She'll Lead You Down Through Misery

Ready for the Rockin' and the Rollin'?  Sex, drugs, teenage rebellion, and dancin'!  That's what it's all about daddy-o!   Feller recently told us that the geetar was gonna be dead in a few years.  Since it's survived (in all it's variations...we're talkin' 'bout whatever someone strummed with strings to get laid) for centuries, we ain't quite ready to bury!  As long as some 14-year old kid is screaming 'bout not gettin' satisfaction and cigarettes, we figger we're all gonna be all right, cats and kitties!

Day 2 of the World Famous Big Rock Candy Mountain Best of 2014 list!!!  Can you handle the delinquent thrill????

(and, humbly, please let us know what great rekkids we missed this year...)

If ya aint groovin', ya aint gettin'!!!!!

The Big Rock Candy Mountain Best of 2014 (Part 2)

30. Neneh Cherry: Blank Project

Cherry continues to stretch the boundaries (after her transcendent and essential Cherry Thing rekkid from a couple years ago), mixing soul, free jazz, beats and skronk into a melange of joyous rhythm and blues, her lyrics challenging and her voice a mix of sex and the deeply soulful...a modern Nina Simone, and hugely underrrated.  This record swings and throbs, jitters and quakes.  A powerful statement from a powerful artist at Her peak.

Neneh Cherry: Spit Three Times (mp3)

29. Amy LaVere: Runaway's Diary


Desert noir, sand-blasted voice of angel, smoked to the filter, the final motel at the end of the road, lights shot out and the sound of your sleepless nights under sparking neon.

Amy LaVere: Dark Moon (mp3)

28. Jonah Gold and His Silver Apples: Pollute The Airwaves


Big Beat daddy-oh!  Kickin' jams surged and nasty, bashed not a-bashed, rawkin' sonic groovy, pedal to the metal killer car crash, stripper pole at the end of days optional.


Jonah Gold and His Silver Apples: Neanderthal Beat (mp3)

27. The Blind Shake: Breakfast of Failures

Twitchy, booze-infused punk rawk, angular and aggressive, these cats have been carrying the torch, the flame a centralia candle attracting mutant bugs dancing/pogoing around the flickering finale of civilization.


The Blind Shake: Young Carnival Waste (mp3)

26. Quintron: Spellcaster II Death In Space


A return, and returning laying down the sleaziest holler, massive organ, traded vocals, sweaty drenching the funk, killing fat bottom soul straying sex in outer space.

Quintron and Miss Pussycat: Do The Raid (mp3)

25. Cozy: Button By Button

Bay City Rollers. the Sweet. Big Star. The Donnas. Joan Jett and the Blackhearts.  Deep breath, and keep on crushing teenage kicks, yr high school wet panty dream cum true!


Cozy: Denim Dream (mp3)

24. Sonny Knight and His Fabulous Lakers: I'm Still Here

Soul aint dead....Legendary artist (with only a classic single to his credit) brings the muthafukin' house down on a groove-tread blast of are and bee....horns wailin', soul shoutin', funky filthy drums copulatin'....a master keepin' toes a'tinglin' and asses shakin'...


Sonny Knight and His Fabulous Lakers: Juicy Lucy (mp3)

23. Gino and The Goons: Shake It!


Drunk-ass sleazy trash, bashin' gotta get fucked tonite scuzz, while the neighborhood burns and the garbage cans are pile high and stinkin',...your mom's worst nightmare, and, thus, yr favorite band of miscreants, kickin' blood'n'cum!


Gino and the Goons: I Like It Like That (mp3)

22. The Legendary Tigerman: True

One-man band masturbator (would we wish for anything different?), kicks out the fuzzy sleaze in favor of the more personal.  Blissed out drones (with "help" this time) compete in rawk, the edge of drum kit smash-em-up (not loud, but sometimes very quiet).  Destroy the sadness, keep the asses moving.

