Walking the Cow

Song by Daniel Johnston

"Walking the Cow"

Song by Daniel Johnston
from the album  Hi, How Are You
Released| 1983
Genre|

* Indie rock
* lo-fi
* outsider

Length| 3:35
Label| Stress
Songwriter(s)| Daniel Johnston

"Walking the Cow" is a song written and recorded by singer-songwriter Daniel Johnston from his 1983 album Hi, How Are You. The title was inspired by an illustration on a wrapper for Blue Bell ice cream depicting a young girl attempting to lead a reluctant cow by its reins.[1]

Johnston recorded an updated version of the song on his 2010 album Beam Me Up![2][3]

## Covers

[edit]

Austin band The Reivers included their version of the song as a bonus track on the 1988 CD release of Translate Slowly, their 1984 debut album.[4]

During Johnston's wave of popularity in the early 1990s, several musicians released covers of "Walking the Cow". Mike Watt's group Firehose included a version on Flyin' the Flannel (1991). Kathy McCarty of Glass Eye included it on her 1994 Daniel Johnston tribute album Dead Dog's Eyeball.[5] Also in 1994, the Austin surf-rock band Whirled Peas released a version on their second and final album, War and Peas. In October of that year, Pearl Jam covered the song in a performance at Neil Young's Bridge School Benefit concert, and this subsequently became available on the bootleg album In Rock We Trust.[6]

Watt performed the song on a 1995 solo tour; a recording opens his live album Ring Spiel Tour '95, released in 2016. Pearl Jam's Eddie Vedder used the song to open every show of his 2008 solo tour.[7]

It was covered by A Camp on their 2001 album A Camp.[8]

On the 2004 tribute album The Late Great Daniel Johnston: Discovered Covered, TV on the Radio contributed their cover of the song.

On September 11, 2020 — the one-year anniversary of Johnston's death — Electric Lady Studios released a video tribute album, Honey I Sure Miss You, via YouTube. It included a cover of "Walking the Cow" by the indie-pop band Lucius.[9]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Yazdani, Tarssa; Goede, Dan (2006). Hi, How Are You?: The Life, Art & Music of Daniel Johnston. San Francisco: Last Gasp. p. 56\. ISBN 978-086719-667-2.
2. ^ Houle, Zachary (June 18, 2010). "Daniel Johnston and BEAM: Beam Me Up!!". PopMatters. Retrieved April 25, 2013.
3. ^ Dorof, Jakob (April 2013). "Daniel Johnston – Beam Me Up!". Tiny Mix Tapes. Retrieved April 25, 2013.
4. ^ Jason Cohen, "A Songwriter's Struggle", Austin Chronicle, September 18, 1992, reprinted in The Austin Chronicle Music Anthology (University of Texas Press, 2011), ISBN 978-0292722705, p. 114. Excerpts available at Google Books
5. ^ Chris Walters, "Kathy McCarty: From Glass Eye to Dead Dog's Eyeball", Austin Chronicle, September 16, 1994, reprinted in The Austin Chronicle Music Anthology (University of Texas Press, 2011), ISBN 978-0292722705, p. 140. Excerpts available at Google Books.
6. ^ "Answers – The Most Trusted Place for Answering Life's Questions". Answers.com.
7. ^ "Flashback: Pearl Jam Cover Daniel Johnston's 'Walking the Cow'". Rolling Stone. September 12, 2019. Retrieved September 12, 2019.
8. ^ "Walking the Cow Lyrics – A Camp". LyricsBox.
9. ^ "Honey I Sure Miss You". YouTube. September 11, 2020. Archived from the original on December 21, 2021. Retrieved December 20, 2020.

## External links

[edit]

* Daniel Johnston's official website

* v
* t
* e

Daniel Johnston

Discography

Albums|

* Songs of Pain
* Don't Be Scared
* The What of Whom
* More Songs of Pain
* Yip/Jump Music
* Hi, How Are You
* Retired Boxer
* Respect
* Continued Story with Texas Instruments
* Merry Christmas
* It's Spooky (with Jad Fair)
* 1990
* Artistic Vice
* Fun
* Rejected Unknown
* Fear Yourself
* Freak Brain
* Lost and Found
* Is and Always Was
* Beam Me Up!
* Space Ducks: Soundtrack

EPs|

* Big Big World
* Laurie

Songs|

* "Walking the Cow"

Live albums|

* Live at SXSW
* Frankenstein Love
* Why Me?

Tribute albums|

* Dead Dog's Eyeball: Songs of Daniel Johnston
* The Late Great Daniel Johnston: Discovered Covered

Films|

* The Devil and Daniel Johnston
* The Angel and Daniel Johnston: Live at the Union Chapel
* Hi, How Are You Daniel Johnston?

Related|

* Hi, How Are You (video game)

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