by David Wilikofsky
Although Nashville is always thought of as the center of the country music universe, California has a special place in country music history. From The Maddox Brothers and Rose to Buck Owens, Merle Haggard to Dwight Yoakam, the state has been home to some of the best acts of all time. Add Mike Stinson to that list. Stinson moved to Los Angeles in the 1990s, and soon became a cult figure in the city’s honky tonk scene. He found work playing drums with the likes of Lucinda Williams, Christina Aguilera and Vic Chesnutt while also writing and playing his own songs around town. Dwight Yoakam recoded a cover of the song “Late Great Golden State” off his 2002 debut album Jack of All Heartache, which brought Stinson more attention (side note: I honestly have no idea what is going on in that Yoakam music video, but it’s certainly something…). Stinson followed up that album with Last Fool at the Bar, which easily stands as one of the best country albums of the 2000s.
The first thing you’re going to notice about Mike Stinson is his voice. It’s nasal and raspy. He delivers his words half spoken and half sung. Perhaps the closest comparison for his tone would be the incomparable Jimmie Dale Gilmore, but there’s a lot more in there. You can hear hints of everything from the emotional delivery of Gary Stewart to the idiosyncratic timing of Karen Dalton. For some it may be an acquired taste (and, let’s face it, many of my favorite vocalists are), but his voice is essential to these songs. It imbues them with humanity, breathing life into the imperfect characters he conjures.
The album hits all your standard country themes: love gone bad, drinking, loneliness. What makes these songs stand out is the writing. Stinson is able to take what would be cliches in the hands of a less capable writer and turn them into something fresh. Take opener “Last Fool at the Bar”, the possibly autobiographical tale of a heartbroken, nameless musician hanging out at a bar after a show. The song is downright poetic, with Stinson peppering in small details that bring the song to life: “The show has long been over / The boys all took off and my drums are the only thing standing / Now packing drums don’t hold the allure / When you’re 14 you don’t think that far / That’s why I hate to be the last fool at the bar”. It’s a song that creates a fully realized world, something that can be said for all the tracks on this album. At the same time these songs are hilarious, finding humor in the melodrama of country. “She’s at all my favorite places with somebody else / I’ll need some new favorite places but I’ll just go by myself” he sings of an ex-flame on “I Can’t Go Out Anymore”. It’s relatable (who among us hasn’t wallowed in heartbreak) but still funny as hell.
Stinson released two more albums following Last Fool at the Bar, 2010’s The Jukebox In Your Heart and 2013’s Hell And Half of Georgia. He also relocated from California to Texas, where continues to perform today. But Last Fool At The Bar will always hold a special place in my heart; it’s an album that shows off what modern country can be, breathing new life into the standard tropes of the genre.