Steve
Earle The Metro Theatre, Sydney
April 2, 2002
For some I-94 Bar readers, the name Steve Earle will not conjure anything remotely rock. But when i94 Bar co-conspirator John McPharlin can review Ken Stringfellow (ex-Posies) review legendary Texas Country music outlaw Kinky Friedman, this reviewer figures Steve Earle can be given the once over too.
For those unaware, Steve Earle has released a dozen or more alternative country singer-songwriter albums including "Guitar Town", "Copperhead Road" (arguably his best and best-known), "Feel Alright", "Train a 'Comin", "The Mountain" (with bluegrass band The Del McCoury Band) among others.
Fans of America's southern punk hard rock rebels The Supersuckers may know him for the CDEP, "Steve Earle and The Supersuckers", which included The Rolling Stones composition "Before They Make Me Run".
This was Earle's third Australian tour and was distinctly different to the first two, as they featured Earle and his band The Dukes. This time he was playing solo, as he does between the release of his albums and when he feels The Dukes can take a break.
His show which went for close to two (at times amazing) hours and began with one of the few covers for the night a song which he'd learned from a Bob Dylan LP, but which (according to his introduction) was written by a former folk singer-neighbour of his in the early 70s.
What followed from there was an hour and a half of his classic songs, old and not so old, including "Guitar Town", "My Old Friend the Blues", "Copperhead Road", "Goodbye","Hometown Blues", "Valentine's Day", "South Nashville Blues", "Taneytown", "You Know the Rest", "Ft. Worth Blues" (his ode to now deceased mentor Townes Van Zandt), "Steve's Last Ramble", "Transcendental Blues", "I ain't ever Satisfied" and "Ellis Unit One" amongst the awesome main set.
Midway through the main set he slipped in a classic pairing of obscure old blues and country songs and handled these incredibly well.
Before the hype and excitement surrounding "the new Dylan-Springsteen" showered upon ex-Whiskeytown leader Ryan Adams, Earle was given this glowing tag. However, he quickly forgot about it and set about writing/performing/recording some amazingly timeless songs and killer albums in the process in a career which is close to two decades plus, beginning with the likes of Townes Van Zandt and Guy Clark providing spiritual and musical "guidance".
His encore included, one of his classic anti-death penalty songs "Billy Austin", which was possibly the highlight of the gig.
For those seeking country music with real renegade rock-n-roll attitude and energy with plenty of class songwriting/guitar playing wise, you can hardly go past Steve Earle, whose show at The Metro, would have to be close to one of my favorite gigs for the year. - Simon Li