The Legendary Tigerman: 21st Century Rock'n'Roll (mp3)

21. John Wesley Coleman: The Love That You Own


The greatest barfly, shaving off cowpunk, adenoid noise, the stomping boots on the hardwood floor, Songs and visceral sound breaking down the rushes and the cornstalks, a prophet clearing forest for trees, but mangling geetar mighty, and a voice in the back seat of yr 72 Nova....Trans-Ams spin out and sputter to the sounds of John Wesley Coleman!

John Wesley Coleman: I Wish The Night To Be A Lot Long (mp3)


Peace. 


The Final 20 are on their Way!!!!

Ride The Blue Wind High and Free

Time for our world famous Big Rock Candy Mountain Best of 2014 list!!!!!

The following (over a few days) represents out favorite rekkids that we've heard over the the last 12 months.

This is the part where we make some kind of overriding statement about the state of "music" these days...but...who cares?  Who wants to read some long-winded evocation about Beyonce, or whatnot?  Yeah, nobody, ourselves included.  

No long diatribe this year, no blathering manifesto...great rekkids were realeased this year...let's celebrate 'em!  If we missed yr favorite rekkids, let us know!  We're sure we missed some killer rekkids, and would love to hear yr favorites!  Here's what we think...



The Big Rock Candy Mountain Best of 2014 (Part 1)

31. The Jam Messengers: Guilty


Daddy-Oh spizz, kneejerk geetar corruption, wailed and fuzzed, Howlin' Wolf as cracker bluster, lookin' for a fuck and stompin' the boards through end-of-days boogaloo.

The Jam Messengers: The Pussyfoot (mp3)

32. Black Lips: Underneath the Rainbow

Rawk, rawk, rawk, nasty snot and garbage...the world is collapsing.


Black Lips: Drive-By Buddy (mp3)

33. Amen Dunes: Love

Psych-a-trad whisper over distorto-porch, fireflies zapping out bugdream yards alive with dissipating planets....

Amen Dunes: Rocket Flare (mp3)

34. Rockin' Jason D. Williams: Hillbillies and Holy Rollers

Cuntry, Jerry Lee-blessed piano boogie moonshine pew-dancin', gettin' righteous, the lord's got a mojo for the  hardwood floor!


Rockin' Jason D. Williams: Hillbillies and Holy Rollers (mp3)

35. Digital Leather/The Hussy: Split 12"

Fuzzed-out stalks of husked leaves, Digital Leather channels hung to dry Ian Curtis deritus, The Hussy blowing speakers in crystalline transmission of sparkletrash blow-up....the sound of never and the taste of apocalypse.


The Hussy: Round and Down (mp3)

36. King Khan and The Gris Gris: Murder Burgers

Bad living, the party stale and finding streamed sunlight through dusty blinds, morning as the end of joy, we wake saying what?

King Khan and The Gris Gris: Too Hard Too Fast (mp3)

37. Leonard Cohen: Popular Problems


The master, still lyrically twisting circumstance, your darkest dreams alive, and sometimes hope, minimal always to the words, softly spoken and building monument.

38. The Monsieurs: The Monsieurs

Scuzz holler saturday night, nasty and joyous, the soundtrack to yr jacked-up jalopy.


The Monsieurs: Rock The Night (mp3)

39. The Reigning Sound: Shattered

We Never Learn....ex-Oblivian continuing to rawk our world, cowpunktrash rock (except..not at all), no longer beholden, crafting perfect sound forever, a theme, a loss, love gone(r) missing, the break up rekkid of the year.


The Reigning Sound: North Cackalacky Girl (mp3)

40. The Baseball Project: 3rd

Scott McCaughey (Young Fresh Fellows), Steve Wynn (Dream Syndicate), Peter Buck and Mike Mills (REM), Linda Pitmon (way too many great projects to name, you should just worship her)...songs about, well, Baseball,,,,,(special bonus...a song about the mighty Pirates pitcher, Dock Ellis...)


The Baseball Project: The Day Dock Went Hunting Heads (mp3)

41. C.W. Stoneking: Gon' Boogaloo

Hoodoo rhythm trash, spooked and dirty, evil wins and haunts yr back porch.

