Billy Joe Shaver once said, “Ain’t two peas in a pod or two beans either. There ain’t but one Pinto Bennett. Thank God. So you best pour your ears full of his knowledge quick as you can. It’ll go straight to your heart.”
Such is the respect that the Idaho legend’s name commands within the country community. Since first recording in 1964, he’s had series of regional hits throughout the United States and a chart-topping album in the UK. He’s performed on the same bill as Willie Nelson and Jerry Lee Lewis and, although he hasn’t found the same fame, he has garnered the same reverence from ardent followers of roots music. Bennett has had three heart attacks, a stroke, and has lost his eye, but his enduring spirit remains the same as does his timeless songwriting.
“I Like Singin’ the Blues in a Honky Tonk Song” is what it says it is on the lid. It’s a classic, blues-fueled honky-tonk number that reflects on the lonesome story of its protagonist. At 71, Bennett captivates with a worldliness afforded by his decades of honing his craft. He recalls to PopMatters that the song was one that seemed to write itself. Its music video, shot by Alex Hecht, sets that same script to an audiovisual presentation. It features fun-loving shots of Bennett, members of his band, his family, and his friends alongside lead actor and singer-songwriter Buddy Devore and his friends and band.
The song is a cut from Bennett’s final album, The Last Saturday Night, released last March. On the song, producer, and drummer Jason Beek tells PopMatters, “Bennett calls himself a country picker and a honky-tonk guy, but he wanted a song with a bluesy vibe. It was pretty easy for him to imagine a character who ‘kept the jukebox fed’ or ‘painted the whole town red to keep the blues from showin’ through’. Bennett reflected on a lonely character on the phone, desperately calling his lost love for one more chance. This inspired him to reference two songs from 1962 and 1963 respectively: girl group pop act the Marvelettes’ ‘Beachwood 4-5-7-8-9’ (written by Marvin Gaye, William “Mickey” Stevenson, and George Gordy) and ‘Lonesome 7-7 2-0-3’ by country artist Hawkshaw Hawkins (written by Justin Tubb).”