The historical circuit riding preachers carried the Word of God to small settlements as the frontier pushed west. “Circuit riders” are also rodeo cowboys going from rodeo to rodeo competing for that big win at the end of the year. Both uses fit us well. We have been playing Cowboy music and Western style Gospel music for over 30 years in festivals, concerts and in churches from Montana to Arizona and California to Ohio.
Singing Cowboy Music & Teaching History Since 1992
Circuit Riders left the Denver area in 1992 to move to Cody, Wyoming, to open their Diamond C Chuckwagon Suppers and Western Show venue. They served chuckwagon chow and sang to tourists for seven summers but traveled and catered the meal and performed in the off season for more than twenty years. Over the years, there have been others that joined the group, but Sharon, Brad and Kate have always been the core founding members. Consisting of a married couple, Sharon and Brad Bothwell, and Kate Taylor, single, they traveled and sang for years until circumstances seemed to slow them down to where they stopped. Kate went to Denver where her parents lived and there she met Joe Warren back at the old home church. They married in 2009 and moved to England for six years! Though back and forth to the States for a visit now and again, even once for a festival, they figured Circuit Riders, never gone, was certainly retired. In 2019, Sharon and Brad made the decision to sell the Cody property and move back home to Pueblo, Colorado. Kate and Joe were already back home in Aurora, only 100 miles from Pueblo. By 20021, both couples were fully retired. And so we decided to get the band back together. And here we are! The Circuit Riders ride again!
Brad Bothwell aka
“Big Bad Brad”
Brad may not join in singing with the girls, but he keeps them on time with his bass. Brad also serves as sound man. We bring our own sound system with us, and Brad has been hired to provide his equipment and technical services at a number of events, including the Western Music Association Festival, the National Festival of the West in Scottsdale Arizona, the Buffalo Bill Cody Stampede in Cody, Wyoming, and the Tucson Cowboy Music Roundup. He has produced sound for such notables as Dale Evans, Riders in the Sky, Michael Martin Murphy, and Sons of the San Joaquin. Besides his obvious talents in these areas, his deadpan humor is always on hand to keep the girls on their toes!
Sharon Bothwell
Sharon always keeps busy during a concert going from guitar to banjo to mandolin to harmonica as well as singing lead or harmony vocals. You never know what she is going to pick up next! Sharon has a keen interest in the diaries of women who traveled West on the Oregon Trail. Her interest in these brave ladies has led her to create a fictional character from their accounts. “Sarah” is a dramatic presentation that has kept school children enthralled with her story. While living in Cody, Wyoming, Sharon served over 20 years as entertainment coordinator for the Entertainment in the Park during the famous Buffalo Bill Cody Stampede over July 2-4. She coordinated several musical acts at 3-4 locations around town, including the Buffalo Bill Historical Center, the City Park, and the porch of the historic Irma Hotel.
Kate Taylor Warren
Kate plays guitar, sings lead, and harmony vocals. But her voice is not always lent to singing. A ventriloquist, she may turn up with Bandit the Raccoon, Roadkill the Buzzard, or the “desert denizen” Dirty Harriet. Kate has written a number of songs the group perform, both western and gospel. A former teacher, Kate has written cowboy poetry curriculum and educational puppet plays featuring Bandit. Both she and Sharon have drawn on their educational backgrounds to produce the educational programs Circuit Riders offer. Kate worked on staff several years for the National Festival of the West, one of the signature events of Scottsdale, Arizona. In addition to office work, Kate served as the entertainment director, managing nearly 30 musical acts on four to five stages during the 4-day event. This included staging such performers as Dale Evans and Riders in the Sky. In addition she served as education director for the festival’s Kids’ Education Day, which involved creating a themed curriculum which was sent to all classes attending, and setting up performances for the kids. This special day brought in about 2,000 children. Kate and Sharon together combine their talents to produce the educational programs we offer.