Saving Country Music’s 2021 Single of the Year

Country songs about country songs are as tried and true of a tradition in country music as any. They can also trend toward cliché if you’re not careful. But this is what Mike and the Moonpies do best: they take time tested themes in country music and instill them in new compositions that feel warmly familiar and infectiously fresh all at the same time. They’re the masters of this action, and their single “Hour On The Hour” is perhaps the perfect example. It also might be the closest thing to the perfect single we heard in 2021.
Why are we such suckers for country songs about country songs? Because country music plays such an elemental part of our lives. Every major life event—breakup, hookup, birth of a child, death of a parent—whatever country song happens to be hitting our brains at the time becomes irrevocably tied to that memory forever. “Hour On The Hour” encapsulates this phenomenon in a way that trying to explain it to someone who’s never experienced this before just never could.
This is the first year that Saving Country Music has named a “Single of the Year,” and the idea was to give the slappers and bangers an opportunity for recognition right beside the more serious and erudite Song of the Year nominees. But with “Hour On The Hour,” it’s a banger and a deep song all at the same time. It’s the best of both worlds.
What really sends this song over the moon beyond the writing and the steel guitar of Zach Moulton is how near the end, Mike Harmeier is singing his guts out. You can hear the tears in his voice. You’re right there in the truck cab with him rolling down the road when that damn song comes on that cuts to the bone. It’s so painful, stirring emotion in you just like many of the moments of Mike and the Moonpies’ 2021 album One To Grow On.
The perfect country and Western song? Let’s not anger the blood of David Alan Coe, or stir the spirits of John Prine and Steve Goodman. But it’s a darn good one. And so is the entirety of One To Grow On, so much so that the whole album is being considered for Album of the Year as well. Meanwhile, those that saw Mike and the Moonpies Live in 2021 (or any time before) will attest they’re one of the greatest live bands out there right now on the road.
We love to romanticize about how our favorite little independent country bands are being so unfairly overlooked in an unjust era in music when the cream so rarely rises to the top. But with Mike and the Moonpies, they really present a bulletproof argument for being one of the best out there, while the gulf between their prevalence compared to the quality of their output is only fair to characterize as criminal. “Hour On The Hour” proves why.
See the rest of the Saving Country Music Single of the Year Nominees.
December 26, 2021 @ 9:46 am
As well it should be! What a worthy winner.
December 26, 2021 @ 3:18 pm
I liked Toby Keith old school very underrated
December 27, 2021 @ 5:07 am
I didn’t find old school all that country
December 26, 2021 @ 10:15 am
This was by far the best choice for single of the year. Nothing hits like the last chorus “it PLAAays on my radioOoO”. Mike did that for us!
Semi-recent jeremy pinnell album also has several bangers btw. Rips pretty hard
December 26, 2021 @ 4:25 pm
That high note he hits is magic!
December 26, 2021 @ 10:16 am
Great choice Trigger! I agree that it’s damn near perfect.
December 26, 2021 @ 10:20 am
My Single of the Year (Overall & AustralAsia):
“Home Truth” – Catherine Britt
My Single of the Year (USA, Canada & Beyond):
“Bourbon Whiskey” – William Beckmann
December 26, 2021 @ 11:01 am
Olar,
Thanks for the William Beckmann reference. Hes got a pretty good voice and he plays in the old honky-tonk style, with a touch of the Country-politan sound. Trig, I know you can’t listen/review everything, but this guy needs to be on peoples radar. Young guy, kinda along the lines of a Mo Pitney.
As for Mike and The Moonpies, I’m all aboard the train. Waiting to get a vinyl copy of the new record.
December 26, 2021 @ 12:56 pm
Thanks for the William Beckmann recommendation – great song and great find! His style reminds me of Drake Milligan.
December 26, 2021 @ 1:51 pm
He released “In The Dark” after “Boubon Whiskey”.
What a great, sad & emotional song…
“In The Dark” is my Song of the Year (outside of AustralAsia).
The videos to both tracks are great too.
His current release is a cover of “I’m On Fire”.
A couple of years ago he did a cover of “Angel From Montgomery” too.
