Robert Rogers (left) and “the best damn security team anywhere.”

Cowboys is rounding up the gang for a reunion, and you’re invited!

Cowboys: If you know, Cowboys was the premier nightlife place in Shreveport-Bossier in the 1980s and ’90s. Think big hair, parachute pants, cowboy hats and boots, and everything in between. It was the place to dance the night away, make new friends and possibly meet the one. And on Friday, April 4, at Big Country in Bossier City, you’ll have the chance to dust off those dancing shoes, find those stone-washed jeans, tease that hair and take a two-step back in time.

“This reunion has just exploded into something I never would have expected, as several old customers wanted to be included. When I built this 18,000-square-foot nightclub, my goal was to be a social club first and a nightclub second,” says former owner and the Undisputed King of The Night Life, Randy James. “Who would have thought that after 43 years since opening, a simple reunion with some great people, my employees, would turn out to be such a huge event? Over 53K hits on Facebook alone. Makes me even more proud of the most important thing an owner/operator can have, and that’s his/her employees!”

Randy James and three silent partners owned Cowboys when the company opened in October 1981. “I would close down about every three years to freshen it up, new paint, new carpet, new colors and wall hangings,” says Randy of the life cycle of his nightclub that hosted such big names as Three Dog Night, the Doobie Brothers, Merle Haggard, Percy Sledge, Candlebox, Cheap Trick, John Berry, Travis Tritt, Information Society and Expose, to name a few.

“What a ride it was!” says former employee Janet Caldwell Bradley. “October 25, 1987, I walked on the floor of Cowboys, not knowing a soul. From the ground up, I was always eager to learn from the best teacher. Randy’s work ethic is unmatched. He was right there with us all from open to close. He is my mentor, family and someone I hold very dear to my heart. Taught me everything I know about the bar business (he didn’t refer to his nightclubs as bars). This reunion is going to be epic. I’m so thrilled that I’m still around to enjoy the memories and make new ones.”

Some of the O.G.’s, Gary Ivey, Paul Isenberg, Nancy Williams, Gail Rushing Bigham and Robert Darrow.

“I was lucky enough to employ some very good and dedicated employees,” adds Randy. “We have stayed in touch over the years, and several have been asking, actually pushing me, to hold an employee reunion. But I was always worried as to where to have the gathering. After much discussion, Robert approached the current owner of Big Country, Chad Fangue, and Chad was gracious enough and agreed to let us use the building now called Big Country, originally home to Cowboys.”

Robert is Robert Rogers, Cowboys’ former general manager. “I’m so excited about the reunion, and they are going to open up the whole club at Big Country. We are expecting a really big crowd. Cowboys was such a gratifying place to work; the staff was great; I’d say 80% of the employees were with me the whole time.”

Robert also reminisced about some of the regulars to Cowboys, like Disco Dale, who loved to dance, and a couple they referred to as Grandma and Grandpa. Robert was sure they were 85 or 90 at the time. “They would come in once a month on a Saturday night before it got really busy and dance for an hour, then leave.”

“We had great vendors who helped with our promos like ladies’ nights and nickel beer,” Robert adds. “Those things were ground-breaking at the time. Our relationship with the local radio station, KTUX/Tux-99, increased our business by at least 50% on Friday nights when they played Cowboys live on-air. We were very fortunate to have had such business partners.”

“When I opened,” Randy James adds, “I had 138 employees, and over several years, we had several hundred more. I had some really good and dedicated employees that made running such a large place not only fun but easy as well. They loved their job mainly because of the really cool customers and atmosphere that we had. We have got two of our best DJs coming back to town to play this reunion, Doug Sullivant and Fabor Robinson. They were loved.”

Chad Fangue, owner of Big Country, former home of Cowboys.

Doug Sullivant spent nearly 10 years working for Randy James at Cowboys. “The ’80s and ’90s were made for Cowboys! We were all about fun! We always had the best employees and best patrons! My job as a disc jockey, and later as the public relations and stage manager/disc jockey, was to create an atmosphere where we all had a good time. So many people say, ‘We met at Cowboys,’ or we had our bachelor/bachelorette parties at Cowboys or birthday parties! From Love Wednesday (ladies’ night), happy hours, to our annual birthday parties, everything we ever did was for our customers. To this day, we, the Cowboys former staff, have numerous lifelong friends, not just with other coworkers, but with many patrons as well. All these years later, we have decided to do it again, one last time, back where it all began, with many former employees and a whole bunch of our former customers, at a Reunion to Remember, Reminisce and Never Forget!”

“We all had the world by the tail,” Dr. Robert Darrow says, reminiscing about his time at Cowboys. “I was part of Cowboys Club and Restaurant from the first day of employee training. While attending Centenary College, I was hired as a waiter in the restaurant, then was promoted to restaurant manager and then general manager of the Bossier City location and later the Baton Rouge location. Owner Randy James gave me a chance and was a wonderful man to work for. The employees and managers were young, and many were just starting their independent lives. They formed a family of friends that exists today. Cowboys was the place to be — A city-slickin’, high-kickin’ time!”

When asked what he loved about Cowboys, Robert Rogers said, “Everything! Booking concerts, lifetime experiences meeting artists, such as Kool and the Gang, Tracy Lawrence, Mark Chesnutt and Diamond Rio. I probably booked 30 to 40 concerts during my time, and five or six of them had #1 songs on the radio at the time. We had Kyper every Thanksgiving. Once we had The Platters, The Drifters and The Coasters at the same time, and you wouldn’t believe the number of people who showed up.”

“I have lots of stories, but I can’t tell them to you,” Robert laughs. “Well, there are two, one about Diamond Rio and the other about Mark Chesnutt. When we booked Diamond Rio in 1991, they were on their first tour and their hit, ‘Meet In The Middle,’ was really big. The band gave me an autographed T-shirt I’ve had all these years. A few years ago, we went to Austin, where Diamond Rio played, and I had the shirt with me. They autographed it a second time. After that, I got it framed. When I attended one of their benefit concerts, I took the T-shirt again, this time framed, and they called me up on stage and told the crowd the story.

Randy James and Robert Rogers, the leadership behind Cowboys.

Disco Dale, the original dancin’ machine.

Randy James, Amanda Michel Martin and Jerry Meyer at Cowboys.

Robert Rogers and Sam Kinison

Walt and Tonna Brock met and got engaged at Cowboys and partied there on their wedding night.

Tommy Ann and Jim Cotton were great supporters of Cowboy’s and its young crowd. Everyone “loved Tommy Ann!”

The guy were always good sports and swimsuit competitions were hot, hot, hot!

“Another time, when we booked Mark Chesnutt, his management group told us it would be his birthday while performing at Cowboys. His mother and a couple of family members were coming in to surprise him, so we put them up in the VIP room. Mark played his first song, and then I went up on the stage and interrupted him. He was shocked and didn’t know what to think until we all sang happy birthday.”

“You know, when I moved here,” Randy James adds, “I knew absolutely no one! But after a few years running Cowboys and becoming active in several other things, I know more people here than I do in my hometown. And with that said, I have made Bossier City/Shreveport my home for the past 44 years. So, I would love to say a huge thank you to this city I now call home!”

The Cowboys Reunion is Friday, April 4, 7-11 p.m., at Big Country, 1003 Gould Drive, Bossier City. Visit Cowboys Club and Restaurant on Facebook to reminisce, and as Randy’s employees would say, “Sing It: Cowboys, A City-Slickin’, High-Kickin’ Time!” Don’t miss it!