The Beat Farmers are an American rock & roll band formed in San Diego, California in 1983. They went on to release seven albums before disbanding in 1995, following the untimely death of drummer Country Dick Montana, who died on stage in British Columbia, Canada during a Beat Farmers show.

The band was a big part of the 1980s Roots Rock/Americana movement that included Los Lobos, The Blasters, Lone Justice, Rank & File, Jason & The Scorchers and The Long Ryders, just to name a few.  They are continuously mentioned as a major influence on many of the acts on the current American scene.

The original lineup of The Beat Farmers consisted of Jerry Raney, Buddy Blue, Rolle Love and Country Dick Montana.  Blue left the band after two albums and was replaced by Joey Harris, who went on to record the next five albums with the band, including what many consider their crowning achievement, The Pursuit Of Happiness.

What always set The Beat Farmers apart from the other bands was (and still is) their amazing, take no prisoners, live show.  It was these early shows that got them signed to their first record deal with Rhino Records and resulted in their 1985 classic debut album, Tales Of The New West.  Tales Of The New West was reissued in 2021 and received one of the Top Reissues of the Year honors by the New York Times.

After the breakup of the band in 1995, there were various combinations of bands by the remaining members and they eventually formed their own bands that play regularly in and around the greater San Diego area, but there was always a demand by the fans for a reunion.

The demand for a Beat Farmers reunion became so great that they started having an annual reunion event called The Beat Farmers Hootenanny, which would bring together the three remaining members along with drummer Joel “Bongo” Kmak, (the current lineup), to do a classic Beat Farmers set and would also include a variety of guest performers.  This annual reunion led to an invitation from the popular Sirius/XM Radio Outlaw Country channel, to be a part of their Outlaw Country Cruise, which included a who’s who of classic Americana bands and artists.

With a couple Outlaw Country cruises and another Hootenanny under their belt and the demand for Americana music at an all-time high, The Beat Farmers time has come, and Jerry, Joey, Rolle and Bongo are primed and ready to get back out there and do what they do best, play shows that will not only remind their faithful following how amazing they were (and still are), but show a whole new generation of fans how amazing they still remain!