Boot-to-CLI distro?

[Ken D'Ambrosio]

Hey, all.  Many's the time I just want to go and fix something stupid -- 
maybe wipe a disk, or edit a file -- and all I want is to be able to 
stick in a USB stick and wind up at said CLI.  But most distros these 
days are GUI-based.  And Ubuntu Server (say) boots to install, period, 
which is an 
extremely-stripped-down-to-the-point-of-useless-for-anything-other-than-install 
CLI.

Any middle ground someone could recommend?

Thanks!

-Ken