Rawhide was an American western television series that ran from 1959 to 1966. The show’s black and white aesthetic and western theme holds nostalgia for a generation who grew up watching the series on TV.
The western series follows cattle drivers and reveals what life was like for these men guiding the livestock along the trail. The show uplifted these hard-working men, often showing them rescuing people they met along the trail or in neighboring towns.
The most memorable part of the western series maybe its theme song, simply titled “Rawhide.” Many people who’ve never seen the show have heard the tune featured in other shows or movies.
The iconic lines, “Rollin’, Rollin’, Rollin’ / Keep them dogies rollin’,” are recognizable to most. The song simulates the drive of the cattle and includes cracking whip sound effects.
In 1980, the movie The Blues Brothers repopularized the song. The Blues Brothers band was playing at a bar to a hostile crowd. Separated from the audience by chickenwire, the Blues Brothers played, obviously, the blues. However, the listeners threw beer bottles at them. Then the band played “Rawhide,” and the crowd’s anger subsided.
Many other films sampled the song. Movies like Shrek 2, Happy Feet Two, My Favorite Martian, and An American Tale: Fievel Goes West. By using the Rawhide theme song in these children’s movies, young listeners get experience with the tune.
Walmart also used the song as part of its Roll-Back campaign in the mid-1990s. Their former icon of the yellow smiley-face would lasso better prices for items, or the numbers would roll off to reveal lower prices.
A generation of TV viewers mostly loves the song because it brings back nostalgia for a simpler time. They would gather around the television set with their families to watch the next episode of Rawhide, where “Good vittles, love and kissin’ / Are waitin’ at the end of my ride.”
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