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Having been a musician most of my life I have always checked out folks I'm not familiar with, but Steve Earle was an extreme occurance dictated by fate for me. I had recently read some positive articles, he had just released 'I Feel Alright' and came across pretty much his entire catalog in the used section of a record store in Florida, some poor soul must have needed money desperatley, I can't even imagine. Anyway, having never heard a note of his music I bought everything...First thing I popped in was 'Alright' cause I'd read a bunch about it, and immediatley loved it...everything about it. Have been Die-Hard ever since, and there's always that point with his newest disc that I think,...'Damn this is good,..this might be his best disc ever'. I just sure am glad I went into that store that day. The great thing was I was on vacation so I got to spend a week hangin on the beach getting to know all those great discs...

Anyone else recall how they discovered Earle, and was it as skyfalling a moment as it was for me?

I believe we spoke about this on the old forum, but my introduction to Steve Earle was hearing back to the Wall on BBC Radio 1 in 1988 and I immediately thought it was John Cougar Mellencamp as it has the same intro feel as "Paper in Fire" then Steve started singing, Custer started drumming and I was hooked big time!  I even skipped school the next day to buy the album and listen to it at home!  I also skipped college the day 'The Hard Way' came out too!!  I visited every record fair I could finding any rare Steve stuff and picked up a number of rarities that i still have! I must have over 100 Steve boots dating right back to 1983 from his tour with the Early Tracks band.

Its funny that the very first Steve song I heard (Back to the Wall) is still to date not only my favourite Steve song ever, but my favourite song of any artist!

 

 

 

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"I'm not late, if I wouldn't have shown up at all, this would be considered early!"

I've loved Steve Earle since I was a kid. When I was 16 or 17 me and the Old Man didn't get along too well and the Exit 0 album was a huge crutch for me. I love the songs "Angry Young Man", "Hillbilly Highway", "Gettin' Tough", "Nowhere Road", "You Belong to Me" and "It's All Up to You"... I mean I love them all, but these are my favorites. Steve's music inspired my learning to play the guitar and I write my own songs. I'm 37 now and I never tire of Steve's music.

oooh I get to tell my story again... I discovered Steve Earle by accident - less than one year ago I bought a bargain bin cd called "Country Rock Hits" for a couple dollars (at a Ross Dress for Less store of all places!!) that had some good Southern Rock songs on it, including a song called "Guitar Town" by some dude named Steve Earle (who?). That was it. Best song on the whole cd. I think within the next week I bought "The Definitive Collection" and the rest is history. Since then I have listened to little else. I still wonder how in the hell I missed Steve and his music all those years..... oh yeah, I was a metalhead in the late 1980s.... oh well, better late than never!!

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" Shut up and learn something. "

Yeah, we've done this thread, but what the hell - it's fun ain't it?!

Guitar Town had just come out and there was a segment on our video channel, Much Music, that was about guitar heroes. Now, I don't know how Steve fit in with Eddie Van Halen, Ying Yang Malmsteen and Michael Schenker - might have been a misunderstanding based on the title of the tune (not that he isn't a great guitar player, but the stuff they usually focused on was the pop metal of the day.) 

I was a young metal head but was intrigued by the guy's look and accent - I was waiting to hear all the hammer ons and pull offs.

Then it started. That muscular guitar sound and "Hey pretty baby are you ready for me..."

Yep. Bought the record the next day. Changed how I thought about music.  

 

 

 

Just browsing the internet, listening to different music samples. An a Guitar Town by a Steve Earle - I heard that name in connection with Johnny Cash before - sounded quite interesting, so I bought it. And first loved only Guitar Town and Someday - it's chorus at least. :-P

Where to start well it likely began where most of my youthful musical adventures started, finding something interesting in my buddies older broters record colection. In this case Exit 0. Shortly there after Copperhead came out and I just started buying the records as they came out. The pause between The Hard way and train a comin' seemed interminable but the wait was worth it. FAv tunes? well all of them but currently "jerusalem", "goodbye","Someday" "Gringo's Tale" I'm on the road right now and my iPod is loaded up with a ton of Steve's stuff and Guy Clark and Townes too It's lonely out here but I have good company,

Peace

I heard "Hardcore Troubadour" in Talladega Nights and really liked it but didn't start listening to Earle until about a year later.  I had been really into Def Leppard and wanted to get into someone new for the school year, so I picked up "I Feel Alright" (because it had Troubadour) on a lark.  I didn't like it at first, but it grew on me so I bought "Ain't Ever Satisfied" and was hooked. 

Listening to Radio 1, Mike Smith Show who introduced Steve as having the best new voice of the year. The track was 'The Rain Came Down', sounded like perfect Country/Rock to me sung with passion and conviction, a sound I had never really heard before. Shortly afterwards bought Exit O and Guitar Town, maybe the perfect country album.

DenisWright:

Listening to Radio 1, Mike Smith Show who introduced Steve as having the best new voice of the year.

!MIke Smith!

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'I don't mean to sound bitter, cold, or cruel, but I am, so that's how it comes out.' Bill Hicks (R.I.P.)

For me it was 1980 something and I heard Guitar Town and that is all it took.  Love that song!  Been a huge fan ever since.

I too, began listening to Steve Earle with Guitar Town.  I used to sing my youngest son to sleep with Little Rock n' Roller.  I am a rock n' roller and Steve Earle is the best.  I have yet to see him live in concert but I have been told there is no better show out there.  Keep Rockin' Steve so me and my kids can have something real to listen to.

 Jas from Nova Scotia

"Sky falling moment"   - pretty good description.

I can place it now as a tv show called "Sessions on West 54th Street"- had heard Guitar Town and a few  of his songs, but that  really caught my attention.

Anybody know when that was taped?  Some songs on YouTube are from that show, they brought back the moment when I first encountered his music.

Mid-1988 while living in Athens, Greece (military). A friend of mine made me a compilation tape (a tape!) that had Guitar Town on it. I didn't know Steve Earle from Joe Bob but I learned the lyrics in a short minute and sang along at the top of my lungs while cruising the great Med city. I've seen Steve at least ten times since then, all over the World, and he's my desert island artist - in a narrow win over Brent Best.

Long live Steve Earle.

Todd

I found Steve on PBS. I heard his music and am now hooked.

It's great listening! It's just a shame it took me so long.

Thanks for doing what ya do.

Linda