Beat Farmers

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The Beat Farmers were an alternative rock and country music band formed in San Diego, CA in August 1983, and enjoyed a cult following throughout the 1980s and early 1990s before the premature death of lead singer and drummer Country Dick Montana. Their music has been described as an amalgamation of cow punk, jangle pop, roots rock hard-twang Americana, country-rock, swingabilly, and Creedence swamp-pop. The Beat Farmers discography is more extensive than most people imagine because numerous recordings are hard to find or out of print.

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[edit] History

1983 - A former record store owner, and past president of The Kinks Preservation Society fan club, Country Dick Montana, drummer for the pioneering San Diego punk band The Penetrators, forms the Beat Farmers with ex-Shames singer-guitarist Jerry Raney. The two musicians quickly recruit singer-guitarist Buddy Blue and bassist Rolle Love from local rockabilly band The Rockin' Roulettes. The new group begins a residency at the Spring Valley Inn, then moves to Bodie's, near San Diego State University. The band started to gain a following in San Diego and Los Angeles clubs, satisfying a need for roots-based rock &' roll.

1984 - By March they were signed to a record deal with Rhino Records for a one-off-deal with a 4,000-dollar budget. The first album, Tales of the New West, was produced by Blasters / Los Lobos saxophonist Steve Berlin and released in January 1985. It included the cover song Happy Boy by Doctor Demento, a favorite of the group's live shows and perhaps the only song of the 1980s to contain the chorus: Hubba-hubba-hubba-hubba-hubba, and was extensively played on San Diego radio station KGB-FM by disc jockey's Jim McInnes and Pat Martin. The album also included cover songs Reason to Believe by Bruce Springsteen, and There She Goes Again by The Velvet Underground, along with 12 other original songs. The first studio experience, according to guitarist Buddy Blue,

“Was pretty intimidating, I remember at the studio Barbra Streisand was in one room and Jermaine Jackson was in another. Later we did overdubs in a smaller studio and there was this big tank of nitrous oxide. That album was kind of cut in between everybody taking trips over to the tank and huffing nitrous!”

1985 – During a month-long tour of England, the band records a six-song EP for Demon Records, Glad 'N' Greasy,. It was co-produced by Graham Parker & The Rumour keyboardist Bob Andrews. The EP included an outrageous version of Beat Generation performed in a Rod-McKuen-meets-Richard-Hell style by a bassoon-voiced Montana and featured intoxicated backing vocals from Dave Alvin, Nick Lowe, Gene Taylor, Dan Stuart, and Loudon Wainwright III.

According to guitarist Blue,

“[Loudon Wainwright] just happened to be in London, too, so he was hanging out with us drinking in pubs.”

The English critics loved the band; the editor of Melody Maker followed them around and subsequently compared them to The Beatles.

1986 – After England came a grueling American tour and a seven record deal with Curb Records followed by a souring experience making the next Beat Farmers record, Van Go. According to Blue, “Curb Records wanted the next Dire Straits.” A disgusted Blue gave his notice and went solo. Montana wanted to replace him with Joey Harris and Paul Kamanski, both formerly of top local rock band The Fingers. Raney objected that the band does not need three singer-guitarists, so only Harris is added to the lineup. Joey Harris, a guitarist and mandolinist, had worked earlier with Montana in a precursor to the Beat Farmers called Country Dick and the Snuggle Bunnies.

1987 – Curb Records/MCA releases The Pursuit of Happiness. The album features Kamanski's Hollywood Hills and a memorable cover of the Johnny Cash chestnut Big River. Hideaway, written by Joey Harris, is featured in the soundtrack to the film Major League. The band also begins a tour in Europe, where the passion for blues-rock, roots rock and country rock runs higher than in parts of the U.S. The single Make It Last got airplay on nearly 45 country western stations. However, once country radio programmers listened to the rest of the album, they dropped the song. Many programmers felt the rest of the album was too rock 'n' roll oriented.

1989 – Poor and Famous is released and includes King of Sleaze, a notable collaboration by Montana and Mojo Nixon. Later in the year, Montana and Harris formed a side project with Nixon and Alvin called the Pleasure Barons, a group that specialized in lounge music.

1990 – Live, Loud, and Plowed, a live album released by Curb Records without the bands knowledge. It was recorded in San Diego at the Bacchanal and captured the vibrant essence of the band. It featured cameos by Nixon and Iron Butterfly alum Jack Pinney.

