| Van Go | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | 1986 | |||
| Studio | Indigo Ranch, Malibu, CA | |||
| Genre | Rock, country rock | |||
| Label | Curb/MCA | |||
| Producer | Craig Leon | |||
| The Beat Farmers chronology | ||||
| ||||
Van Go is the second album by the American rock band the Beat Farmers, released in 1986. [1] [2] It was the band's first album for Curb Records. [3]
The album peaked at No. 135 on the Billboard 200. [4]
The guitarist Buddy Blue left the band during the recording sessions for Van Go; he was replaced by Joey Harris. [5] [6] The album was produced by Craig Leon. [7] Beat Farmers drummer Country Dick Montana later described the album as having "'more of an AOR sound.'" [8] Many of the songs are about cars and transportation. [9]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [10] |
| Robert Christgau | B [11] |
| The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [12] |
| The Evening Sun |  [9] |
| Houston Chronicle | [13] |
| MusicHound Rock: The Essential Album Guide | [14] |
| The Philadelphia Inquirer | [15] |
The Washington Post wrote that the Beat Farmers "sing about the barroom world of retooled cars, busted marriages and dead-end jobs... The band is as capable of irony as [Lou] Reed or [Neil] Young, but the Beat Farmers never allow it to interfere with their back-to-back basics attack." [16] Robert Christgau thought that "except for the deadpan 'Gun Sale at the Church' and maybe the Johnny Cash impressions, their country-rock is now proudly generic." [11]
Trouser Press called the album "amiable but rather thin." [17] The Toronto Star opined that the "best thing about the Beat Farmers is that they make no outrageous claims for themselves; their music is honest and earthy, but it doesn't pretend to defend the dignity of the working man, free enterprise, the American Way." [18]
AllMusic praised the "amazing cover of Neil Young's 'Powderfinger', which sounds like it was written for the band." [10]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Riverside" | 3:27 |
| 2. | "Deceiver" | 2:48 |
| 3. | "Powderfinger" | 3:46 |
| 4. | "Seven Year Blues" | 2:31 |
| 5. | "Blue Chevrolet" | 2:50 |
| 6. | "I Want You, Too" | 1:54 |
| 7. | "Road of Ruin" | 2:27 |
| 8. | "Buy Me a Car" | 2:46 |
| 9. | "Gun Sale at the Church" | 2:57 |
| 10. | "Bigger Fool Than Me" | 2:48 |
| 11. | "Big Ugly Wheels" | 2:18 |
Ramones is the debut studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, released on April 23, 1976, by Sire Records. After Hit Parader editor Lisa Robinson saw the band at a gig in New York City, she wrote several articles about the group and asked Danny Fields to be their manager. Fields agreed and convinced Craig Leon to produce Ramones, and the band recorded a demo for prospective record labels. Leon persuaded Sire president Seymour Stein to listen to the band perform, and he later offered the band a recording contract. The Ramones began recording in January 1976, needing only seven days and $6,400 to record the album.
End of the Century is the fifth studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, released on February 4, 1980, through Sire Records. The album was the band's first to be produced by Phil Spector, though he had offered the band his assistance earlier in their career. With Spector fully producing the album, it was the first release that excluded original member Tommy Ramone, who had left the band in 1978 but had produced their previous album Road to Ruin. Spector used more advanced standards of engineering, such as high-quality overdubbing and echo chambers. These painstaking methods caused conflict between the band and Spector since the Ramones were accustomed to a quicker recording process. Spector emphasized the production value as well, working with a budget of around $200,000, far exceeding their earlier album sessions.
Rotting Piñata is the debut studio album by American rock band Sponge, released on August 2, 1994, through Work Group. Hit singles from this album, such as "Plowed" and "Molly ", helped launch the band's career and the album was certified gold by the RIAA in July 1995.
Road to Ruin is the fourth studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, released on September 22, 1978, through Sire Records as LP record, 8 track cartridge & audio cassette. It was the first Ramones album to feature new drummer Marky Ramone, who replaced Tommy Ramone. Tommy left the band due to low sales of previous albums as well as stress he experienced while touring; however, he stayed with the band to produce the album with Ed Stasium. The artwork's concept was designed by Ramones fan Gus MacDonald and later modified by John Holmstrom to include Marky instead of Tommy.
Pleasant Dreams is the sixth studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, released on July 20, 1981, through Sire Records. While the band members wanted Steve Lillywhite to produce, Sire chose Graham Gouldman in an attempt to gain popularity through a well-known producer. The recording process brought about many conflicts between band members, most notably the strife between Joey Ramone and Johnny Ramone, due to Johnny starting a relationship with Joey's girlfriend. There were also disputes about the overall direction of the album, with Johnny leaning towards hard rock and Joey towards pop punk. Ultimately, the album incorporated high production values and varying musical styles, straying from traditional punk rock on songs such as "We Want the Airwaves", "She's a Sensation" and "Come On Now". It is the first Ramones album not to feature any cover songs.
