"Don't Fence Me In" is a popular American song written in 1934, with music by

Cole Porter Cole Albert Porter (June 9, 1891 – October 15, 1964) was an American composer and songwriter. Many of his songs became Standard (music), standards noted for their witty, urbane lyrics, and many of his scores found success on Broadway the ...

and lyrics by Robert Fletcher and Cole Porter. 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 Western fiction is a genre of literature set in th ...

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

Origins

Originally written in 1934 for ''Adios, Argentina,'' an unproduced

20th Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc., formerly 20th Century Fox, is an American film studio, film production and Film distributor, distribution company owned by the Walt Disney Studios (division), Walt Disney Studios, the film studios division of the ...

film musical, "Don't Fence Me In" was based on text by Robert Fletcher, a poet and engineer with the Department of Highways in

Helena, Montana Helena (; ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Montana and the county seat, seat of Lewis and Clark County, Montana, Lewis and Clark County. Helena was founded as a gold camp during the Montana gold ...

, who had been asked to write a

cowboy A cowboy is an animal herder who tends cattle on ranches in North America, traditionally on horseback, and often performs a multitude of other ranch-related tasks. The historic American cowboy of the late 19th century arose from the ''vaquero'' ...

song for the 20th Century Fox musical, bought the poem from Fletcher for $250. Porter reworked Fletcher's poem, and when the song was first published, Porter was credited with sole authorship. Porter had wanted to give Fletcher co-authorship credit, but his publishers did not allow it. The original copyright publication notice dated October 10, 1944, and the copyright card dated and filed on October 12, 1944, in the U.S. Copyright Office solely lists words and music by Cole Porter. After the song became popular, however, Fletcher hired attorneys who negotiated his co-authorship credit in subsequent publications. Although it was one of the most popular songs of its time, Porter claimed it was his least favorite of his compositions. Porter's revision of the song retained quite a few portions of Fletcher's lyrics, such as "Give me land, lots of land", "... breeze ... cottonwood trees", "turn me loose, let me straddle my old saddle" "mountains rise ... western skies", " cayuse", "where the west commences", and "... hobbles ... can’t stand fences", but in some places modified them to give them “the smart Porter touch”. Porter replaced some lines, rearranged lyric phrases, and added two verses. (Porter's verses about Wildcat Kelly are not included in any of the hit recordings of the song but are used in the Roy Rogers film of the same title. Roy Rogers sang the first verse with the lyric "Wildcat Willy" when he performed it in 1944's '' Hollywood Canteen''. Both verses are included in the Ella Fitzgerald and Harry Connick Jr. versions of the song.).

Roy Rogers and "Don't Fence Me In"

Roy Rogers Roy Rogers (born Leonard Franklin Slye; November 5, 1911 – July 6, 1998), nicknamed the King of the Cowboys, was an American singer, actor, television host, and Rodeo, rodeo performer. Following early work under his given name, first as a c ...

sang it in the 1944

Warner Bros. Warner Bros. Entertainment Inc. (WBEI), commonly known as Warner Bros. (WB), is an American filmed entertainment studio headquartered at the Warner Bros. Studios complex in Burbank, California and the main namesake subsidiary of Warner Bro ...

movie '' Hollywood Canteen''. Many people heard the song for the first time when

Kate Smith Kathryn Elizabeth Smith (May 1, 1907 – June 17, 1986) was an American contralto. Referred to as The First Lady of Radio, Smith became well known for her renditions of "God Bless America" and "When the Moon Comes over the Mountain". She began ...

introduced it on her radio broadcast of October 8, 1944. In 1945, the song was sung again as the title tune of another Roy Rogers film, '' Don't Fence Me In'' (1945), in which

Dale Evans Dale Evans Rogers (born Frances Octavia Smith; October 31, 1912 – February 7, 2001) was an American actress, singer, and songwriter. She was the second wife of singing cowboy film star Roy Rogers. Early life and career Dale Evans was born ...

plays a magazine reporter who comes to

's and Gabby Whittaker's (

George "Gabby" Hayes George Francis "Gabby" Hayes (May 7, 1885 – February 9, 1969) was an American actor. He began as something of a leading man and a character player, but he was best known for his numerous appearances in B-Western (genre), Western film series as ...

) ranch to research her story about a legendary late gunslinger. When it's revealed that Whittaker is actually the supposedly dead outlaw, Rogers must clear his name. Rogers and The Sons of the Pioneers perform songs, including the Cole Porter title tune. The next year (1946), the Cole Porter biopic '' Night and Day'' used a clip from '' Hollywood Canteen'' of Rogers singing "Don't Fence Me In".

