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Mike McAbee a professional musician and standup comic, a sensitive “American Idol”
Editor's note I wrote this a few years ago but I think this pretty well sums up an artist who I think is one of our region's own great performers

Mike McAbee sings and tells jokes in bars, at private parties and on stages throughout the upper Mississippi River Valley. He claims two towns as home, Waukon Iowa and Stevens Point WI. Born in Dodgeville, WI he is the son of Roger and SuAnn Mcabee. He has one sister, Dawn and a son, Abe.

He is a “professional” musician and comic, meaning he has made the deliberate and, as he defines it, “pragmatic” decision to give up his career as a trucker and to put on shows three times a week. McAbee, an accomplished songwriter, puts on quite a different show than anything presented so far on this ON STAGE page. He likes to play what he describes as lyrically driven songs.

Mike has been gifted with a beautiful singing voice, and emulates famous songs by a host of known artists from Johnny Cash to Lynyrd Skynyrd to Billy Joel. He, in fact, shows up to his performances with a set list of over 200 songs from a genre he describes as “real folk music.” Mike’s true and most charming talent is his ability to convincingly and interestingly sing and tell a story as he is playing. His skill to play a favorite song and then hilariously drop a one-liner about something or someone in the crowd during the same song will make even the most serious at heart giggle out loud. This guy will do anything in his performance from walking outside onto the front porch of the bar if that is what the lyrics at the time dictates, to walking atop the bar playing his guitar, stepping over drinks, dodging overhead light fixtures, greeting guests, singing his song, cracking a joke all the while never missing a beat. Maybe the most entertaining of his antics is his attempt at Elvis-like gyrations.

His not so subtle style is out and out funny. Mike is talented musically and comedically. He is borderline genius if not definitely quick witted. At the same time this entertainer is charmingly humble and not the least bit obnoxious.

Mike attended Luther College in Decorah in the late '80s, which is largely why following his divorce from his first wife in Stevens Point WI he moved back to Iowa to set up shop. After working as a truck driver for eight years, Mike realized his true passion was for songwriting and performing. More importantly, a career where he alone determined his work schedule would be much better suited for him to take care of his son Abe and his parents who lives near Mike’s second home in Stevens Point. “I am mostly motivated to make this music career work because it allows me the time I need to be with my son,” says McAbee.

Mike’s inspiration for his music comes straight out of his own experiences. He is not shy in anyway about putting the stories of his life out there in song. Mike, at age 38, has been divorced twice, is a retired truck driver, the father of a young son and the son of minister, a resident of the upper Midwest, and wildly enough has spent a portion of his adult life calling a camper attached to a hearse home.
All of this subject material cleverly finds it way into his songs. “I have to draw on personal experience to be convincing and you know you can’t draw a line on what is too personal to sing about and still be believable,” explains Mike. It is quite possibly from this strong sense of honesty that this man’s career is soaring. He puts on over 200 performances a year and is never at a shortage for gigs or tunes to play.

His repertoire of self-written songs is more than 50. Songs that are entitled the likes of: 20 Cars, Kiss you in Coulee Region, Allamakee, Strike It Middle Class, Wisconsin Small Town Polka, Peeing Outside and Divorce Alone. Many of these songs are available to listen to on his website, mikemcabee.com. At the same time, his three CDs are also available online to purchase. CDs sales have gone well for this songwriter as over 3500 copies have been sold.

Mike recorded a children’s CD, a fact that explains the sensitive nature of this hard working singer. Two years ago, a young boy from the Decorah area was killed in a farm accident. This young boy had a favorite song that was written by Mike. The family knew how important the song was to their son; they asked Mike to sing at his funeral. Of course Mike agreed. He really hadn’t realized he had a following of kids that liked his funny songs. But once he was aware of this, he proceeded to record a CD at the North Winn Elementary School with the help of the boy’s former classmates when some of the proceeds were dedicated to a memorial in honor of the young boy.

Mike Mcabee is well thought out promoter of his career as he picks and chooses his appearances based on what he believes will best advance his career. “I have been paid well to play places like hotel lounges with crowds amounting to one or two people,” says Mcabee. He admits this is easy money but as he is playing he is disappointed it may be time wasted because as he performs he is wondering what other place he could have been playing where he might have been able to advance his career. Mike has played on stages at county fair stages including the Fayette Co Fair. His biggest show, to date, was a stint on his own stage at the Country USA event held in Oshkosh WI, an event which also hosted the likes of Kenny Chesney and Martina McBride.

He is a self proclaimed country music performer. He explains his love for what he calls a simple style to play. Mike was very close to his maternal grandfather, who lived in the small Ohio town of Castalia. “My grandpa, [Harry Maul] was a country music performer. He played country songs every day of his life, since the 1930s.” Mike explains it was his Grandpa Maul that probably influenced his music career at young age. Now after life had taken him on a few twists and turns he finds it funny that he is actually pursuing a career he proclaimed would be his, at the age of 12, while admiring his grandpa.

The following lyrics from Mike’s popular song “Divorce Alone” are a great example of Mike’s ability to write from his heart but to wrap it up in a crafty wit somewhat reminiscent of the '70s hit comedy and country show Hee-Haw. “Momma cried when we said I do, Momma cried when we said I don’t. Marry and the world marries with you divorce and you divorce alone… You didn’t put your picture in the paper this time around but ain’t it funny cause word still spread all over town...”

This singer is also has amazing stamina. Capable of performing for up to four hours straight, this guy is the consummate entertainer. Although he has peddled his music on several occasions in Nashville with moderate success, Mike is very careful about what he wishes. Not looking for a national career that would take him away from his family, he would surely like to see his career to advance to the point where he would play local concert halls throughout the Midwest, with the Elkader Opera House as one of his desired venues. This humble, funny, talented but yet confident guy sums up his aspirations, “I don’t think I am some genius, but I would like to think I am capable of playing concerts and just the bars I want to play.” Personally, I think he has got it. WIN TICKETS to the OCTOBER 24 LIVE CD Recording at the Elkader Opera House .