
Western Song: Blue Shadows On The Trail
Hollywood-based Eliot Daniel and Johnny Lange produced “Blue Shadows On The Trail” for the 1948 Disney animated film entitled “Melody Time.” Roy Rogers and The Sons of The Pioneers first recorded the song on December 1, 1947, releasing it as a single on March 1948. The Western-styled melody played during the opening of the final segment and the film’s closing. Members of the Western Writers of America chose and added the song to their list of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.
Table of Contents
About the Song
The “Pecos Bill” segment of Melody Time required a cowboy ballad, so Eliot Daniel and Johnny Lange produced the song Blue Shadows on The Trail. It usually plays throughout the evening, along with the howling of the coyotes while a pair of owls fly away. At the end of the film, the song plays again where Pecos Bill lost his significant other, Slue-Foot Sue.
Popular Recordings
Aside from the musician mentioned above, the song has been recorded by various artists including:
- Vaughn Monroe and His Orchestra
- Bing Crosby with Ken Darby Choir and Victor Young and His Orchestra
- Jimmy Wakely with The Jud Conlon Singers and The Three Rays
- Riders in the Sky
- Sean Blackburn
- RW Hampton
- Andy Russell
- Gene Autry and the Melody Ranch Gang
- Buddy Clark
- Denny Dennis and the Keynote
- Art Mooney and His Orchestra
- Trails & Rails
- Barbara Nelson
- Laura Crema
- Sara Watkins feat. Nickel Creek
Listen to Blue Shadows On The Trail (Sons of The Pioneers Version)
Blue Shadows On The Trail Lyrics
Shades of night are falling As the wind begins to sigh And the world's silhouetted 'gainst the sky Blue shadows on the trail Blue moon shinin' through the trees And a plaintive wail from the distance Comes a driftin' on the evenin' breeze Move along, blue shadows, move along Soon the dawn will come and you'll be on your way Until the darkness sheds its veil There'll be blue shadows on the trail [Whistling] Move along, blue shadows, move along (Move along, move along, move along) Soon the dawn will come and you'll be on your way (on your way) Until the darkness sheds its veil There'll be blue shadows on the trail Shadows on the trail