Search - Mojo Nixon & Toadliquors :: Real Sock Ray Blue

We Still Need to Listen to Mojo

Robert L. Hastings | Central Florida(wishing I was in Carolina) | 05/13/2000

(4 out of 5 stars)

"First, let me say I rarely give a perfect score in anything. After a good dozen or so listenings, I have to say that Mojo is still Mojo after all these years. That is saying a lot. At first,I was worried that after a good seventeen-eighteen years of playing his music Mojo-Style, he wouldn't be able to keep up to the high standard he set w/ Bo-Day-Shus or Root Hog or Die. It is great to see he's not being Mojo Nixon-1989, or trying to re-create it. Compare his eighties "Debbie Gibson is Pregnant w/ my Two-Headed Love Child" or "Stuffin' Martha's Muffin" w/ "Drunk Divorced Floozy" or "Orenthal James was Might Bad Man" from this disc. He can make accurate social commentary and the topics/content/lyrics aren't stale, & neither is the music. I could go on & on in more detail, but this is a must disc for all Mojo fans, and a definite for all who have still not been exposed to this God-send. We all need to pay more attention to the Mojo-perspective in the world. It has helped me survive."

Politically incorrect, Mojo Nixon remains as vital as ever.

Robert L. Hastings | 07/23/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

""Sock Ray Blue" covers a lot of ground in terms of its topical content. Although it does not always pack the punch of "Gadzooks" and "Root Hog or Die," it still manages to encompass everything from the "Rock and Roll Hall of Lame" to the "Drunk Divorced Floozie" farce that the Princess Diana Spencer media circus funeral became in our recent past. When Mr. Nixon isn't singing the praises of the late great Otis Redding, he's denouncing the reverse racism of the O.J. Simpson verdict. These redneck rants must be kept in perspective, but they range from powerful statements about the meaning of freedom to the trivial pursuit of celebrating the mindlessness of popular culture for its own sake. "Disney Is The Enemy" may not be the best song on the album, but its title typifies the attitude of this record. At the end of the 20th century, "Sock Ray Blue" may be the guiltiest pleasure of the year. Funny, raunchy, and always in bad taste, enjoy it with someone you can afford to offend."

Raucous, sometimes raw, and mostly enjoyable

loce_the_wizard | Lilburn, GA USA | 10/07/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

""The Real Sock Ray Blue" captures Mojo Nixon at his rabid, foaming at the mouth, disgusted at the fake and phony, best. Never one to hide his light under a bushel, Mr. Nixon buzzes through such timely themes as cybersex, faked coolness, bad relationships, paranoia, and gonzo living. His takes on cultural touchstones such as the rock n' roll hall of fame---which he accurately depicts as the Rock & Roll Hall of Lame---Disney and McDonalds, and on Orenthal James might cause polite company to wince. Well, pretty much everything here would. . .



The ride is raucous, sometimes raw, and mostly enjoyable. His back up group, the cleverly named Toadliquors, prove a dependable lot, churning out a stable background and chugging along as Mr. Nixon runs roughshod in his rockabilly from Hell mode.



I suspect listening too much would cause a bit of headache, but if you treat this recording as something to respect---like a bottle of mescal with the worm hovering near the bottom---you will enjoy it for quite some time.

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