Country Dick Montana

Daniel M. McLain (May 11, 1955 – November 8, 1995), known by the stage name Country Dick Montana, was a musician best known as a member of The Beat Farmers. Montana was born in Carmel, California. In the 1970s, he owned a record store and was a member of two seminal San Diego bands. He drummed for both punk rock pioneers The Penetrators and roots rock band The Crawdaddys. [1] [2] From 1983 to 1995, Montana played drums, percussion, guitar and accordion for The Beat Farmers. He also performed lead vocals on at least one song on every Beat Farmers album, singing humorous songs frequently related to drinking. The song Happy Boy was popular on The Dr. Demento Radio Show and featured in several feature films. Montana was also famous for his onstage antics, frequently related to drinking. During this time, he was also in the short-lived trio the Pleasure Barons with Mojo Nixon and Dave Alvin, The Incredible Hayseeds, Country Dick's Petting Zoo, and Country Dick's Garage. In 1995, 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 band disbanded shortly thereafter. "The Ballad of Country Dick" by Mojo Nixon was written after his death. In 1996, posthumous solo album "The Devil Lied To Me" was released. A reference to Montana can be found in the 1997 First Person Shooter video game, Redneck Rampage. In the game, his "tombstone" appears in a graveyard on the 12th level, complete with the words, "the devil lied to me" as his epitaph, which refers to his 1996 posthumous album.