On a Cold Christmas Eve

So...Xmas (aka Shane MacGowan's birthday) is tomorrow.  Regular readers will know what comes next.

We didn't quite hit our "daily" target this year.  Life has a funny way of fucking with the best laid plans.  But, we haven't given up on our yearly Xmas posting (tons of great tunes we haven't hit yet), despite our prevarication last year.  Hopefully we'll do better next year.  Sorry if we let y'all down.

In the interim, check out our Best Of  2014 Rekkids list starting after the Holiday weekend.  And, we're prepared for more regular posting throughout the year, so hopefully a small percentage of ya will stick around for that!

On to the songs, then...

2 songs always feature in our Christmas Eve (ok, O'Reilly...I surrender...) posting...

Fairtytale of New York is our favorite Xmas song...sadness, desperation, joy, miracles, loss, redemption, love, and hope, always hope, the most important of all.  Beauty (in Kirsty MacColl's riposte) and sadness (Shane's warbling attempt at understanding the broken promises of the "New World").  The generic Holiday hits we're inundated with can't hold a dripping candle to the rawness, the very soul of what this song conveys.  There are many hipper tunes to swear by, but this was always the template, whether one wants to admit it or not.  We will not budge, accusations of sentiment be damned.

Robert Earl Keen's Merry Christmas From the Family comes damn close to equaling. The ultimate drunken family Holiday, spritzed with great humor, a little sentiment (not a bad thing, when kept in context), a joyous melody and blurry instrumentation...we've all been to this gathering, and, while mocking at the time, remember fondly that insane Xmas day, when everything ended under tinsel and sparkling lights.  And yes, we all sang Feliz Navidad.  Because we could, and it felt just right.  

Take care of each other.  We're all we have.

The Pogues: Fairytale of New York (mp3)

Robert Earl Keen: Merry Christmas From the Family (mp3)


Peace on Earth. 

Santa In The Big House

Santa's rounding the bend(er)!  Last minute push to be naughty or nice!

Just a reminder, once this craziness is over, we're gonna do our world famous Big Rock Candy Mountain Best of List!  So, gird yr loins for that bit o'fun!

No Xmas would be complete with a little truckin', and Wayne Mansfield satisfies Holiday haulin' needs!  JD and the Roadrebels stuff our stockings with some noirsurfabilly joy!  The very mighty Otis Gibbs feels a little lonely under the mistletoe ("You're the star upon my Christmas tree"). And, finally, we do so love us some Solstice prison tunes, and Ronnie Fauss doesn't disappoint with a nifty little ode to time served in the Holiday big house!

Gee Whiz, Santa's Gonna Sock it to 'em!

Wayne Mansfield: Santa's Trucker (mp3)

JD and the Roadrebels: Santalina (mp3)

Otis Gibbs: Little Red Nose (mp3)

Ronnie Fauss: Everyone Deserves a Merry Christmas (mp3)

We're almost there!  Give the gift of Love this Xmas!

Santa On The Roof

Five more days til the miraculous virgin birth of Shane MacGowan!  Isn't that the true spirit of Christmas?

We couldn't do this insanity (and, yes, we know we're a bit tardy this year) without all the great recommendations, mixes, songs and gifts we've received over the years...so many great folks sending along their favorite obscure or semi-obscure Xmas tunes for us to enjoy and post.  Thanks to all of ya (and keep 'em coming)!  Most especially, we want to thank Mark W. and Thomas M., who have showered us with Holiday love!

Got some killer presents under the tree today, all wrapped up in fancy bows and covered in tinsel!

Unbelievably righteous Santa funk from Pee Pee Dynamite (yes, that's correct)!  Rockabilly Pere Noel party time from Teddy and the Tall Tops and Wendy Michele and Her Boyfriends!  Howling Diablos bring the trashy tinsel with a special message!  Corb Lund knows all about lonesome prairie  Holidays.

And, finally, because we always try to find a truly painful Xmas message song, Lita Roza brings the bummed out Christmas to all our hearts.  If you grab only 1 song this year, this is the one for you!

Santa's Got a Bag of Party in His Soul!