1991 - Montana was treated for a thyroid condition and continued to visit the doctor's office for cancer treatments. The band grew dissatisfied with its relationship with Curb Records and attempted to get out of their seven-album contract. Montana continued side projects in the Los Angeles area, including the Incredible Hayseeds, Country Dick's Petting Zoo, Country Dick's Garage, along with the Pleasure Barons.


1993 – Finally free from its contractual obligations with Curb/MCA, which reportedly hoped to oust Montana from the band, the group records Viking Lullabys in Vancouver, Canada.

1994 – Viking Lullabys is released in August by Sector 2 , an Austin, Texas record label. The band toured heavily to support the release, while working on a second album for Sector 2.

1995 – Curb/MCA puts out The Best of the Beat Farmers, without the band's consent. Sector 2 releases Manifold in September; however, it was released two weeks earlier in San Diego to coincide with the San Diego Street Scene Outdoor Festival. The group toured the U.S. in September and October, playing venues in Texas, Chicago, Detroit, and New York. On November 8, Country Dick Montana died of a heart attack while performing The Girl I Almost Married, three songs into the set at the Long Horn Club in Whistler, British Columbia. The remaining Beat Farmers decide to dissolve the band three days later; however, the remaining members formed several new bands including Raney-Blue, Powerthud, The Mentals, and Flying Putos.

1996 – Bar None Records of Hoboken, N.J posthumously released The Devil Lied to Me, a Country Dick Montana solo album. The performers include Katy Moffatt, Rosie Flores, Nixon, and Alvin. The selections include Dave Alvin's Rich Man's Town, Paul Kamanski's Indigo Rider, a cover of Tom Petty's Listen to Her Heart, and the originals King of the Hobos, as well as a tribute to amateur rappers Bum Rap.


2003 – Buddy Blue releases The Beat Farmers Live at the Spring Valley Inn, 2003 on his own label, Clarence Records. Happy Boy was featured in the 2003 movie Dumb and Dumberer.

2005 – The newly named Farmers (Blue, Raney, Love and drummer Joel Kmak) release Loaded, also on the Clarence label. The Farmers have played at local San Diego venues, thrilling the crowd with old Beat Farmer tunes on request. One of them, Watching the River, closes out the re-released and extended edition of Tales of the New West; its inclusion makes a nice coda to the story of the Beat Farmers’ early-and best-years

2006 - Buddy Blue dies on April 2, suddenly and unexpectedly at his La Mesa home at the age of 48.

Country Dick Montana was known for lying on his back and drinking his beer using only his feet, like a grizzly bear and bantering with his audiences, whom he often sprayed with beer. After performing a show, he would often walk around the club, shake hands, sign autographs, and chat with fans. Despite being treated for throat cancer twice, he was always ready for a beer run.

The Beat Farmers were a band that stayed true to what they believed, which is good, honest, and straight ahead rock and roll music. Their sound is difficult to describe. It has some minor Neil Young-like country overtones and some fun novelty-type songs that add to their live shows; however, it is still rock and roll. They were an influential and unusual band insomuch as they had two lead guitarists and three lead vocalists.

[edit] Band members

  • Country Dick Montana (Dan McLain) (drums, guitar, vocals) 1983 to 1995
  • Jerry Raney (guitar, vocals) 1983 to 1995
  • Rolle Dexter Love (bass) 1983 to 1995
  • Buddy Blue (guitar, vocals) 1983 to 1986
  • Joey Harris (guitar, vocals) 1986 to 1995

[edit] Discography

  • Tales of the New West (1985)
  • Glad 'N' Greasy (1986)
  • Van Go (1986)
  • Pursuit of Happiness (1987)
  • Poor and Famous (1989)
  • Live, Loud, and Plowed (1990)
  • Viking Lullabys (1994)
  • Manifold (1995)
  • Best of the Beat Farmers (1995)
  • The Devil Lied to Me (1996) Country Dick Montana posthumous solo
  • Live at the Spring Valley Inn, 1983 (2003)
  • Tales of the New West (re-released in an extended edition by Rhino Records in 2004)
  • Loaded (2005) as the Farmers

[edit] Media occurrences of music

[edit] External links

*The ORIGINAL BEAT FARMERS website

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