Mike Stephens

Mike Stephens is an American-born folksinger whose songs and poetry reflect his many years on this country's highways and in the low places where truth is seldom a pretty thing. Bob Dylan wrote: "To live outside the law you must be honest." Honesty is what you'll find in Mike's words. For example:

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"There's an orphanage in Detroit

Where the sisters put the children in their beds

Not with stories of St Francis

But cocktails of tranquilizing meds

There are no bars on the windows

But no child ever runs

'Cause Thorazine's its own cage

And the guards look just like nuns..."

(From the song "I Dreamed I Saw St Francis")

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Born in the Detroit, Michigan area in the 1950s, Mike left home at the age of fourteen, roaming throughout North America during his teen years into adulthood. He taught himself how to play guitar and how to write, and soon began performing his songs on stage. In 2017 he fulfilled a lifelong dream of writing a novel (albeit a short one) entitled Last Wind of the Time Traveler which you can read at this site for free. He has also recorded three albums of his songs: Highway 101, Porkpie Jones Live, and Sleeping Near the Exit, all of which can be purchased here. Currently Mike lives in Colorado Springs, Colorado and is working on a new book of poems with his daughter Britta, a brilliant artist who he reconnected with after more than 20 years of separation.

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Mike no longer performs his music but is content to write songs for others. An album of songs he either wrote or co-wrote with friends was released in 2018. The album is called Circling the Moon and you'll find a sampling from this album below.

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If you'd like to join Mike on Facebook, feel free to send a friend request to mike8657.

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Hopefully you'll enjoy your visit here, reading the poetry and novel, listening to the music. Mike always says he has the best friends in the world. In this time of so much pain and hatred, one can't have too many friends. In Mike's world all you have to do is ask.

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