Climbin' Up

Hey nippy nippers! Welcome back.

Today we're gonna serve you up (well, of course) with a snazzy little sipper that just so happens to be the namesake of this here little 'ol site. Yup, we're climbing up the Barstool Mountain today.

Y'all might remember there was a bit of controversy at the outset of this project over the audacity that we displayed in choosing the name Barstool Mountain. I'm not going to link to the message board involved (you can do some research back in our earlier posts if you care). Suffice to say, some folks thought that Barstool Mountain was a "sacred" name reserved for a certain elite level of drinkers whose pain (ick) and experience us common folks couldn't possibly hope to understand or achieve. Well, fuck 'em. The Barstool Mountain, like all good Country music and taverns, is for all folks who have lived and loved and drunk to the good times and bad.

I've finally found a place where I can take it
all this loneliness you left behind.
On a mountain that's no hill for a climber.
Just one step up, sit back and pour the wine.

I climb up on barstool mountain.
High above your world where there's no pain.
And I'm the king of barstool mountain.
Pretending I don't love you once again.

At closing time I step down off the mountain.
I'm strong enough to make it without you.
I know that I'll be right back here tomorrow.
Too weak to sober up and face the truth
and...

I climb up on barstool mountain.
High above your world where there's no pain.
And I'm the king of barstool mountain.
Pretending I don't love you once again.

We had two reasons for picking this song as our namesake. First, it's one of our favorite drinking songs. Second, well, it was easily convenient as a companion piece to our main site, Big Rock Candy Mountain. I won't insult yr whiskey-soaked brains by pointing out why.

The song itself, then. It's a wistful tune, of sorts, brewed in the moment we've all been in, propped up at the rails, determined towards forgetting and blankness. And, of course, there's a girl or boy. Always a girl or boy . But, to avoid seriousness, it's a revelation in neon, shaken and stirred, a fine vintage, rarely made these days. Getting better with age? Well, yes, but no more mellow.

The song's been done by numerous folks, but we believe the malted mightiest are the Moe Bandy and Johny Paycheck versions. And Moe's might be seminal, and we love Moe dearly (you'll be hearing more from him down the line), but Paycheck's, to our swizzlin' senses, is the finest, with his bourbon-soaked voice and a guitar line that swings you into oblivion. Either way, we're all winners at the Barstool Mountain. Or losers. You decide.


Johnny Paycheck: Barstool Mountain (mp3)

Moe Bandy: Barstool Mountain (mp3)

Please support your local, independent barstool manufacturer.