Coming Up Roses: Tommy Stinson Gunning
for Solo Trek
August 24, 2003
Startribune
By Chris Riemenschneider
Correction:
The former Replacements guitarist Bob Stinson died in 1995 of natural cases complicated by
acute and chronic drug and alcohol use, according to the Hennepin County medical
examiner's office.
To hear Tommy tell it, time is on his side. And so is Axl.
Former Replacements bassist Tommy Stinson is embarking on a solo tour and making a new
album between his sideman duties with Guns N' Roses -- which, if you've been following
along at home, has been a stop-and-go process since Stinson joined the group in 1999.
Stinson's freedom outside of Guns N' Roses came into question last year, when rumors
persisted that GNR frontman Axl Rose prevented him from joining Paul Westerberg in some
semblance of a Replacements reunion. Hogwash, according to Stinson, who points to his
current endeavors as proof.
"I can't tell you how supportive Axl has been in all this," Stinson said,
calling from his Burbank, Calif. home.
During a two-month GNR hiatus this spring, Stinson recorded an album's worth of material
at Pixies frontman Frank Black's home studio.
Next weekend, he returns to Minneapolis to play two shows at his main hometown hangout,
the Uptown Bar & Grill. He is touring with the Figgs, the frequent backing band of
British pop-rocker Graham Parker.
Come mid-September, he will reconvene with Rose and the rest of GNR.
"Everything has fallen into place almost perfectly, timing-wise," said Stinson,
36.
"I've got a good thing going on. I can totally immerse myself in Guns N' Roses when
the time comes. And when we're off, I've been able to work on my own stuff."
Stinson has not focused on being a singer and songwriter since the dissolution of his
short-lived, punk-spiked band Perfect in 1997. Before that, he fronted the equally
quick-burning, Stones-inspired group Bash & Pop, whose lone album, 1993's "Friday
Night Is Killing Me," was a gem.
Local fans were reminded of Stinson's solo talents at an acoustic gig in May at the
Uptown, where his mom, Anita, is a manager (Tommy also returns to Minneapolis often to see
his daughter Ruby, 13). In addition to his old songs and some choice covers -- Loudon
Wainwright's "One Man Guy" especially showed heart -- the show also included a
few of Stinson's new songs.
He described the new material as "more introspective, and a lot more honest than
anything I've ever done."
"Some of the songs are pretty down lyrically," he said. On the other hand, he
added, "I've never had more fun making an album. It was the most at-ease I've ever
been."
Players on the record include current GNR mates Dizzy Reed on keyboards and drummer Josh
Freese (who also hasdrummed for Westerberg). Stinson is shopping around for a licensing
deal and expects his CD to be out next spring. Of course, it depends on what happens with
Guns N' Roses.
A real 'Democracy'
"I think this is the final push," Stinson said of the recording of GNR's album,
"Chinese Democracy," which has been in the works for 10 years.
Stinson said all the "rumors and misconceptions" about the GNR album will
subside "once it comes out and kicks everybody's ass."
"I don't think anybody is in a position to question the way Axl writes and
records," Stinson said. "It might be a longer process, but it works."
That process, he said, "very much involves the rest of the band. Axl has a way of
pulling out the best from each guy in the band, and that takes time."
Part of Rose's process also included taking the almost all-new GNR lineup on the road,
which led to last November's tour that came to the Target Center. The Minneapolis show
drew only about 6,000 people, and some other shows reportedly had even smaller crowds. The
tour eventually was canceled.
Still, Stinson said, "We had a sellout at Madison Square and other big shows. . . .
It's a huge credit to Axl that as many people showed up as did, considering there hasn't
been a new album in 10 years."
Rose, he said, "is the most misread guy I've ever known."
Stinson reiterated previous claims that the GNR guru is easier to work with than
Westerberg. However, despite the barbs that he and his former Replacements bandmate have
traded in the press recently, he denied that they are feuding.
"We just talked on Father's Day," he said. "We get along fine, I
suppose."
Stinson was less mum about the idea of ever reuniting the Replacements. Tommy was only 12
when he started playing bass in 1979 with the band, which included his older brother Bob
Stinson. Bob was kicked out in 1986 and died of a drug overdose in 1995. The Replacements
lasted until 1991.
"I'd have to be pretty destitute to [reunite]," Stinson said. "That's why
people do those things, to make money, and I don't think I'll be that in need of money for
quite a while.
"Think about it. Would you really want to see that? A lot of people say they would,
but if they think about what [a reunion] really would be like, I think they'd agree."
However, Stinson quickly added, "I totally look back fondly on what we did.
Especially the records. I'm really proud of those."
"I'm also extremely proud of the work that I'm doing now," he said. "And I
gotta say I don't think I've ever had this much fun playing music." |