He blends his musical tastes as easily as drinking beer and eating barbecue, and he admits to a diverse musical background. “Although I grew up listening to country legends like Willie Nelson and Charlie Daniels, I was also heavily influenced by rock and pop.” This blend of influences has helped secure Mark a unique place in the country music/southern rock scene– and helped keep him from getting boxed into one genre.
For his debut solo album, Get It On, Mark took from his own experiences (as well as those of his closest friends and family) to produce a collection of songs that has been appropriately described as “foot-stompin’, sing-a-long, feel-good country with a strong melody.”
The album is, in Mark’s own words, “a journey through the mind of a Southern man.” And yet something in the fun and honesty applies to everyone – we can all relate to and take a little something from his music. Mark’s four singles from his debut album were all well received by radio and the Texas Music Chart. Comfortable in This Skin, Party Foul, Bonfire and Stompin’ Ground are radio and fan favorites. In addition, the Bonfire Music Video is playing on both CMT Pure and GAC, and Get It On was the featured country album on iTunes recently for four weeks. For Get It On, Mark teamed up with his best friend, Nashville-based producer Rob Dennis, whose production credits include Lynyrd Skynyrd and Cross Canadian Ragweed.
Along with producing Get It On, Dennis founded the independent record label Super Loud Music – the label Mark now calls home. A new album, Middle America, is scheduled for release early summer 2009. The album is jam-packed with songs written by Mark and his friends. Kevin Fowler even makes a guest appearance in County Line. The lead-off single from the new album is the title track, Middle America, already playing at radio stations to rave reviews. Mark’s high energy live show has won over a legion of fans and earned him a reputation as “The Entertainer” of the country/rock scene.
Whether on the radio or on the stage, Mark McKinney is proving himself a force to be reckoned with. Honesty, energy, home-grown country and a little bit of rock-n-roll are hard to argue with – and Mark is quite comfortable in that skin.
Bonfire
Mark McKinney Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
I'm sure that it would make a great country song
But I wouldn't want to have to re-hash it
Every time I sang along
Well, I been drinkin' every night
To numb my pain
Some would say it a hundred proof
Could fuel a flame
And your thoughts will ignite
It's the way you dumped me
Well, it's just like rot
Chorus:
(I'm gonna) (You gotta) light a bonfire
Burn it to the ground
Stack it high with bad memories
(And) (Then) all the things that let 'ya down
You gotta light a bonfire
Burn it to the ground
Let 'em go all those broken dreams
And the nightmare'll be hell-bound
(All right)
Lord, 'ya know I loved you
But I still got burned
You never see it comin'
That's a lesson I learned
It could blind-side 'ya so damn quick
Hits 'ya like a ton 'a bricks
Well, I finally figured out
You just let it go
Like ashes in the wind
You just let 'em blow
You torch those mem'ries
You know what I mean
Think of your lighter and some mental gasoline
(I'm gonna) (You gotta) light a bonfire
Burn it to the ground
Stack it high with bad memories
(And) (Then) all the things that let 'ya down
You gotta light a bonfire
Burn it to the ground
Let 'em go all those broken dreams
And the nightmare'll be hell-bound
(All right)
Let fire in your mind
Burn hot as the sun
Take a couple shots of whiskey
Hell! Just for fun
One more thing:
Yeah! I'm talking some trash
Before I torch your memory
Well, kiss my...
You gotta light a bonfire
Burn it to the ground
Stack it high with bad memories
Then all the things that let 'ya down
You gotta light a bonfire
Burn it to the ground
Let 'em go all those broken dreams
And the nightmare'll be hell-bound
The song Bonfire by Mark McKinney is an upbeat country tune that talks about the painful process of moving on after a breakup. The singer talks about how he could write a country song about their relationship and where it went wrong, but he doesn't want to keep rehashing those same thoughts and feelings every time he hears it. He mentions that he's been drinking every night to numb his pain, and that some might say his alcohol is strong enough to fuel a flame. This leads him into the chorus, where he advises that you have to light a bonfire and burn all those bad memories to the ground. You stack it high with those things that let you down and let go of all those broken dreams, and the nightmare will be hell-bound.
The singer goes on to talk about how he loved the person who broke his heart, but he still got burned. He explains that sometimes you don't see what's coming, and it hits you like a ton of bricks. He advises just letting it go and thinking of your lighter and some mental gasoline to torch those memories, so they'll blow away like ashes in the wind. He ends the song by singing about burning the memories down and letting them go, and taking a couple of shots of whiskey just for fun.
Overall, the song Bonfire by Mark McKinney is all about letting go of the past and the painful memories of a failed relationship. The singer advises that you have to light a bonfire and burn all those bad memories to the ground, so you can move on and not keep rehashing the same thoughts and feelings every time you hear a song or see a reminder of your past relationship. It's an upbeat and catchy country song that's easy to sing along to, but it also has a deeper message about letting go and moving on.
Line by Line Meaning
Well, I can try ten where we went wrong
I can go through ten different scenarios to determine where we went wrong
I'm sure that it would make a great country song
The different scenarios would be perfect for a country song
But I wouldn't want to have to re-hash it
However, I wouldn't want to constantly revisit those memories
Every time I sang along
Whenever the song plays or is sung
Well, I been drinkin' every night
I have been drinking every night
To numb my pain
To avoid feeling the emotional pain
Some would say it a hundred proof
Some people might say that the alcohol is strong enough to consume a flame
Could fuel a flame
It could ignite a fire
You strike a match
When you strike a match
And your thoughts will ignite
It causes your emotions to inflame
It's the way you dumped me
It's the way you broke up with me that causes this pain
Well, it's just like rot
It's like a decaying, painful memory
You gotta light a bonfire
You have to create a fire
Burn it to the ground
Burn all the painful memories to the ground
Stack it high with bad memories
Put all the bad memories in one place
Then all the things that let 'ya down
Then everything that caused disappointment
Let 'em go all those broken dreams
Let go of all the shattered dreams
And the nightmare'll be hell-bound
And the pain will be extinguished
Lord, 'ya know I loved you
God, You know I loved You
But I still got burned
But I still got hurt
You never see it comin'
It is always unexpected
That's a lesson I learned
That is something I learned from this experience
It could blind-side 'ya so damn quick
It could happen suddenly and catch you off-guard
Hits 'ya like a ton 'a bricks
It hurts like a ton of bricks
Well, I finally figured out
After some thought, I finally realized
You just let it go
You just have to let it all go
Like ashes in the wind
Like letting ashes blow away
You just let 'em blow
You just let the memories dissipate
You torch those mem'ries
You burn all those memories
You know what I mean
You understand what I am saying
Think of your lighter and some mental gasoline
Imagining using your lighter and mentally igniting your painful memories
Let fire in your mind
Let the fire consume your thoughts
Burn hot as the sun
Burn with an intense passion
Take a couple shots of whiskey
Drink some whiskey shots
Hell! Just for fun
Just for fun
Yeah! I'm talking some trash
I am talking some nonsense
Before I torch your memory
Before I burn all our memories
Well, kiss my...
Well, forget it.
Contributed by James E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
Damien Cross
Awesome song. Played this many times at the Steel Rose in Denison Texas as a DJ. This dude will hit it huge one day!