In the run-up to the release of Cody Jinks’ new album, Lifers, due out in June, Jinks and his band headed out west to stir things up and give fans a taste of things to come. After a handful of shows in California and Arizona, including a set at the Stagecoach Music Festival, Jinks headed to Oregon and Idaho.
The Bend, Oregon show on May 5 was a fiery, Saturday night affair in a big, sold-out, warehouse-like room. California country-rock outfit Pearl played a short opening set, then Red Shahan, from Jinks’ home base of Fort Worth, Texas, got the crowd good and loosened up.
Fans were fired up when Jinks and his band hit the stage. For two hours, Jinks held court and drove fans into a frenzy with his uncompromising songs and down-home country sound. He played songs spanning his entire collection of studio releases, from 2010’s Less Wise up to the yet-to-be-released Lifers. The crowd was especially excited when Jinks offered up a song that had never been played live before. A few choice covers where thrown into the mix, including Hank William, Jr.’s “Whiskey Bent And Hell Bound.” And, he didn’t leave out the popular sing-alongs, driving through “Cast No Stones,” “Loud and Heavy,” and culminating in the set-closing “Hippies and Cowboys,” with the elated crowd singing the chorus at full volume.
Red Shahan opened the Boise shows on May 6 and 7. The Texas native has two solid releases under his belt, 2015’s Men and Coyotes, and 2018’s Culberson County. Shahan has the coyote spirit — scavenging the arid West Texas landscape for bits and pieces of life-affirming sustenance and then howling his triumphs and tribulations to those within earshot. Red Shahan is country music with a rock n’ roll engine, his band adding plenty of punch to Shahan’s thoughtful lyrics and compositions.
In Boise, Colter Wall joined the tour. This young Saskatchewan native is an old soul, drawing on old timey, traditional Americana styles to develop his songs, which are then manifested through his deep, raw baritone voice. Whether singing the lead track from his 2017 self-titled album, “Thirteen Silver Dollars,” or the Wilf Carter song “Calgary Roundup,” recorded in 1935, his voice and delivery transport you to another time. It’s deep, spacious stuff, rolling through at a cowpoke’s pace, artfully punctuated by his band. Going forward, any self-respecting western movie that’s made would do well to have at least one Colter Wall song on its soundtrack.
Sunday night’s sold-out show at the Knitting Factory in Boise was a hot one, literally and figuratively. It seems that as the stages have gotten bigger, so has Jinks’ stage presence, feeding off the energy of the crowd and driving the band into some deep grooves. Up-tempo numbers like “Been Around” were ridden especially hard, and were balanced by more slow-rolling tunes like “Somewhere In The Middle” and “Alone.”
Monday was a little less crowded, and Jinks thanked the venue for turning on the air conditioning. The band still brought the heat, however. Jinks paid homage to some of his influences, playing Clint Black’s “Nothing’s News” and Merle Haggard’s “The Way I Am.” One song from the upcoming album has already reached sing-along status, having been played live since January. “Can’t Quit Enough” is a rollicking tune Jinks wrote with Ward Davis about habits formed while living the life of a touring musician. After a compelling mix of originals and covers, and a short encore break, Jinks and his band came out and played the reflective ballad “Rock and Roll,” from 2015’s Adobe Sessions. After performing for two hours straight, Jinks ended his show by letting the audience sing to him. The chorus to “Hippies and Cowboys” is the perfect punctuation mark at the end of a Cody Jinks concert, and serves as a colorful commentary on both Jinks and his fans.
Jinks’ fans are proud for having been along for the ride. They are all the more fervent in their support of Jinks because he’s someone who’s uncompromising in the making of his art. And that, to me, is reflective of what country music is all about. His loyalty to his fans and his muse has paid off in respect and loyalty. It’s easy to see why every Cody Jinks show is a cause for celebration.
It’s comforting to see someone like Jinks, who’s songs you won’t hear in the artistic black hole that is modern country radio, work his ass off, stay true to his convictions over the years, steadily climb to popularity, and pack rooms across the country. Marketing campaigns and hype are not factors in the success of Cody Jink. It’s a story written by hard work, self-respect, and staying true to artistic vision.
