The Real Sock Ray Blue!
The Real Sock Ray Blue! is an album by the American musician Mojo Nixon, released on March 23, 1999. Nixon was signed by Shanachie Records, which hoped that he would attract rock listeners to the label. He supported the album with a North American tour.
Production
The album was facetiously subtitled "Texas Prison Field Recordings, Vol. 3"; Nixon considered himself to be a folk musician working in a rock style. He was backed by his band, the Toadliquors. "The Ballad of Country Dick", which borrowed from the folk song "Jesse James", is a tribute to the late musician Country Dick Montana; Nixon had to remove a line that mentioned Mike Curb. "Drunk-Divorced Floozie " ridicules the global grief over the death of Diana Spencer. Nixon's critique of the "Rock n' Roll Hall of Lame" includes an imitation of Bruce Springsteen. "Orenthal James " touches on the musical structure of the standard "John Hardy".Critical reception
The Des Moines Register praised "Nixon's vulgar anarchist salvos that capture a true slice of rock 'n' roll by eschewing musical polish." Newsday concluded that "Nixon's strengths are a likable drinking-buddy personality and funny one-liners about masturbation and vomiting... But his limitations persist. He and his venerable Toadliquors can't do much beyond by-the-numbers rockabilly". The Washington Post noted, "The gruff-voiced singer-scold-writer still pens amusing roots-rock rants against modernity and commercialism, but if you've heard three or four such songs, you've heard them all."The Oregonian called Nixon "one half Howlin' Wolf and one half Henny Youngman". Stereo Review opined that "You Can't Buy Cool" "deflates Madison Avenue as well as anyone has this year." The Chicago Tribune said that "kitschy, redneck mean-spiritedness aside... Mojo Nixon displays a true love for roots rock." The Austin Chronicle noted, "Although Mojo Nixon often gets written off as a novelty act, this pigeonhole doesn't do justice to his extra-fiery brand of populist vitriol... Citizen Mojo's righteous indignation toward popular culture has only sharpened with time".