About the Song
There’s something about cowboys — the image, the myth, the code they live by — that’s forever tied to the American imagination. And few songs have captured both the romance and the reality of that life as well as “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys,” powerfully delivered by the outlaw country legend Waylon Jennings.
Originally written by Sharon Vaughn and first recorded by country artist Willie Nelson for the Electric Horseman soundtrack in 1979, it was Waylon Jennings’ version — featured on his 1976 album Wanted! The Outlaws (re-released as a hit single in 1980) — that gave the song its most enduring form. With his unmistakable baritone voice, Waylon didn’t just sing the lyrics — he embodied them. A man who had lived on the edges of fame, freedom, and regret, he brought a quiet authority to every word.
“My heroes have always been cowboys / And they still are, it seems…”
From the very first line, the song evokes a deep yearning — not just for a time gone by, but for an identity built on independence, toughness, and quiet honor. Yet this isn’t a song drenched in nostalgia alone. It’s a song about disillusionment, about learning that the heroes we idolize are often flawed and broken, and that the trail they ride is lonelier than we imagined.
The beauty of Waylon’s version lies in its introspective delivery. It’s not just an ode to cowboy legends — it’s a reckoning with aging, legacy, and truth. Through the dusty lens of adulthood, the song reminds us that freedom comes with a cost, and that the open range can be as empty as it is beautiful.
Musically, it’s subtle but strong — a mid-tempo ballad with a melancholic steel guitar echoing in the background, as if pulling the past along with it. Waylon’s voice is steady and worn, like leather creased by sun and time. You can almost hear the long rides, the lost loves, and the regrets between the lines.
In the end, “My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys” isn’t just about cowboys at all. It’s about growing up, about the moment when our ideals meet the real world, and we learn that heroes — like all of us — are human. And perhaps that’s what makes them heroic after all.