"Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" is a

country music Country (also called country and western) is a genre of popular music that originated in the Southern and Southwestern United States in the early 1920s. It primarily derives from blues, church music such as Southern gospel and spirituals, ...

song first recorded by

Ed Bruce William Edwin Bruce Jr. (December 29, 1939 – January 8, 2021) was an American country music songwriter, singer, and actor. He was known for writing the 1975 song "Mammas Don't Let Your Babies Grow Up to Be Cowboys" and recording the 1982 co ...

, written by him and his wife Patsy Bruce. His version of the song appears on his 1976 self-titled album for

United Artists Records United Artists Records was an American record label founded by Max E. Youngstein of United Artists in 1957 to issue movie soundtracks. The label expanded into other genres, such as easy listening, jazz, pop, and R&B. History Genres In 1959, ...

. In late 1975 and early 1976, Bruce's rendition of the song went to number 15 on the

Hot Country Singles Hot Country Songs is a chart published weekly by ''Billboard'' magazine in the United States. This 50-position chart lists the most popular country music songs, calculated weekly by collecting airplay data from Nielsen BDS along with digital sa ...

charts. This song was featured on Chris LeDoux's album released January 20, 1976, ''Songbook of the American West''. Members of the

Western Writers of America Western Writers of America (WWA), founded 1953, promotes literature, both fictional and nonfictional, pertaining to the American West. Although its founders wrote traditional Western fiction, the more than 600 current members also include histori ...

chose the song as one of the Top 100 Western songs of all time.

Content

The narrator warns mothers not to let their children become cowboys because of the tough and rootless life of cowboy culture.

Chart performance

Waylon Jennings/Willie Nelson version

Waylon Jennings Waylon Jennings (June 15, 1937 – February 13, 2002) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and actor. He pioneered the Outlaw Movement in country music. Jennings started playing guitar at the age of eight and performed at age f ...

and

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country musician. The critical success of the album '' Shotgun Willie'' (1973), combined with the critical and commercial success of '' Red Headed Stranger'' (1975) and '' Stardust'' (1 ...

covered the song on their 1978 duet album '' Waylon & Willie''. This rendition peaked at No. 1 in March 1978, spending four weeks atop the country music charts. It also reached 42 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, and won the 1979

Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal The Grammy Award for Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocal was awarded from 1970 to 2011. The award has had several minor name changes: * In 1970 the award was known as Best Country Performance by a Duo or Group * From 1971 to 19 ...

. Also in 1979, Nelson's version was featured in the film ''

The Electric Horseman ''The Electric Horseman'' is a 1979 American western comedy-drama film starring Robert Redford and Jane Fonda and directed by Sydney Pollack. The film is about a former rodeo champion who is hired by a cereal company to become its spokesperson an ...

'' with Robert Redford and Jane Fonda. It is also featured in a 2015

TV commercial A television advertisement (also called a television commercial, TV commercial, commercial, spot, television spot, TV spot, advert, television advert, TV advert, television ad, TV ad or simply an ad) is a span of television programming produce ...

for the

Volkswagen Passat The Volkswagen Passat is a series of large family cars manufactured and marketed by the German automobile manufacturer Volkswagen since 1973, and now in its eighth generation. It has been marketed variously as the Dasher, Santana, Quantum, Mag ...

Chart performance

Gibson/Miller Band version

In 1994, country music group Gibson/Miller Band recorded a cover version on its album ''Red, White and Blue Collar''. This version peaked at #49 on the Hot Country Songs chart, and was featured in the soundtrack for the movie '' The Cowboy Way''. It also appeared on the band's second and final studio album, ''Red, White and Blue Collar''.

Chart performance

References

{{authority control Songs about cowboys and cowgirls 1975 songs Waylon Jennings songs Willie Nelson songs Male vocal duets 1975 singles 1978 singles 1994 singles Billboard Hot Country Songs number-one singles of the year Ed Bruce songs Gibson/Miller Band songs Songs written by Ed Bruce United Artists Records singles RCA Records Nashville singles Epic Records singles Music videos directed by Sherman Halsey Song recordings produced by Doug Johnson (record producer) Song recordings produced by Larry Butler (producer) Songs written by Patsy Bruce