The Album Review Club - Week #147 - (page 1942) - Blonde On Blonde - Bob Dylan

[OB1]

Guitar Town – Steve Earle

@threespires has expressed surprise that the nominated album isn’t Copperhead Road, and @OB1 has said that he had this down as a possible (as did I). That should tell you what a big deal Steve Earle is to some on this thread, and Copperhead Road is so good that it even made number 412 in Colin Larkin’s list.

But instead, we are listening to Earle’s first album, Guitar Town, which is fine by me. Introduced to his music in 1988 by my girlfriend at the time, I bought this album and the follow-up, Exit 0 early in the year, bought Copperhead Road when it came out and then got to see him in concert at The International later in the same year. So musically, 1988 was the year of Steve Earle for me.

What I am concerned about with this pick is that people will listen and just hear typical country music. The production is a bit thinner than what would come later but the way Steve Earle sings, the quality of his songs shine through. So, I see this as a useful marker of where he started – the whole point of the New Country genre was to leave the glitzy pop polish and sequined outfits behind, and on this album, he certainly does that.

Let’s start with the best songs. The album kicks off with “Guitar Town”, a chipper little number about a guy in a band, and “Someday” is a song about a young guy working a dead-end gas station job and wanting to leave town and is, as AllMusic states, the best Springsteen song that the Boss didn’t write.

“Good Ol’ Boy” sees the protagonist battling 80s Reaganomics, with lyrics like "I got a job but it ain't nearly enough" and "I was born in the land of plenty now there ain't enough", Steve Earle manages to match his powerful lyrics with a muscular band sound.

Elsewhere, as Mancitydoogle says, "Little Rock 'n' Roller" takes on extra poignancy with the recent death of Earle’s son, Justin. When he sings “I know there's an angel just for rock 'n' rollers watchin' over you and your daddy tonight", it turns out to be true for the father who survived prison and a heroin/cocaine addiction, but sadly not for his son.

"My Old Friend the Blues" is a nicely played song that was later covered by The Proclaimers. I’ve always enjoyed the upbeat "Goodbye's All We've Got Left" and "Hillbilly Highway" but from memory, the album tailed off after “Someday”. However, listening again this morning, it’s apparent how good songs like “Fearless Heart” and “Down The Road” are, and only “Think It Over” sounds like some old country pastiche.

I understand why @Mancitydoogle picked this album; it was the one that got him into country music and of course it was Earle’s major label debut. But the fact is that good as this album is, it didn’t represent where he eventually took the music and, in my opinion, his best albums are Copperhead Road, The Hard Way and I Feel Alright. On these albums, the guitars truly buzz and are frequently joined by mandolins and other eclectic instruments. There are some fantastic songs on his first two albums, but later on his band’s playing, the production and the arrangements lifted him to another level. 8/10

Excellent, thoughtful review, as ever and one I totally agree with.

Given other scores I have given recently I will also have to go with 8/10.

 

[Mancitydoogle]

I was thinking all along this would be a separate thread and 5 sounded good for me. I think having this here would clutter up and take away from the singular album which we cover and focus on, and I don't want to be meddling or distracting from the current album at hand either (beyond which a Rolling Stone article on a particular instrument and the like will occasionally do).

I already have this and the playlist, so not even sure how I could fit this in, but I'm getting lots of good music from both now, so I'm willing to give a 3rd a go, especially for "the missing years".

One of my favourite John Prine albums.

 

[Black&White&BlueMoon Town]

One of my favourite John Prine albums.

I didn't think you'd let that nod get past, well done, Sherlock! ;-)

 

[RobMCFC]

That being the case you can move onto the aforementioned 3rd album Copperhead Road. The advantage of that album is that the title track is a huge line dancing song and there's loads of YT videos that you can learn moves from.

No need to thank me, just post a video of your efforts onto the thread for the highly constructive feedback you know you'll get.

Not sure I agree with the line dancing comment, but yes - after listening to Guitar Town, people should listen to the first 5 tracks of Copperhead Road.

I reckon that given he likes a bit of country, even @BimboBob would enjoy that. Plenty of things happen over the course of that first half album both musically and lyrically and it's probably as intense as country gets.