Pee Pee Dynamite: Merry Christmas and New Year (mp3)

Teddy and the Tall Tops: Christmas Party (mp3)

Wendy Michele and Her Boyfriends: Christmas Party Hop (mp3)

Howling Diablos: Another Christmas Story (mp3)

Corb Lund: Just Me and These Ponies (For Christmas This Year)

Lita Roza: The Little Boy That Santa Claus Forgot (mp3)

Thanks for all the love. Please consider the less fortunate...not just now, but all year long.  Who are we, in the end, if not reflected in the so-called "least" of us.  

Santa's Special Sauce

Ho, ho, ho...joyous in the season once again!  The Big Rock Candy Mountain Holiday extravaganza keeps its sled well-greased, and zoomin' round the world with extra-special present for all the kiddies!

We're still tryin' to keep to our odd rule of not repeating ourselves (which is becoming harder in each successive year...we've been doing this for a least 10 years for christ's sake(pun intended)!!!), but we surely welcome requests from past year's joy!!!  Missing yr Beatnik or Truckin' Xmas tunes?  All ya gotta do is ask!

Lots of mixed treats in Santa's bag today....Hillbilly kiss-off courtesy of Dick Stratton; R'nB vs. Doo Wop from The Debonairs; Jump Blues/Jazz/Soul gifted by Lowell Fulson; Burnt Desert Noir (super black!) from The Felice Brothers; Statler Brothers bringing down home cheeses; and...well, ya know what?  We love the Dropkick Murphys!  We're not supposed to (Hipsters and Trash Merchants all agree), but fuck it...we think they're swell, and the following tune is a hoot and a Holiday holler!

Santa's Got a Special Secret Treat Just For You!


Dick Stratton: I Wouldn't Have You On a Christmas Tree (mp3)

The Debonairs: Christmas Time (mp3)

Lowell Fulson: Lonesome Christmas (mp3)

Felice Brothers: Murder By Mistletoe (mp3)

The Statler Brothers: An Old Fashioned Christmas (mp3)

Dropkick Murphys: The Season Is Upon Us (mp3)

Please think about helping out those less fortunate this Holiday Season, and throughout the year (winter's particularly tough).  If we can afford internet to download tunes for free...well, maybe we've got a few extra bucks that might make a difference elsewhere.  Santa wants you to do it!

Santa's Stockings

We've always wondered if the Elves are properly unionized at the North Pole.  We'd hate to think Santa's runnin' a sweat shop.

Gettin' all Yuletide yee-haw today, perfect for yr frosty Xmas on the range.  Rockabilly spirit from Grub Dog Mitchell, wassailing wheels of Santa steel from Dan Hicks and His Hot Licks, Ral Donner making his down home Holiday list of good feels, and, since we are the home of the Top 100 Drinking Songs of All Time  (remember that?), we have the Wine Chuggers presenting a little shot of Seasonal salutations.


Cowboy Santa Saddle Up!!!


Grub Dog Mitchell: Rockin' in My Stocking (mp3)

Dan Hicks and His Hot Licks: Santa Gotta Choo Choo (mp3)

Ral Donner: (Things That Make Up) Christmas Day (mp3)

Wine Chuggers: (I Was)Drunk(On Christmas) (mp3)

All we want is Love for Christmas.

Swing Low Sweet Santa Claus

Big Rock Candy Mountain...your one-stop Holiday shopping experience!  Sitting on Santa's lap is always free, and strongly encouraged!

More killer Yuletide trimmings today.  Whether it be the daddy-o Santa stylings of the The Orangu-Tones,  the burn desert, aluminum tree cynicism of master storyteller James McMurtry, the reindeer on acid-washed 60's pop of The Tropics, or the North Pole frozen geetar of legendary Dwight Twilley, we've got the garland to make yr Holiday party sparkle!

Santa Almost Drowned in the Chicago River!


The Orangu-Tones: Santa's Coming (mp3)

James McMurtry: Holiday (mp3)

The Tropics: Groovy Christmas (mp3)

Dwight Twilley: Christmas Stars (mp3)


Thanks for stopping by.  All you need is love.

