Cowboys from Hell (song)
Encyclopedia
"Cowboys from Hell" is a popular song by heavy metal band Pantera
Pantera
Pantera was an American heavy metal band from Arlington, Texas. Formed by the Abbott brothers, Vinnie Paul and Dimebag Darrell in 1981, bassist Rex Brown would join in late 1981 with vocalist Terry Glaze. Looking for a new and heavier sound, Pantera had Terry replaced in 1987 with Phil Anselmo as...

. The song was the band's first single and first appears on the bands 1989 demo album, and later on their major label debut album Cowboys from Hell
Cowboys from Hell
Cowboys from Hell is Pantera's fifth album and their first Atco Records album, recorded at The Dallas Sound Lab in Irving, TX and released on July 24, 1990. This was their first commercially successful album, exposing the band's groove metal style to mainstream audiences...

. The song also appears on the band's compilation album.

Pantera used the phrase "Cowboys from Hell" (or its abbreviation, CFH) liberally in its image and merchandise. The song showcases Dimebag Darrell
Dimebag Darrell
Darrell Lance Abbott , also known as Diamond Darrell and Dimebag Darrell, was an American guitarist. He was best known as a founding member of the heavy metal bands Pantera and Damageplan. Abbott also contributed to the album Rebel Meets Rebel, a collaboration between Pantera and David Allan Coe...

's style of guitar playing which is an influence of the bands power
Power metal
Power metal is a style of heavy metal combining characteristics of traditional metal with speed metal, often within symphonic context. The term refers to two different but related styles: the first pioneered and largely practiced in North America with a harder sound similar to speed metal, and a...

-groove
Groove metal
Groove metal is a subgenre of heavy metal. It was often used to describe Pantera and Exhorder.- Characteristics and origins :Pantera's Cowboys from Hell album from 1990 was described as "groundbreaking" and "blueprint-defining" for the groove metal genre...

 sound. This song also features elements of thrash metal
Thrash metal
Thrash metal is a subgenre of heavy metal that is characterized usually by its fast tempo and aggression. Songs of the genre typically use fast percussive and low-register guitar riffs, overlaid with shredding-style lead work...

, particularly in the drumming.

Writing and recording

Anselmo stated on an episode of "That Metal Show
That Metal Show
That Metal Show is a talk show hosted by Eddie Trunk with co-hosts Jim Florentine and Don Jamieson. It premiered on VH1 Classic on November 15, 2008. New episodes air on VH1 Classic on Saturday nights and are rebroadcast throughout the week....

" that during a house party in Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth, Texas
Fort Worth is the 16th-largest city in the United States of America and the fifth-largest city in the state of Texas. Located in North Central Texas, just southeast of the Texas Panhandle, the city is a cultural gateway into the American West and covers nearly in Tarrant, Parker, Denton, and...

 in 1989, Dimebag, who arrived late, ran towards Anselmo and said he had a new riff to show him. The two of them went into Darrell's car and Darrell played the intro to Anselmo, and Anselmo said afterward to Darrell "yes this must be an anthem".

"Cowboys from Hell" was the first song Pantera wrote for the record. It was recorded on the bands 1989 demo album, Cowboys from Hell: The Demos. After the band got signed to Atco Records
Atco Records
ATCO Records is an American record label owned by Warner Music Group, currently operating through WMG's Rhino Entertainment.-Beginnings:Atco Records was founded in 1955 as a division of Atlantic Records. It was devised as an outlet for productions by one of Atlantic's founders, Herb Abramson, who...

, they rerecorded the song and put it on their major label debut.

Lyrics

The lyrics of the song concern (in a somewhat tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek
Tongue-in-cheek is a phrase used as a figure of speech to imply that a statement or other production is humorously intended and it should not be taken at face value. The facial expression typically indicates that one is joking or making a mental effort. In the past, it may also have indicated...

 way) the fact that the band were from Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...

, a place not usually known at the time for producing successful metal bands, and that they were breaking out of their home state to the world at large.

Vinnie Paul on the song:

"Cowboys is where everybody came into their own, along with the full-blown Pantera sound", "That was actually the first song we wrote for the record. Basically it was about us coming out of Texas and being out of place. People don't think of Texas as being a hot spot for heavy metal, they think of New York or L.A. or something like that, so it just seemed like an obvious concept for us."

Release and reception

"Cowboys from Hell" was the band's first single off their major label debut album of the same name. With an instantly recognizable guitar riff, "Cowboys from Hell" is one of the most popular Pantera songs. "Cowboys from Hell" ranked #25 on VH1
VH1
VH1 or Vh1 is an American cable television network based in New York City. Launched on January 1, 1985 in the old space of Turner Broadcasting's short-lived Cable Music Channel, the original purpose of the channel was to build on the success of MTV by playing music videos, but targeting a slightly...

's 40 Greatest Metal Songs.

Video

The video, along with Psycho Holiday
Psycho Holiday
"Psycho Holiday" is the third single from the heavy metal band Pantera's first major-label album Cowboys from Hell.-Video:There was a video made for the song, which is very similar to their video for "Cowboys from Hell" - in that it simply shows the band playing the song live to an audience...

, also from the Cowboys from Hell
Cowboys from Hell
Cowboys from Hell is Pantera's fifth album and their first Atco Records album, recorded at The Dallas Sound Lab in Irving, TX and released on July 24, 1990. This was their first commercially successful album, exposing the band's groove metal style to mainstream audiences...

album, was shot in a Dallas club that the band was often found at called "the Basement" and was directed by Paul Rachman
Paul Rachman
Paul Rachman is an American film director who directed the highly praised 2006 documentary on punk music American Hardcore which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival and was released by Sony Pictures Classics. He is also one of the founders of the Slamdance Film Festival...

. The video simply shows the band playing the song live to an audience.

Live performance

The song became a staple at the bands shows. Live versions of the song can be found on their Official Live: 101 Proof
Official Live: 101 Proof
-Credits:*Phil Anselmo – vocals*Dimebag Darrell – guitar*Rex Brown – bass guitar*Vinnie Paul – drums-Chart positions:...

album and on their Alive and Hostile E.P.
ALIVE and hostile e.p.
-Credits:*Phil Anselmo – Vocals*Rex Brown – Bass*"Dimebag" Darrell – Guitar*Vinnie Paul – drums...



A live version from 1990 at their Foundations Forum
Foundations Forum
Foundations Forum was the first exclusively heavy metal music industry convention, held annually from 1988 - 1997 in Los Angeles. The convention was set up by Concrete Marketing who had in January 1988 created the first industry trade magazine for the heavy metal world - Foundations...

 show is available on the bands expanded edition of their 20th anniversary reissue of Cowboys from Hell.

Trivia

  • Cover version appears in Guitar Hero.
  • Live version appears in Guitar Hero: Smash Hits.
  • Michael Angelo Batio
    Michael Angelo Batio
    Michael Angelo Batio also known as Mike Batio or MAB, is a guitarist and columnist from Chicago, Illinois. His work has encompassed many genres, notably metal and its subgenres. Batio was voted the "No. 1 Shredder of All Time" by Guitar One Magazine in 2003...

     covered it on his album Hands Without Shadows 2: Voices.
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