For the same reason, I think @Coatigan should give it a go - not because I think that it will win him around to country, but at least it demonstrates the distance travelled by Steve Earle's music in under two years.

 

[threespires]

Not sure I agree with the line dancing comment, but yes - after listening to Guitar Town, people should listen to the first 5 tracks of Copperhead Road.

I reckon that given he likes a bit of country, even @BimboBob would enjoy that. Plenty of things happen over the course of that first half album both musically and lyrically and it's probably as intense as country gets.

For the same reason, I think @Coatigan should give it a go - not because I think that it will win him around to country, but at least it demonstrates the distance travelled by Steve Earle's music in under two years.

At the risk of sounding judgy I was fairly appalled to find out that it was a line dancing staple not least because the subject matter is just at odds with that kind of stuff. Sort of like the mass equivalent of Cameron picking Eton Rifles. Apparently Earle is fairly pragmatic about it and I think finds it quite amusing. I take some comfort from the fact that it's apparently favoured by 'traditionalists' who also contra and square dance which in turn are derivations the European immigrants created from the polkas and waltzes of their homelands. When I think about it like that it all sounds a bit more legit and less achy breaky.

But I totally agree with your main point. There's a richness to Copperhead Road whilst at the same time still sounding rootsy and powerful. I don't mind the second half of the album but why he didn't continue it the same vein is a bit of a mystery to me. I'm sure there's many others but to my knowledge it's the only album I own that was released on my birthday, which I also share with Eminem and Wycliffe Jean :-)

 

[RobMCFC]

At the risk of sounding judgy I was fairly appalled to find out that it was a line dancing staple not least because the subject matter is just at odds with that kind of stuff. Sort of like the mass equivalent of Cameron picking Eton Rifles. Apparently Earle is fairly pragmatic about it and I think finds it quite amusing. I take some comfort from the fact that it's apparently favoured by 'traditionalists' who also contra and square dance which in turn are derivations the European immigrants created from the polkas and waltzes of their homelands. When I think about it like that it all sounds a bit more legit and less achy breaky.

But I totally agree with your main point. There's a richness to Copperhead Road whilst at the same time still sounding rootsy and powerful. I don't mind the second half of the album but why he didn't continue it the same vein is a bit of a mystery to me. I'm sure there's many others but to my knowledge it's the only album I own that was released on my birthday, which I also share with Eminem and Wycliffe Jean :-)

I'm in the same boat. There's nothing wrong with the second side but those first five songs are so powerful that it feels like a drop-off.

 

[LGWIO]

and only “Think It Over” sounds like some old country pastiche.

Sounds very generic on my first listen. Could be any country star from the last 50 years. Not sure about his voice yet but I don't like the guitar sound that much. My trouble is I like country rock...I like The Dead South...but this seems just so boring compared. There's nothing going on, just similar lyrics about losing women or having the best women on the planet. It's sitting at a bar nursing a bud light music. There's no get up and go. Just drones on and on.

I didn't get through the whole of the album on my way in to work this morning, so don't know if I missed it, but some of this did feel a little like the old country pastiche and was perhaps only missing the fact his dog died.
Totally created images of bar rooms, line dancing and stetson/baseball hat wearing plaid shirts at the bar.

Like many I own Copperhead Road which is a bit more "rock" than this selection. As with last weeks choice, this was a first album which then allowed us to see the development of the artist. As with last week, not so sure about early stuff but later stuff gets better. Obviously this may change after another couple of listens.

 

[Saddleworth2]

Thanks everyone for feedback on the 'best year in music' idea.
Of the ten responses I got safe to say that the reaction was mixed with two mainly against the idea and two supportive with caveats.

Taking on your feedback, this is the idea refined a bit:

My Best Year in Music

Write a 'love letter' to your best year in music demonstrating why;
- it was the most creative year in musical history
- it marked a step change in musical direction
- it spawned an extraordinary number of iconic albums
- a pantheon of artists emerged which would dominate music for decades
- or a combination of all of those things.

You can include up to five albums from that year (UK release dates please) which illustrate your proposal as to why it's the strongest in history.

Given the strength of album reviews you guys write I can imagine some very thought provoking and compelling 'love letters'.