William Beckmann is from Del Rio (Texas). “Bourbon Whiskey” made the Top 10 of the Texas Top 100 midyear & is the #22 single of the year. (Source: Texas Radio Report)
December 26, 2021 @ 11:07 pm
Thanks for the introduction to William Beckmann. He’s got a very old school voice to him and he does a pretty good version of Volver Volver.
December 26, 2021 @ 11:24 am
Congrats to Mike and all the guys along with Adam on the single of the year victory. They consistently go above and beyond year after year enriching our lives with incredible music. One of my top 2 live shows of the year seeing them at Shank Hall in Milwaukee. Just kicking back in the front row, getting up and dancing with everyone singing along. An amazing feeling. I remember myself and others posing the question to Trigger a few years back “why can’t an up tempo song be song of the year?” I’m glad we now have this category and a well deserved first time winner.
December 26, 2021 @ 12:18 pm
Yeah good pick Trigger. Most years this kind of award is very much a toss up, but it would’ve been straight up criminal not to pick this song. Listened to this over 100 times probably and I still get chills a lot of the time when Mike hits that “of someone walking out the doooooooooooooor” line. Everything on this song hits just perfect, from the lyrics to the vocals to the instrumentation. I’d argue that “Hour on the Hour” is the best song not just this year but of the last several. It’s an all timer for me, and that’s not just recency bias. Mike and the Moonpies knocked it out of the park on this one and I’m glad it got proper recognition.
December 26, 2021 @ 12:27 pm
Love everything about this band, and love them live. But am I the only one that wishes he could sing just a little closer to pitch?
Anyway, great “single” regardless.
December 26, 2021 @ 1:17 pm
That steel guitar is worthy of vocal performance of the year.
December 26, 2021 @ 2:18 pm
Congrats to Mike & the Moonpies. Zach is downright nasty on the steel !!
December 26, 2021 @ 3:50 pm
I guess I’m the only one who doesn’t care much for his nasally vocal tone. (Which is weird ‘cuz I really like Kasey Chambers.) Pretty decent song though. I’ll admit that my music listening time was way down from usual this year… too many family health issues and other woke “drama”.
December 26, 2021 @ 5:12 pm
The correct answer is Rainy Day, from the same record
December 26, 2021 @ 5:13 pm
My song of the year was Mac Leaphart’s “That Train”.
December 26, 2021 @ 6:05 pm
If my count is correct, this is the third piece of SCM hardware Mike & the Moonpies are taking home. Don’t know if there’s any other artist who can boast as many. Congratulations! Well done, and well deserved.
December 26, 2021 @ 8:47 pm
Haven’t listened to these guys before and after listening here to this song, I probably won’t listen to anymore. The band seems good and the song itself seems ok and they would be a good band to see at a local bar. But I don’t care for the guys singing at all but I know a lot of people here like this group so it’s all good far as single of the year.
December 27, 2021 @ 3:24 am
I’m planning to go see them live in Germany in april if this f*$%£/g virus gets out of the way!
December 27, 2021 @ 7:41 am
It’s endemic. You need your government to get out of the way.
December 27, 2021 @ 10:22 am
if i have to wait for the italian government to get out of the way i might as well see the next show in 2354
December 27, 2021 @ 8:47 am
Not sure if this is the proper avenue to bump this, but Potential 2022 single of the year candidate, Jason Hawk Harris, posted on his Twitter that he is currently trying to raise money to finish his second record. says he needs $4000 to finish. if he can get $2000 by 1/10 he’ll finish by Feb and included his venmo (jasonhawkharris). Any little bit helps get more good music!!
December 27, 2021 @ 3:47 pm
Never have gotten into the Moonpies like you Trigger so can’t quite agree with the choice here, but to each his own. At least they have a cool name.
December 28, 2021 @ 11:17 am
Annnd now I’m playing this on semi-permanent repeat. Thanks Trigger!
December 29, 2021 @ 3:08 pm
Excellent!
December 29, 2021 @ 5:40 pm
Kept waiting for the other harmonies to come in. If there’s mikes on the front row, I expect good harmonies, at least in the chorus. After 30 years doing mostly copy Country and lots of Eagles stuff, found that most requests followed what we did in 4-part.
My 2-bits worth from Southern Flyer in Lethbridge Alberta Canada. Happy New Year – with no place to play these days!