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Steve Earle (born 17 January 1955) is an American singer-songwriter known worldwide for his rough shade of alt-rock, deep fired in years of country tradition. In addition to his prolific career as a recording artist he is also a political activist, actor, novelist, and theatrical writer.
Earle was born in Hampton, Virginia, United States in the 50s, but spent the majority of his childhood in San Antonio, Texas. He learned how to play the guitar at age 11 and by the time he reached 14 he was placing in talent contests. Earle was rebellious as a child and naturally evaded school to focus on music. He ran away from home at 14, dropped out of school at 16 and not long after moved in with his uncle in Texas, who was only a couple of years older and was also a musician. When Earle was 19 he pursued a music career in Nashville and supported himself through various odd jobs. He eventually acquired the position as a staff songwriter for Sunbury Dunbar, but grew bored with Nashville and rerooted to Texas where he formed a group called The Dukes.
Earle returned to Nashville in the 80s as a ghostwriter and had some of his work performed by national legends such as Johnny Lee, Zella Lehr and Carl Perkins. In 1982 he emerged as a solo artist, releasing the studio EP “Pink & Blackâ€. His music teeters on the line of Springsteen style roots rock and traditional outlaw country revivalism. Although his recordings very rarely peered into the mainstream, he was venerated as a cult hero. Earle’s sound took inspiration from country (Merle Haggard, Hank Williams) folk iconoclasts (Bob Dylan, Neil Young) and most notably his personal idol, Townes Van Zandt (whom he named his son, Justin Townes Earl after).
His studio debut album “Guitar Town†was issued in 1986 to critical and commercial acclaim. It followed in line with the trend of rockabilly, which was popular during that time, but it also acted as a strong reinforcement of Townes unique style. Earle put two more albums out in the 80s “Exit o†(1987) and “Copperhead Road†(1988). The latter of the album’s was ostensibly the first of it’s kind to mix the genres of heavy metal and bluegrass. The album’s track “Johnny Come Lately†is a standout on the album in large respects due to the Pogues’ memorable contribution. Earle’s 4th studio album “The Hard Way†came out in 1990 and marked his last release through MCA. By this time Earle had fallen deep into substance abuse and put his life as a recording artist on hold.
He emerged with a vengeful comeback in 1995, putting out his highly anticipated follow up “Train a Comin’â€. The album featured Peter Rowan, Norman Blake, Roy Huskey, and Emmylou Harris and earned him a Grammy nomination in the category “Best Contemporary Folkâ€. This phase saw Earle in full swing and welcomed a frequent and consistent output of albums spanning from the mid 1990s to the early 2000s: “I Feel Alright†(1996), “El Corazon†(1997), “Transcendental Blues†(2000), “Jerusalem†(2002), and “The Revolution Starts Now†(2004).
After a three year break between studio albums he released his 11th studio album “The Revolution Start’s Nowâ€, which brought him his 2nd consecutive Grammy award. His 2009 follow up “Townes†featured experimental virtuoso guitarist Tom Morello and peaked to No. 19 on the US Billboard 200. Acclaimed songwriter, musician, and sound engineer T-Bone Burnett produced Earle’s next album “I’ll Never Get out of This World Aliveâ€. The title shares it’s name with a Hank Williams‘ song as well as with Earle’s first novel. Earle released his 15th studio album “The Low Highway†on 16 April 2013 through the record label New West.
Read moreI had never seen Steve Earle in a solo concert until last night, though I've seen him many times over the past 20 years, most often with his band, the Dukes, in much larger venues. I have to say that last night's concert at The Kessler Theater in Dallas was my very favorite Steve Earle concert thus far. He is always an inspiring performer and he has come such a long way in his attitude toward what it really means to be an American songwriter. He sang songs about women, love and loss; always casting himself as a romantic who was inspired by his parents' lengthy marriage to never give up on love and marriage. He amused us with a story about how his thinking about keeping a loaded shot gun under his mattress changed radically after his 14 year old son came to live him. He sang his beautiful song, "City of Immigrants" after he told a story about the positive influence of the many immigrants with whom he interacts on a daily basis in New York City. He sang his beautiful song, "Galway Girl" about many of our Irish ancestors and then, he transitioned into Copperhead Road. He'll be releasing a new cd soon based on Guy Clark songs. He refers to Guy as "his teacher", to whom he became close after he moved to Nashville about 40 years ago by way of his previous relationship with Townes Van Zandt. I can't wait to buy it!
It is quite impressive to see the following that Steve Earle has amassed over his career, with a number of fans in the audience looking old enough to have purchased his very first EP way back in 1982. The singer/songwriter has enjoyed critical and commercial success which has taken him around the globe numerous times so his interaction with the crowd between tracks is assured to be interested.
Often described as something of a social commentator within his music, Steve uses the platform to express his views on a number of causes to receive a number of small nods of approval as if to say 'right on'. His performance style remains relatively unchanged with his trusty guitar in hand and very little else to distract from the music.
There is an organic, humble mentality to his performance style and therefore the whole gig feels intimate and personable. By his final bows Steve has well and truly proved that musical integrity and a trueness to your original goal means you can achieve consistent relevance without having to sell yourself short.
One thing you can bet will occur at a Steve Earle show is a man that speaks his mind. Whether with topical gems like Copperhead Road, Devil's Right Hand or Ashes to Ashes or with his occasional stage lectures on the state of American policy which often divides the crowd between old “Guitar Town “ alt.country fans and “Washington Square Serenade†political folk fans.
Earle doesn’t ignore any part of his extraordinary catalog live and everyone will walk way happy. His shows are always genuine and his band is always some of the best players around. His songs are stories themselves, and Earle often shares details of where songs came from and events that triggered them.
I’ve seen Earle play a large festival (Hardly Strictly Bluegrass) and solo in a small room (The Village Vanguard) and assure you he brings the same amount of passion, energy and humor to all his shows.
They aren’t making many like Earle any more, go celebrate him while you can.
A solo acoustic concert which hit the spot on a snowy night in Kansas. Steve covered a wide range of songs including his best know and 2 upcoming songs, 1 a Guy Clark cover, (his next album is Guy Clark songs which sounds amazing) and the other from an off-Broadway musical about W Virginia coal mines. Shannon McNally was a strong opening act. He joined her for the encore and she joined him for a wonderful rendition of Goodbye.
He got a little frisky at one point near the end as an audience member wanted him to sing more and talk less. Steve shut that down. I don't understand how people don't know his politics at this point. I mean you're at the show, you've listened to his music, soooo yeah he's gonna say shit.
Some great stories as well, my favorite one about 14 year old Justin and a gun. He's just so authentic.
It was an intimate show, just Steve and his guitar. Enjoyed the Townes Van Zandt stories and covers as well as the new material from Terraplane. Nice to see him up close and chat after the show.
He’s an awesome performer and works as hard as anyone, right up there with Springsteen. His band is tight and the whole concert flowed from beginning to end. Two plus hours of his best work.
He was fantastic, acoustic set, told some great stories with humor , played old and new stuff. Intimate setting a theater, like being in coffee house or living room. Would see again.
Want to see Steve Earle in concert? Find information on all of Steve Earle’s upcoming concerts, tour dates and ticket information for 2025-2026.
Steve Earle is not due to play near your location currently - but they are scheduled to play 9 concerts across 1 country in 2025-2026. View all concerts.
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