Originally published in the Platte County Record-Times on November 03, 2021
WHEATLAND, WY — In the Platte County Agriplex October 22, the Bar J Wranglers gave a farewell concert after more than 40 years performing as a group.
The Wranglers are a five-piece western and cowboy band. Their lead singer is Scott Humphrey, with his brother Bryan on a double bass. Danny Rogers plays guitar, while Tim Hodgson is the violinist and banjo player. Rounding out the group is Donnie Cook.
The Wranglers played to a capacity crowd in a concert hosted by Platte County Main Street and sponsored by 23 businesses including, South Street Pharmacy, Platte Valley Companies, Laramie Peak Motors, Bob Ruwart Motors, and the Wandering Hermit.
The concert began at 7:30 p.m. with a welcoming address by Chuck Brown, Linda Fabian, and Dan Brecht of the Platte County Main Street. This was followed by a presentation of colors by VFW Post 2558 and American Legion Post 10.
Edward Meyer, a former Lieutenant Colonel in the U.S. Air Force and VFW member, provided a prayer and invocation for the event. Retired Army Air Corp Sergeant Lloyd Koerwitz then led in the Pledge of Allegiance.
Ms. Fabian gave some final announcements as a prelude to the Wrangler, who then performed for about an hour and a half to the packed room.
At the end of the concert, the Wranglers were gifted commemorative plaques and gift baskets by the PCMS. The combined crowd then sang “America the Beautiful” to close out the event.
The story of the Wranglers began in Jackson Hole 44 years ago in 1977 with Scott and Bryan’s dad, Babe Humphrey, and his Bar J Chuckwagon up in Jackson Hole.
“Our dad had the vision to feed people on a working cattle ranch on a tin plate with a tin cup western style and a lot of atmosphere,” said Humphrey.
“And after dinner is through, clear the plates away, dim the lights, and put on a show with good wholesome family entertainment. And make their evening at the Bar J Chuckwagon memorable through songs and stories of the Old West.”
According to Scott, his father was the one who had the passion for the Western style of songs and singing, which he would pass down to his family.
“Our dad loved the songs of the pioneers and that western harmony,” said Humphrey. “And he taught that to our family growing up just by watching the entertainment on the stage.”
“So that was the birth of the Bar J Wranglers of the Bar J Chuckwagon Suppers. And that was 44 years ago.”
Babe trained local musicians to provide entertainment for the chuckwagon and work the ranch. However, these musicians would leave after one or two years because of the high workload.
“As the business started and was getting off the ground, our dad had a lot of local musicians that he would train to sing the cowboy songs and to play that role of a cowboy singer,” said Humphrey.
“So that’s what we did, and the people that he would hire would drift off. And new guys would come in and dad would have to start over training new talent, teaching them how to sing cowboy harmony and that kind of stuff.”
When Scott and Bryan joined the group, it was realized that a long-term change was needed to keep the musicians around and working for the chuckwagon.
“And so we started asking our dad ‘Do you think we could go out on the road and do shows in the wintertime?’,” said Humphrey.
After some persuasion, Babe relented, and the Bar J Wranglers made their debut in Utah with cowboy poet Bob Christensen. The performance was a great success.
“It sold out,” said Humphrey. “A lot of people from the Wasatch Front in Utah come to Jackson Hole and knew who we were by coming to the chuckwagon in the summer.”
With the accomplishment of the concert, the Wranglers decided to tour during the winter months to promote the chuckwagon, invite people to visit during the summer, and keep the musicians working.
Even with the success of the Wranglers, the primary business was the Bar J Chuckwagon up in Jackson Hole.
“Well the Bar J Wranglers exist because of the Bar J Chuckwagon. That was our purpose to have evening entertainment there in Jackson Hole,” said Humphrey. “The reason for touring was to keep the band employed, but our bread and butter was the chuckwagon supper business.”
There were many reasons for the Wranglers to say happy trails. Among them was the rising costs of owning and maintaining the chuckwagon and the land and a change in attitude of Jackson Hole.
“The land was getting hard to afford,” said Humphrey. “The people in Jackson Hole have changed the dynamics of the valley.”
According to Scott, the ride through 44 years of performing at all kinds of towns, seasons, and venues has been fun.
“All of the shows together make a great trail ride,” said Humphrey. “We like to say at the end of our shows, “See you down the trail.’ It has just been a journey.”
The Wranglers prefer small settings for their performances, which allows a more personal and intimate experience for the audience.
“We don’t like to get too big with our show because our show is kind of intimate,” said Humphrey. “We like the audience to get to know each of the individual entertainers, see how each one of them contributes to the package of the group.”
“There’s no one individual star that outshines the others, it’s a package deal. We combine the talents we have and it makes the Bar J Wranglers—the group—the star. That formula works well in small communities, intimate theaters like we played in tonight.”
James Meyer 