and has developed into the multimedia production it is today.
For nearly a quarter of a century, Murphey has celebrated the cowboy connection to Christmas.
“There is a special relationship the Christmas story has to rural communities, farmers and ranchers,” Murphey says. “God first sent an angel to livestock people — the shepherds in the field. Whether you’re a believer or not, the story emphasizes the fact that the news of the birth of the savior of the world is not given to the royalty or politicians, but it goes to the lowest people on the totem pole.”
He continues.
“To me, this is an underscoring of the fact that Jesus came for all people, all races and all classes,” he says. “Jesus is also traditionally depicted as a shepherd, and many of his parables are agricultural stories about farming, livestock and how the earth works.”
With every new tour, Murphey brings new elements to the show.
“We’ve got new projections for the visual part of the show,” he says. “I’m also touring with my son in the band. The shows have been amazing so far.”