Bob Was Considered A Liability

When news of the death of original Replacements lead guitarist Bob Stinson hit the papers last week, I was momentarily bummed. Felt kinda bad for the guy, actually; especially considering that really depressing piece in SPIN (I think) a year or two back, that painted him as an essentially washed-up hack. It made him seem really pathetic. Being an alcoholic might be a fuck of a cross to bear (it's even a legitimate medical disease), but the comments of Paul "The Pussy" Westerberg ("We all knew it was coming but that doesn't soften the blow at all") are nothing short of the same facetious "let's still be nice to the poor guy" treatment Stinson received from the rest of the band after being fired once their careers got going. His departure also coincided with the rapid decline of the quality songwriting and accelerated the groups' demise. It's arguable their hearts were no longer in it after Tim, the last album to feature Stinson and the bands' first for Sire. Pleased To Meet Me was a last semi-decent attempt, which for the most part was sappy, and Don't Tell A Soul and All Shook Down were total garbage. The Replacements era ended in 1986, after they'd toured for Let It Be (one of the 10 best rock albums ever made) and released the cassette When The Shit Hits The Fans. That tape, which accurately depicted a typically drunken Replacements performance, was the last time the original foursome seemed to actually be having fun. Once the load of the majors was heaped on their shoulders, and a majority of their money spent on coke (according to numerous sources), Bob was considered a liability. His unpredictability, which was the only remaining spark from their Twin/Tone days, was too much of a threat to the band and he was unceremoniously given the boot. Retreating to Minneapolis, and never really leaving thereafter, Bob's life pretty much was a continuous downhill spin.

The live memories I have of the 'Mats are both from the Bob era. The first time, at Irvine Auditorium (U. of P.) in 1986, the entire band was blind drunk, flailing through the signature riffs of their favorite '70s rock songs. They tried to play some of their own stuff, but kept breaking down into Skynyrd covers. They were hilarious and awesome. About a year later I saw them at the old Ritz in New York, this time supporting Tim. There was no visible friction and everybody seemed to be making an effort to actually play the songs; although the influence exerted upon them from Sire to "clean up" was a pretty well-known fact at the time. They were finally beginning to get wild and look like their old selves when Bob tumbled off the stage mid-song and broke either his hand or wrist, thus stopping the show. Not great, but pretty cool nonetheless. Friends of mine continued to see the band post-Bob, but all fessed up to the fact it was not the same. They all echoed the sentiment it seemed more like Westerberg with a back-up band than the real thing.

A friend of mine once told me the 'Mats were the band that made rock and roll worth believing in again. To restore faith, simply listen to Let It Be. Then put on All Shook Down. Now sell it.

By Larry [Stain Magazine]