Ragtime Cowboy Joe " Ragtime Cowboy Joe " is a popular song : lyrics by Grant Clarke , music by Lewis F . Muir and Maurice Abrahams . © 1912 , F . A . Mills , 122 W . 36th St , New York . It has been performed by a diverse group of artists , ranging from Bob Roberts in 1912 to The Tune Wranglers , the big band sound of Eddy Howard in 1947 to the comedic recording by The Chipmunks in 1959 . Origin . The 1912 copyright version published by F . A . Mills credits Lewis F . Muir and Maurice Abrahams as composers and Grant Clarke as the lyricist . The song writing team also wrote Second Hand Rose . The song was composed in Brooklyn , New York after an appearance at Maurice Abrahams ' home by his nephew , Joe Abrahams , wearing a cowboy outfit . Maurice Abrahams was so captivated by the appearance of his nephew dressed up as a cowboy that he was inspired to write Ragtime Cowboy Joe in 1912 . It was a number - one hit song for singer Bob Roberts in 1912 . Lyrics . As with many popular songs of the era , the verse is often omitted : the refrain ' s lyrics vary somewhat depending on the performer . Variations include : " How he sings " , " Ragtime music " , " That ' s syncopated gaited / And you ought to hear the meter " , " scootin ' shootin ' " , " Son of a gun from old Wyoming " , or additions of " ( A pretty good horse ) " , " He ' s some cowboy " , and / or " Talk about your cowboy " . On radio . " Ragtime Cowboy Joe " was the radio show theme song for New York City ' s long running , award - winning public radio show , " Cowboy Joe ' s Radio Ranch " ( 1976 – 1988 ) , hosted by Paul Aaron , New York ' s Cowboy Joe . During one of his radio shows Paul Aaron had the elder Joe Abrahams ( the original Cowboy Joe ) as a special guest . Paul Aaron played many versions of his favorite song dating back to one sung by Bob Roberts from a 1919 acoustic RCA Victor 78 rpm record . He also played many " live " versions recorded during the University of Wyoming football and basketball games . A recent version of the song appears on Dan Hicks and the Hot Licks 2009 album " Tangled Tales " . University song . " Ragtime Cowboy Joe " is also the school song of the University of Wyoming . Traditionally , Cowboy fans stand and clap to the beat of the song as played by Wyoming ' s Western Thunder Marching Band . The version of the song appropriated by Wyoming includes lyrics adjusted to represent the school ' s location , a stands cheer that occurs during a drum break , and a repeat of the verse commonly follows . " Stands cheer : ( For the Cowboys ) " " ( For the Cowgirls ) " The Cal Aggie Marching Band - uh ! at UC Davis also favors the song . In this case ; The Chipmunks . " Ragtime Cowboy Joe " is the third and final single from The Chipmunks ' debut album " Let ' s All Sing with the Chipmunks " . The song was released as a single in 1959 . After the chart performance of the Chipmunks ' last two singles , " The Chipmunk Song " and " Alvin ' s Harmonica " , both of which managed to reach the Top Ten , it was hoped that " Ragtime Cowboy Joe " would continue their streak of Top Ten hits . Instead the single peaked at # 16 on the Billboard Pop Singles Chart , which was the group ' s first single to miss the Top Ten , although it was their third consecutive Top 20 single . The song was also a success on the Billboard Black Singles , peaking at # 29 . Since the song was also credited to David Seville by Billboard , the song became Seville ' s fourth consecutive Top 20 single .