The purpose of this post is to explain that choice, but first, the prior choice was Don't Mind Rockin' Tonite by Ducks Deluxe. My explanation of why is here.
So, back to Tales of the New West...
I came across this album when it came out in 1985. I was music editor for a college newspaper, and Rhino sent us a review copy, and I -- as was my prerogative -- took it for myself. It was a style that I hadn't heard before; kind of a mix of rock and country. Too country to be rock and too rock to be country. There were many terms used to describe it, but I kind of latched onto "cowpunk," a label I still use today. Of course, the late Buddy Blue (one of the original members) told me in an interview that he preferred the term "Americana Music." Maybe I should honor that preference. But I haven't been.
Anyway, From the opening riff of "Bigger Stones" to the final fade at the end of "Happy Boy," I was spellbound. I loved every note. This was a whole new style for me. And from there I started getting interested in other cowpunk bands -- Rank and File, E*I*E*I*O, Country Bob & the Blood Farmers. I even managed to snag a paid writing gig out of it, writing an item about cowpunk for the "Building*" feature in Tower Records' Pulse! There were a whole lot of great cowpunk bands, but none of them mattered as much to me as the Beat Farmers.
I remained a fan of the Beat Farmers through their changes until they broke up upon the death of drummer, Country Dick Montana, onstage in 1995. I bought all of their albums, and saw them in concert when they came to New York. Those were among the best concerts I've ever been to.
For all that -- and especially for introducing me to "cowpunk," this is one of the albums that has to be among my ten picks. No question.
In case its of interest, here's a concert video.
*as in building a record collection
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