Santa Shama Lama Bam

Santa's a bit of a hip shaker, ain't he?

We're going all out rawk'n'roll this Xmas day...a little bit obvious, a little bit joyous, a little bit boogie, a whole lotta Yuletide riot goin' on!!!

Bring the Solstice noize courtesy of glammers'n'junkers'n'trashers...American Gun, The Kinks, Billy Childish(our lord and Savior), T.Rex, Cheap Trick, and The Sensational Alex Harvey Band!!!!!  Phew!!!!  This stocking don't need no stuffing...it's chock full and bulging with super-sweet geetar stickiness!!!

(and as always, if you don't like today's selections, we'll do a complete 180 tomorrow!)

Santa's got stars in his eyes, glitter in his boots, and gingerbread men in his pants!!!

The Kinks: Father Christmas (mp3)

Cheap Trick: Come On Christmas (mp3)

T.Rex: Christmas Bop (mp3)

Billy Childish: Father Christmas Is Dressed In Green (mp3)

American Gun: Little Manger (mp3)

The Sensational Harvey Band: There's No Light On the Christmas Tree (mp3)

Thanks for stopping by.  Be good to each other.

Santa Lovers

Got some tingly tinsel in our pants, just waitin' to decorate yr tree!  More Big Rock Candy Mountain presents for all y'all Holidady hepcats!

Ballboy pretty much defines, by song and by title, our credo round these parts, with a beautiful, keenly observed lament, the tick of midnight, in a bar, on Xmas Eve.  Lest we get too comfortable...Kathy and Jimmy Zee rawk our boppin' souls Santa-style, North Pole style!

Todd Grebe and Cold Country know exactly what every honky tonker really wants for Xmas!  And Billy Ward and His Debonaires take us to the the highest pinnacle of Yuletide joy and sadness!

Santa's Got and Itch! 

Ballboy: Merry Christmas to the Drunks, Merry Christmas to the Lovers (mp3)


Kathy and Jimmy Zee: Santa Claus Rock and Roll (mp3)

Todd Grebe and Cold Country: Let's Make Love For Christmas (mp3)


Billy Ward and His Debonaires: Christmas In Heaven (mp3)

Life's tough...we're all in this together...help out when you can this Holiday season!

Santa's Family Tree

Carvin' up the Holiday ham, booze-addled family gathered 'round in their worst ugly sweaters, offerin' advice.  Must be a Big Rock Candy Mountain xmas party!

All about the extended family today. What could go wrong?

Two incredibly dysfunctional gatherings courtesy of Robert Earl Keen (he of the 2nd greatest Xmas song ever, Merry Christmas From the Family, of which this tune is a logical extension/sequel) and Bruce Robison and Kelly Willis.

Then Old 97's add their own particularly twangy take on the desire for love at the Yuletide.

Santa, pass the stuffing and the bottle!


Robert Earl Keen: Happy Holiday Y'all (mp3)

Bruce Robison and Kelly Willis: Oklahoma Christmas (mp3)

Old 97's: Here It Is Christmas (mp3)

Please give what you can this Holiday season...times are tough, and there's lots of folks who are needy.  

Stripper Pole Santa

Jingle Bells, Batman smells...

A little late, but let's hit it with our (mostly) daily roundup of all the fab, rawkin' holiday slabs that make our nights a little warmer this Yuletide!  Dig it, Xmas cats!

What do you get a punk girl for Xmas?  The Roaring .22's might have the answer (hint: there may be booze involved)!

After that creamy hershey kiss, Deer Tick lay down some fuzzy Waits'n'Replacments holiday cheer guaranteed to last all year long!

We're just getting started, so stay tuned!  Some old favorites (requests accepted), some new tinsel ticklers, and a whole lotta love, santa baby!

Sleazy Santa gettin' down!


The Roaring .22's: It's Christmas Time (Let's Get Fucked Up!) (mp3)

Deer Tick: Christmas All Summer Long (mp3)

Give a little love this Xmas...the hardest present to give.