JOHNNY POPE

I don't know man...sometimes you just need to hear a dude from New Mexico singing modern country tunes about rodeos. Fuck rodeos, by the way, in every way imaginable, but still....a good jam is a good jam. And to hear Pope sing "she's a liberated woman // she's a breed of her own" - well I'm almost able to believe that he's a progressive cowboy and not just singing about a horse. I'm thinking Johnny listened to more than a few Marty Robbins records, and I would suggest that those listens served him well. Enjoy.

RODEO: WINNING AND A LOSING

MERV AYLESBURY

There must be innumerable MERV AYLESBURYs languishing in cut-out bins around the United States. Over produced schmaltzy country pop with horribly dated keyboards and processed drums, the absolute worst that would-be-radio-rock had to offer in 1986. So....why do we like it? We say that we like to make fun of it...but we keep listening, don't we? There's the arbitrary hard rockin' "Angel Looking For A Place To Fall" (what you doin' here if desire hasn't called?) with its unnecessarily ever present guitar and cornball tracks like "My Kind Of Woman" that would make Christopher Cross ashamed for what he did to pop music (sometimes she's less than a lady // sometimes she talks like a saint). There's a glimmer lyrical hope on "Two Against The Night," but when Merv slows down on "We Can't Do This To Love," any dreams of finding even a historical justification for these sounds are finally crushed. But still we listen...because the 25¢ bins just keep on giving.

I CAN LEAD YOU TO LOVE

THE PADILLA BROTHERS

It might be good to occasionally venture off of your path, to sink your teeth into tastes that challenge your palette. Maybe you find something you like and start on a new musical journey, or maybe you just solidify your affinity for whatever brand of hardcore and/or punk and/or minimal electronic noise that happens to float your boat. Enter Albuquerque's THE PADILLA BROTHERS, a schmaltzy trio who belt out syrupy sweet easy listening '70s country with an apparent obsession with a dude from Bethlehem. But religious affiliations aside, when they pick up the pace on "Buenos Dias, Señor Jesus" it kinda swings like The Nashville Sound but without the strings. These three dudes don't just bring killer hair to the table, their vocal harmonies are stellar and though the guitar licks are subtle, they are extremely effective. Perhaps not an accident that the Spanish language tracks are the most successful, as these are the songs that lay it back and just kinda roll, but the questionably titled closer "His Hand Is Touching Me" crushes at such a slow and deliberate pace that it's the song I keep coming back to. So step off the trail, young punk...even if your journey only leads you back to where you starts, you'll at least know you're headed the right way.

A MAN CALLED LOVE

DAVID

Spanish language crooner from New Mexico (relocated to Connecticut), David Salazar had a few minor regional hits before settling into life as a regular adult...at least that's what I presume he did. Thankfully, in addition to a syrupy sweet version of "Crei," he left us this 1981 cassette time warp with winners like "Historia De Un Amor" (the best track on the tape) and the dusty waltz "Soñe." Digging through bins in New Mexico sometimes pays off.

DAVID

JIMMY HENLEY

Child prodigy banjo picker Jimmy Henley started dropping jaws before he was a teenager, winning picking contests all over the heartland. Spotted by Roy Clark at one of those competitions, he became a regular on Hee-Haw and in Clark's touring entourage through the '70s and '80s. 1982's Classical Country Bluegrass shows 18 year old Henley alternating between proficient rippers like "Bird's Eye" and "The Kingfisher" and innocent novelty tunes like "I Love My Truck" and "You've Got Me Runnin' Scared" that are made all the more entertaining by a voice that seems like it's not quite finished walking through the puberty tunnel. Perhaps there's a touch too much production on this release (especially on the re-worked medley "Classical Gas"), so for those who want things a little rawer I give you this live recording (or Henley's One For The Record from 1976, likely available at your local thrift store if you live in Oklahoma) but this is the shit that happened to country music in the '80s and fans will be able to listen through the excessive string arrangements. Worth noting that my Salvation Army copy is presented in its naturally degraded state, making "Memories Of Yesterday" a truly warped journey.

CLASSICAL COUNTRY BLUEGRASS

LOW CULTURE

This gem got slipped into my greedy tape loving palms when I passed through Las Cruces, New Mexico this past summer.  Chris and I had crossed paths a few times, and he managed to pull off a damn fun show for us even though their little metropolis had hosted touring outfits seven days in a row, a tough sell in any city. In hindsight, my only complaint is that I didn't get to see LOW CULTURE play that night, and hopefully there will be a repeat performance so we can fix that. Insanely catchy (and yeah, I'm sure lots of people will say 'poppy') jams that have a je ne sais quoi similar to HICKEY or JAY REATARD. I can't necessarily tell you exactly why or how LOW CULTURE are awesome, I can just tell you that you need these four songs. Sort out the lyrics to "31" and it'll validate you, I promise. You might not know it, but you do.

LOW CULTURE