Subterranean Jungle is the seventh studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, released by Sire Records on February 23, 1983. Overall, the album featured a return to a somewhat more hard punk rock style compared to the band's previous two albums End of the Century in 1980, and Pleasant Dreams in 1981, which were the most pop-focused of the band's career. This direction was encouraged by guitarist Johnny Ramone. The recording sessions saw disputes between band members, mainly due to struggles with alcohol addiction by Joey Ramone and Marky Ramone, and the drug addiction of Dee Dee Ramone.
The Beat Farmers were an American rock band that formed in San Diego, California, United States, in August 1983, and enjoyed a cult following into the early 1990s before the death of drummer and sometime lead singer Country Dick Montana. Their music has been described as an amalgamation of jangle pop, roots rock, hard-twang Americana, country rock, rockabilly, and swamp rock. The San Diego Reader summed up their sound as ..."like Bo Diddley, CCR, Joe South, and the Yardbirds, ham fisted into a food processor, stuffed into a shotgun shell, and blasted into a beer keg at three in the morning."
Animal Boy is the ninth studio album by the American punk rock band Ramones, released through Sire Records on May 19, 1986. Due to conflicts within the group, the album features less of lead singer Joey Ramone, both in performing and writing, and less performing from guitarist Johnny Ramone. Bassist Dee Dee Ramone wrote and sang more on this album than on previous albums, and Richie Ramone became the first drummer to write songs for the band since Tommy Ramone, the band's original drummer. Richie also wrote for Too Tough To Die (1984). The album spawned four singles, all of which charted on the UK Singles Chart, as well as other charts. In addition to singles, the band promoted their album using a music video for "Something to Believe In", which parodied the contemporary benefit concerts Live Aid and Hands Across America.
Made to Be Broken is the second full-length album by Soul Asylum. It was released on January 18, 1986. It was the first of the three albums released by Soul Asylum in 1986.
GP is American singer-songwriter Gram Parsons' debut solo album, and the only one released during his lifetime. It was originally released in a gatefold sleeve in 1973. GP received critical acclaim upon release, but failed to reach the Billboard charts. In the original Rolling Stone review, which individually covered both GP and its follow-up, Grievous Angel, the reviewer praises Parsons' vocals and delivery paraphrasing Gram's lyrics, "boy, but he sure can sing".
Bernard R. "Buddy Blue" Seigal was an American musician, music critic and writer, who performed and often wrote under his stage name Buddy Blue. He was a founding member of The Beat Farmers, a Southern California rock band that blended country roots music and rock 'n' roll. As a music critic, he was known for his straightforward style of critique that often used colorful language and original metaphors to either praise or lambaste musicians whom Seigal liked or disliked.
Daniel Monte McLain, known by the stage name Country Dick Montana, was an American musician best known as a member of The Beat Farmers. He was born in Carmel, California. In 1995, It was reported that Montana suffered a heart attack and died while playing "The Girl I Almost Married" during a Beat Farmers show at the Longhorn Saloon in Whistler, British Columbia, Canada. The cause of death has been otherwise reported by the San Diego Reader as having been ruled as an aneurysm. The band disbanded shortly thereafter.
Otis is the debut solo album of Mojo Nixon. Released in 1990, it featured guest appearances by John Doe of X, Country Dick Montana, Bill Davis and Eric Roscoe Ambel.
Frenzy is the second album by Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper, released in 1986.
The Dictators Go Girl Crazy! is the debut album by American punk rock band The Dictators. It was released in March 1975 and is considered one of the first examples of punk rock.
Charlie Pickett is an American singer and guitarist, known as frontman for rock bands from Florida, most notably in the 1980s. In Rolling Stone, David Fricke described Pickett's music as "a brawling-roots mix of Johnny Thunders, Sun Records and trailer park Lou Reed in Florida bars."
Ramp is an album by the American band Giant Sand, released in 1991. The album was released via frontman Howe Gelb's Amazing Black Sand label, before being picked up by Restless Records.
Non Fiction is the third album by the American band the Blasters, released in 1983.
The Pursuit of Happiness is an album by the American band the Beat Farmers, released in 1987. The band supported the album with a North American tour that included shows with Mojo Nixon and Skid Roper.
Tales of the New West is the debut album by the American band the Beat Farmers, released in 1985. The band signed a one-album deal with Rhino Records. The album peaked at No. 186 on the Billboard 200. It had sold more than 40,000 copies by the end of 1985. An expanded edition of Tales of the New West was reissued in 2004.