Bing Crosby version

Bing Crosby Harry Lillis "Bing" Crosby Jr. (May 3, 1903 – October 14, 1977) was an American singer, comedian, entertainer and actor. The first multimedia star, he was one of the most popular and influential musical artists of the 20th century worldwi ...

and

The Andrews Sisters The Andrews Sisters were an American close harmony singing group of the swing and boogie-woogie eras. The group consisted of three sisters: contralto LaVerne Sophia Andrews (1911–1967), soprano Maxene Anglyn Andrews (1916–1995), and mezzo ...

with

Vic Schoen Victor Clarence Schoen (March 26, 1916 – January 5, 2000) was an American bandleader, arranger, and composer whose career spanned from the 1930s until his death in 2000. He furnished music for some of the most successful persons in show busin ...

and his Orchestra recorded it in 1944, without having seen or heard the song. Crosby entered the studio on July 25, 1944. Within 30 minutes, he and the Andrews Sisters had completed the recording, which sold more than a million copies and topped the ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertis ...

'' charts for eight weeks in 1944–45. This version also went to number nine on the

Harlem Hit Parade The Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart ranks the most popular R&B and hip hop songs in the United States and is published weekly by ''Billboard''. Rankings are based on a measure of radio airplay, sales data, and streaming activity. The chart had 100 po ...

chart.

Frank Sinatra version

Frank Sinatra Francis Albert Sinatra (; December 12, 1915 – May 14, 1998) was an American singer and actor. Honorific nicknames in popular music, Nicknamed the "Chairman of the Board" and "Ol' Blue Eyes", he is regarded as one of the Time 100: The Most I ...

appeared on the ''

Your Hit Parade ''Your Hit Parade'' is an American radio and television music program that was broadcast from 1935 to 1953 on radio, and seen from 1950 to 1959 on television. It was sponsored by American Tobacco's Lucky Strike cigarettes. During its 24-year r ...

'' program on December 23, 1944, and performed this song, which at the time was the #1 song in the country. The arrangement, written by both Lowell Martin (the first section of the arrangement) and

Billy May Edward William May Jr. (November 10, 1916 – January 22, 2004) was an American composer, arranger and trumpeter. He composed film and television music for ''The Green Hornet (TV series), The Green Hornet'' (1966), ''The Mod Squad (TV series), T ...

(the second part including the shout chorus) was conducted by

Axel Stordahl Axel Stordahl (August 8, 1913 – August 30, 1963) was an American arranger and composer who was active from the late 1930s through the 1950s. He is perhaps best known for his work with Frank Sinatra in the 1940s at Columbia Records. With his ...

and the

Lucky Strike Orchestra Lucky means having luck. It may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Film * '' People in Luck'', also titled ''The Lucky'' in English, a 1963 French comedy film * '' Lucky: No Time for Love'', a 2005 Hindi-language romance starring Salman Khan, S ...

. Stordahl counted off the arrangement a little too fast, and Sinatra could not keep up with the fast pace of the lyrics. As a result, he stumbled on the words "underneath the western skies". Then, after the phrase "I want to ride to the ridge where the West commences", he uttered "too many words", most likely in an effort to explain his on-air slip-up. Shortly after his performance Sinatra was fired from the show, supposedly because of his on-air comment about the lyrics.

Other versions

Gene Autry Orvon Grover "Gene" Autry (September 29, 1907 – October 2, 1998), nicknamed the Singing Cowboy, was an American actor, musician, singer, composer, rodeo performer, and baseball team owner, who largely gained fame by singing in a Crooner ...

(1944) *

also had a top ten hit with it in 1945. *

Ella Fitzgerald Ella Jane Fitzgerald (April25, 1917June15, 1996) was an American singer, songwriter and composer, sometimes referred to as the "First Lady of Song", "Queen of Jazz", and "Lady Ella". She was noted for her purity of tone, impeccable diction, phra ...

recorded the song on her

Verve Records Verve Records is an active American record label owned by Universal Music Group (UMG). Founded in 1956 by Norman Granz, the label is home to the world's largest jazz catalogue, which includes recordings by artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Ca ...

album ''

Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Songbook ''Ella Fitzgerald Sings the Cole Porter Song Book'' is a 1956 studio double album by American jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald, accompanied by a studio orchestra conducted and arranged by Buddy Bregman, focusing on the songs of Cole Porter. It is the ...

