There’s a certain kind of sad-bastard-in-a-bar song that I really
love. I sometimes fantasize about owning a dive bar with a jukebox
filled with old forty-fives, and if I did, I would definitely have
more than a few sad-bastard-in-a-bar songs on there to cue up as
closing time approached. These songs would be about country music
themes like unrequited love and drinking, or, in the case of the Del
Shannon song I’ve posted below, both. It would be a grave injustice to
do this post without including something by Lee Hazlewood, who may
well be the patron saint of sad drinkers everywhere. So many Hazlewood
songs fit the bill that it’s tough to choose one, but I’m going to go
with “After Six” for the laconic perfection of its deadpan lyrics.

After Six-Lee Hazelwood