VWMusic

All images courtesy of Howlin’ Wuelf Media/Feature image credit Dan Corrigan

By Andrew Daly
andrew@vinylwriter.com

Legendary anti-hero turned ax-slinging party animal Bob Stinson was as infamous as he was talented.

Resistant to authority, and nomadic in nature, Stinson never seemed to stay in one place for very long. Among the many outfits he left an imprint on, The Replacements aside, The Bleeding Hearts may well have been his finest hour.

Before Stinson aligned with the band, The Bleeding Hearts had been mulling around the local club circuit for some time. In the early 90s, the outfit found itself in need of a guitarist, and so, the band’s de facto leader, Mike Leonard, solicited the services of Stinson, recognizing that the guitarist’s unschooled, distinct, and angular style would elevate The Bleeding Hearts to levels unknown.

Initially, Stinson was resistant, and when prodded, showed little interest, and even lesser effort, but eventually, Stinton joined The Bleeding Hearts, and after a proverbial “getting to know each other” period, a reinvigorated Bleeding Hearts hit the studio to record what would become Riches to Rags.

For one reason or another, Stinson eventually departed The Bleeding Hearts. As for Riches to Rags, it fell into obscurity and went unreleased for nearly 30 years. In that time, a multitude of Bob Stinton-related material has surfaced and garnered wide release, but Riches to Rags remained in the can…until now.

The Bleeding Hearts Mike Leonard recently took the time with me to recount the history of the band, his friendship and working relationship with Bob Stinson, and the long-awaited release of Riches to Rags.

Andrew:
As a young musician, what was the moment which first sparked your interest in music?

Mike:
I remember seeing this show when I was a little kid called The Roots of Rock ‘N’ Roll, it made quite an impression on me. After that, I wouldn’t stop bugging my parents to let me go buy an Elvis record. [Laughs]. That’s pretty much what did it for me.

Andrew:
Who were some of your earliest influences that first shaped your style?

Mike:
At the time we recorded the Bleeding Hearts record, I remember being really into James Honeyman Scott’s playing on the first two Pretenders records. I still love that stuff. He and Billy Bremner from Rockpile are my two favorites. 

Andrew:
Do you recall the Bleeding Hearts first show?

Mike:
We booked our very first show at Fernando’s. That was a dive bar down East Lake street, anyone could play there, and you didn’t have to have a demo or anything. The Uptown Bar and 7th St Entry were the coveted clubs to play.

Andrew:
Tell us about the inception of Riches to Rags.

Mike:
Funny to think of this as new, but yeah. We had been playing for a couple of years by the time Bob [Stinson] joined and we had most of the material. Back then we rehearsed so much and I’d bring my 4 track and make all these crappy recordings. So, by the spring of ’93, I said, “Let’s go record something in a proper studio.” I approached Tommy Roberts (AKA Zack Vex) about recording us, I liked the sound of his band, Fauna. So, we lined up the first session, and we used the 8 songs from that session to lure in Sunshine at Fiasco Records, signed with her, and then we went back into the studio and finished the record that summer. 

Andrew:
With this material dating back some time, tell us about the history of Bleeding Hearts, and where Bob Stinson fit into the equation.

Mike:
When I started the band, I always intended it to be a two-guitar band, but we could never find the right guy. I had been hanging around the Uptown Bar a lot and would see Bob there, so I approached him about playing with us. He was reluctant at first. He recommended Jamie Garner from the Leatherwoods. We kept saying, “No, we want you, Bob.” We finally dragged him down to our practice space, and after about 45 minutes, I was like, “Ok, tell me about Jamie Garner.” And we went straight from the space to the Uptown Bar where Jamie was working as a cook, and Bob introduced us. We ended up playing with Jamie for about 9 months, which was great. He’s such a great guitar player. Then he decided to move to San Diego and now Bob wanted to play. After that, Bob really made an effort to learn the songs.

Andrew:
What led to Bob leaving Bleeding Hearts and subsequently, what led to Riches to Rags being shelved in 1993?

Mike:
After Bob quit and rejoined a few times, I finally kicked him out for good. Probably over something stupid like $25. The plan has always been to release the record, it just sorta fell into a vacuum.

Andrew:
What makes 2022 the right time to finally unleash it unto the public?

Mike:
Sunshine has been shopping it for the last couple of years. She connected with the guys at Bar None and they loved it. So, it’s been in the works for a little while now. I think with all The Replacements reissues there are some fans that wanted to hear something from Bob. His other band Static Taxi has released all of their stuff with Bob, and this really was the last project he worked on, so it’s good to get it out there. 

Andrew:
Shed some more light on the physical release, as well as what listeners can expect.

Mike:
The record is pretty much being released the way we had originally intended. With one exception: when we transferred the original tape to digital, we came across another finished song that I had completely forgotten about called “Know it All,” so we added that. Bob Mehr was kind enough to write the liner notes for us. I’m actually waiting for a physical copy myself. I’m excited to see it. 

Andrew:
Obviously, Bob is no longer with us. What lasting memories do you have of him?

Mike:
When Bob joined the band he also moved into my one-bedroom apartment on W Lake St. He set up this wall of old stereo speakers that would shake the entire building. He would sit there and study Johnny Winter records, or crank the latest Urge Overkill. He really did like teaching people the ways of rock ‘n’ roll. He had a very unique musical sense. He would use these tunings and I would hear them, and say, “Bob, that’s not a real tuning. You just made that up!” [Laughs]. I will say this, you can always tell it’s Bob Stinson when you hear him.

Andrew:
Will the material get any time on the live circuit?

Mike:
Drummer Pat McKenna and I both play in The Magnolias with John Freeman. Back in the day, John joined The Bleeding Hearts and filled in for Bob when we played CMJ. So, the three of us have been dusting off the old songs along with the original Bleeding Hearts bass player Rob Robello. So, anything could happen.

Andrew:
What’s next for you in all lanes, Mike?

Mike:
I’m currently producing a project with this band called Lowry Bridge, which pretty cool. I’ve been using both Mellotron and Farsissa organs on it, and Bob would have lived it, as he was really into that type of stuff. The Magnolias are planning another tour in Spain later this year and depending on how things go with the plague, we’ll see what happens. Other than that, I’d like to see if fine fellas at Bar None might be interested in releasing any more music from the vault. Time will tell.

– Andrew Daly (@vwmusicrocks) is the Editor-in-Chief for www.vwmusicrocks.com and may be reached at andrew@vinylwriter.com