'' (1956). It was also released on ''Ella Fitzgerald Sings More Cole Porter''. *

Eddy Arnold Richard Edward Arnold (May 15, 1918 – May 8, 2008) was an American country music singer. He was a Nashville sound (country/popular music) innovator of the late 1950s, and scored 147 songs on the ''Billboard'' country music charts, second onl ...

, who included it on his release ''A Dozen Hits'' (1956) * The

Mitch Miller Mitchell William Miller (July 4, 1911 – July 31, 2010) was an American choral conductor, record producer, record-industry executive, and professional oboist. He was involved in almost all aspects of the industry, particularly as a conductor ...

Chorus sang it in the album "Sing Along With Mitch Miller & The Gang (1958). *

Clint Eastwood Clinton Eastwood Jr. (born May 31, 1930) is an American actor and film director. After achieving success in the Western (genre), Western TV series ''Rawhide (TV series), Rawhide'', Eastwood rose to international fame with his role as the "Ma ...

recorded it in the album "Rawhide's Clint Eastwood Sings Cowboy Favorites" (1963). *

James Brown James Joseph Brown (May 3, 1933 – December 25, 2006) was an American singer, songwriter, dancer, musician, and record producer. The central progenitor of funk music and a major figure of 20th-century music, he is referred to by Honorific nick ...

recorded a version for his 1974 album ''Reality''. *

Mary McCaslin Mary McCaslin (December 22, 1946 – October 2, 2022) was an American folk singer who wrote, recorded, and performed contemporary folk music. Early life McCaslin was born in Indianapolis on December 22, 1946, and was raised in Southern Califor ...

recorded the complete song including the introductory verse that is often omitted on the 1977 album "Old Friends" *

Willie Nelson Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and activist. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country subgenre that developed in the late 1960s as a reaction to the conservative restr ...

and

Leon Russell Leon Russell (born Claude Russell Bridges; April 2, 1942 – November 13, 2016) was an American musician and songwriter who was involved with numerous bestselling records during his 60-year career that spanned multiple genres, including rock a ...

recorded a version of the song on their '' One for the Road'' LP (1979). *

Hoyt Axton Hoyt Wayne Axton (March 25, 1938 – October 26, 1999) was an American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor. He became prominent in the early 1960s, establishing himself on the West Coast as a folk singer with an earthy style and powerful voic ...

on his 1982 LP ''Pistol Packin' Mama''. *

Frankie Laine Frankie Laine (born Francesco Paolo LoVecchio; March 30, 1913 – February 6, 2007) was an American singer and songwriter whose career spanned nearly 75 years, from his first concerts in 1930 with a marathon dance company to his final performa ...

did a cover of this song on his 1982 album ''The World of Frankie Laine''. *

Ana Belén María del Pilar Cuesta Acosta (born 27 May 1951), known professionally as Ana Belén, is a Spanish actress and singer. She and her husband are considered symbols of the Spanish Transition, and her songs and albums often feature boldly-titled ...

(Spanish singer): In her 1983 album Veneno para el corazón sings a version called 'Déjame ir *

David Byrne David Byrne (; born May 14, 1952) is an American musician, writer, visual artist, and filmmaker. He was a founding member, principal songwriter, lead singer, and guitarist of the American New wave music, new wave band Talking Heads. Byrne has ...

recorded a version for the 1990

tribute album entitled ''

Red Hot + Blue Red is the color at the long wavelength end of the visible spectrum of light, next to orange and opposite violet. It has a dominant wavelength of approximately 625–750 nanometres. It is a primary color in the RGB color model and a secondar ...

''. Byrne performed what he describes as his " Brazilian" version of the song during his 2004 tour for the ''

Grown Backwards ''Grown Backwards'' is the seventh studio album by the American musician David Byrne, released on March 16, 2004. Reception In 2010, Byrne wrote in his book '' How Music Works'' it has sold 127,000 physical albums, 8,000 digital albums and ...

'' album. *

Little Willie Littlefield Willie Littlefield, Jr., billed as Little Willie Littlefield (September 16, 1931 – June 23, 2013), was an American R&B and boogie-woogie pianist and singer whose early recordings "formed a vital link between boogie-woogie and rock and roll". ...

recorded a version for his 1990 album '' Singalong with Little Willie Littlefield''. *

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan; born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Described as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture over his nearly 70-year ...

recorded a version for the 2024 film ''Reagan''.

In popular culture

* 1950: A parody of the song was sung in the 1950 musical film '' Nancy Goes to Rio'' by

Carmen Miranda Maria do Carmo Miranda da Cunha (9 February 1909 – 5 August 1955), known professionally as Carmen Miranda (), was a Portuguese-born Brazilian singer, dancer, and actress. Nicknamed "The Brazilian Bombshell", she was known for her signature ...

