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 The first song i ever heard was The Highwaymen's cover of "The Devils Right Hand". after that it was a couple covers done by The Supersuckers. I saw The Supersuckers in the fall of 05 with Social Distortion and enjoyed their show a whole bunch so i went out and purchased and downloaded a whole bunch of their stuff. included there were covers of "Here I Am" and "I dont wanna lose you yet",as well as the EP with Steve. Due to me liking those songs so much i went out and got a whole bunch of steve earle stuff and i have been a big fan since then. i also belive that i heard Johnny Cash's cover of "the devils right hand" from unearthed before i heard any actual steve earle songs as well.

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i aint never satisfied

Hey you are right the very first was The Devils Right Hand from Unearthed. But I didn't like it :D

i didnt like it as much as the version by the highwaymen.

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i aint never satisfied

 

Hi guys...... the first I heard was when I bought 7" single "Johnny Come Lately" because it featured the Pogues – it connected with ageing UK punks like me.

Now if Joe Strummer had been born in Texas he may have been called Steve Earle… but if Steve Earle had been playing in a London punk band in 1977 English rock’n’roll history would have been re-written!!!

I heard "The Other Kind" on the radio, and was hooked instantly...

well the first Steve song I ever heard was also Copperhead Road.  But I swear it was 1982 or 83.  I even remember what I was doing.  It was about 5 A.M. and I was getting ready to head to my job as an assembler at a washer and dryer factory in Southern Illinois.  I was immediately blown away.  It was quite an unusual song to hear in an area so close to the bible belt and at a time when many country stations were just a tad conservative.  But I digress.  Last night a friend and i were talking about  Steve and I related the above story to him.  "No way", he said.  "Copperhead Road didn't come out until 88 or 89".  Well this turned into an argument and a tongue in cheek 10,000 dollar bet.  So today I've been burning up the computer trying to find the date Copperhead Road was 1st recorded and received airplay.  All I get is that the "song" Copperhead Road was 1st recorded on an album titled Nowhere Road.  The album, Copperhead Road, was released in 88.  But when I try to find out about Nowhere Road and or the song Copperhead Road were released I come up with a lot of vague info. And this is coming from Steve's web sight.  So can anyone help me win my bet and save my reputation at least as far as my musical knowledge is concerned?  Can you help a sister out?  Thanks MA

The first Steve Earle song I can remember listening to was Copperhead Road. I was just a baby, and I know I listened to Exit 0 and Guitar town when I was a little too. My earliest memory is riding in my dad's jeep singing Copperhead Road. Steve's music has been a part of my life since I was born, and I can't even begin to imagine living without it.

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Have mercy on me,
Have mercy on me,
I'm a sinner Lord can't you see,
Have mercy on me.

Copperhead road was the first, and only song I heard from him for many years, and I also swear that it came out in the early to mid eighties. Liked it, but didn't think much of it then. Years later a couple of guys I worked with turned me on to his post rehab music, probably Train a comin and I feal allright, been a fan ever since.

 They still only play Copperhead road on the radio in Pittsburgh.

 

Yeah, they still only play Copperhead Road on the radio here too. It is a great tune...but Steve has tons and tons more songs they could play...if not for the Almight Radio Gods.

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"I got me a fearless heart"

Yeh, It seems that Steve Earle is the acceptable acoustic artist that metal and rock musicians can listen to without being chastised. I was 19 and playing full blown metal when I heard Copperhead Rd in a pub in western Sydney. I bought the album and everything since and now I'm an acoustic artist myself playing similar stuff. The thing I like most about the man is his effortless socio-political slant, it's never forced or false, its the truth and a way of life as far as he (and I) are concerned. All hail Steve.

It was 1986, I was in my work truck (electrician) eating my lunch parked outside a feed mill here in OKC, listening to KXXY 96.1 on your FM dial. I was chewing a bite of bologna and cheese sandwich when BAM! like a lightning bolt through my aural receptors the opening riff of "Guitar Town" came driving from my boom box speakers(cheap work truck). I bought the album that same week and after listening to it I started looking around for Steve cause I thought he was spying on me and writing my life. I identified so strongly with those first two albums, and grew with the rest right up to "Serenade". I believe God is with Steve. "Guitar Town" is probably my most favorite song. Carry On, Steve. Via Con Dios, Amigo.

That's a great fuckin story. And maybe he is spying on you. Better someone like Steve than a politician or lawyer or something. Imagine Condelleza Rice peeking through your bedroom window??

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"Think for yourself. Question authority." - Timothy Leary

Hey, I'm going to be a lawyer! So if you are naughty I will peek through you window!!

In 1986 I was seventeen when I heard "Guitar Town",and it had a similar effect to the first time I listened to Springsteen's "Thunder Road". I didn't want to listen to anything else for a week. A great moment.

I first discovered Steve Earle after watching a movie (P.S. I Love You with Hilary Swank) that had one of his songs in it.  The song was Galway Girl - what a fabulous song!  I had never heard anything like it!  I love all of his songs on Transcendental Blues and Washington Square Serenade; my favorite is When I Fall - the theme of unconditional love and redemption resonates long after the song ends.  His music is pretty eclectic and difficult to describe, which is perfectly fine except when I am trying to describe it to my friends who generally listen to rap/hip-hop/dance-pop. He  appears to have a pretty  interesting personality as well - I was listening to Transcendental Blues at work and when the song before Galway Girl ended, I turned up the volume just in time to hear him say something like "Let's magnetize this mother f*cker".  Even though it was after-hours at work, there were quite a few people around, so it caused a bit of a stir.  The good thing was that everyone became enamored with the song.

I am really looking forward to exploring and hearing his other, older songs; I had no idea that he was such a prolific artist who had been around for many years.  His music is not of my generation, but I am so glad that I made this serendipitous finding.  A mark of a true artist is that his talents have lasting impact and appeal, which is what Steve Earle has in abundance.