. The parodic song, titled "Yipsee-I-O", was written by Ray Gilbert. * 1952: The song is an instrumental theme in the film '' Return of the Texan'' starring Dale Robertson and Walter Brennan. * 1954: The song was sung in the 1954 action movie '' Hell and High Water''. * 1961: Shortly after the

Berlin Wall The Berlin Wall (, ) was a guarded concrete Separation barrier, barrier that encircled West Berlin from 1961 to 1989, separating it from East Berlin and the East Germany, German Democratic Republic (GDR; East Germany). Construction of the B ...

was erected in 1961, a Communist-run

East Berlin East Berlin (; ) was the partially recognised capital city, capital of East Germany (GDR) from 1949 to 1990. From 1945, it was the Allied occupation zones in Germany, Soviet occupation sector of Berlin. The American, British, and French se ...

radio station called Ops used “Don’t Fence Me In” as the theme song for its nightly broadcast aimed at Allied soldiers, based in

West Berlin West Berlin ( or , ) was a political enclave which comprised the western part of Berlin from 1948 until 1990, during the Cold War. Although West Berlin lacked any sovereignty and was under military occupation until German reunification in 1 ...

. * 1974: Used in the World documentary ''

The World at War ''The World at War'' is a 26-episode British documentary television series that chronicles the events of the Second World War. Produced in 1973 at a cost of around £880,000 (), it was the most expensive factual series ever made at the time. ...

'' in an episode covering the American entry into war. * 1977:

Bob Hope Leslie Townes "Bob" Hope (May 29, 1903 – July 27, 2003) was an American comedian, actor, entertainer and producer with a career that spanned nearly 80 years and achievements in vaudeville, network radio, television, and USO Tours. He appeared ...

did a cover of this song on ''

The Muppet Show ''The Muppet Show'' is a variety sketch comedy television series created by Jim Henson and starring the Muppets. It is presented as a variety show, featuring recurring sketches and musical numbers interspersed with ongoing plot-lines with ru ...

''. * 1980s: Bing Crosby's version was used in an advertisement for Centre Parcs UK, directed by

Sharon Maguire Sharon Maguire (born 17 August 1960) is a film director best known for directing the romantic comedy film '' Bridget Jones's Diary'' (2001). The film was based on the book of the same name by her close friend, Helen Fielding, and one of the ma ...

. The advert was re-broadcast on ITV during the late 1990s. * 1994: Featured in '' Mickey's Fun Songs: Campout at Walt Disney World'', with

Goofy Goofy is a cartoon character created by the Walt Disney Company. He is a tall, Anthropomorphism, anthropomorphic dog who typically wears a turtle neck and vest, with pants, shoes, white gloves, and a tall hat originally designed as a rumpled fe ...

, Mickey,

Minnie As a first name, Minnie is a feminine given name. It can be a diminutive (hypocorism) of Minerva, Winifred, Wilhelmina, Willemina, Winona, Margaret, Hermione, Jasmine, Mary, Miriam, Maria, Marie, Naomi, Miranda, Clementine, Dominique, Dom ...

, and the Fun Songs Kids performing the song on a hayride around the campsite. * 2000: The song was used in the opening credits of the 2000 film '' Chopper''. * 2004: Song nominated by the

American Film Institute The American Film Institute (AFI) is an American nonprofit film organization that educates filmmakers and honors the heritage of the History of cinema in the United States, motion picture arts in the United States. AFI is supported by private fu ...

(AFI) for inclusion in that organization's select list of "100 Years...100 Songs" * 2013:

Pablo Bubar Pablo is a masculine given name, the Spanish form of the name Paul. People * Pablo Acha (born 1996), Spanish archer * Pablo Alarcón (born 1946), Argentine actor * Pablo Alborán (born 1989), Spanish singer * Pablo Aimar (born 1979), Argentin ...

reintroduced the song in one of the musical romance sketches of "Pablo the Romantic" from '' Boom Town'', broadcast by BBC Three (UK, 2013). This version includes the piano music of Ross Leadbeater.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Don't Fence Me In 1934 songs 1944 singles The Andrews Sisters songs Bing Crosby songs David Byrne songs Ella Fitzgerald songs Frankie Laine songs Grammy Hall of Fame Award recipients Kate Smith songs Little Willie Littlefield songs Louis Armstrong songs Number-one singles in the United States Roy Rogers songs Songs written by Cole Porter Western music (North America) songs Willie Nelson songs Songs about freedom