The idea would be to run it in stages
1) participants nominate a year asap after launch (no duplicates)
2) they get a week to post their write ups
3) then another week to review the submissions, write up their own summary of what they found and vote for their favourite submission/year other than their own.
Clearly, this is not about listening to every album proposed, many will be well known to this group, more a bit of thinking, reading, listening and then choosing their favourite year/submission.

Most folk (including myself) wanted this on a separate thread but having thought about it more carefully I would like it to be part of this thread at the end of a cycle (replacing the usual guessing game as a one off). This would make sure there was no time contention as this will take time and I don't think it would succeed if launched parallel to the album thread. Also launching as a separate thread runs the risk of it dying a death or attracting large numbers and making the thing unmanageable. Most importantly, if its done as part of this thread it maximises the chances of you all participating and given the high quality evident weekly on here, I just think keeping it on here would make for a far richer outcome.

Anyway, enough from me.
Views?

 

[OB1]

Thanks everyone for feedback on the 'best year in music' idea.
Of the ten responses I got safe to say that the reaction was mixed with two mainly against the idea and two supportive with caveats.

Taking on your feedback, this is the idea refined a bit:

My Best Year in Music

Write a 'love letter' to your best year in music demonstrating why;
- it was the most creative year in musical history
- it marked a step change in musical direction
- it spawned an extraordinary number of iconic albums
- a pantheon of artists emerged which would dominate music for decades
- or a combination of all of those things.

You can include up to five albums from that year (UK release dates please) which illustrate your proposal as to why it's the strongest in history.

Given the strength of album reviews you guys write I can imagine some very thought provoking and compelling 'love letters'.

The idea would be to run it in stages
1) participants nominate a year asap after launch (no duplicates)
2) they get a week to post their write ups
3) then another week to review the submissions, write up their own summary of what they found and vote for their favourite submission/year other than their own.
Clearly, this is not about listening to every album proposed, many will be well known to this group, more a bit of thinking, reading, listening and then choosing their favourite year/submission.

Most folk (including myself) wanted this on a separate thread but having thought about it more carefully I would like it to be part of this thread at the end of a cycle (replacing the usual guessing game as a one off). This would make sure there was no time contention as this will take time and I don't think it would succeed if launched parallel to the album thread. Also launching as a separate thread runs the risk of it dying a death or attracting large numbers and making the thing unmanageable. Most importantly, if its done as part of this thread it maximises the chances of you all participating and given the high quality evident weekly on here, I just think keeping it on here would make for a far richer outcome.

Anyway, enough from me.
Views?

Deffo need time to prepare. Still baggsying (sp?) 1976 (I think at least two of the albums I’ve reviewed on here are from ‘76!); although I’ve not done any homework so I might decide it’s really another year.

 

[cyan]

Very very late to this discussion - but Steve Earle draws me in as he so often does.

I'm not sure where my intro to Steve Earle came - possible through listening to people like Nanci Griffith in the mid-80's. Perhaps he appeared on a show she did with various guests - that was certainly my introduction to John Prine. I certainly knew him before Copperhead road as I bought that the week it came out - then had to take my CD back a couple of time because it jumped all over the place - my wife still expects Copperhead Road to jump. But what an album once I had a version that I could listen to it was probably the most played album of 1988/9

I see there has been a lot of talk about musical genre - country rock etc. But I think Steve Earle has always been more than a musical genre - he is a political and social commentator, he is a storyteller reflecting on the issues of the world. he comes out of small town America - but his vision has always been wider. See Jerusalem and The Revolution Starts Now from 2002/4 - stunning albums from a prophetic voice.

As to Guitar Town - it picks up on elements of that he would develop as time goes on - a harsher guitar style than any country song, that gruff rocky voice, good melodies that get you tapping along. He's beginning to tell his stories of small town America - Good Ol Boy sounds like a prequel to Copperhead Road, and he is beginning to realise there is a bigger world out there - but in Down the Road it is all ahead of him

Though the miles lay long behind you
You have still got miles to go
How's love ever gonna find you
If it ain't here, it's down the road?

As you may gather, I love Steve Earle's music. Only seen him live once - at a festival where he was probably not well known, he was in a morose mood, touring new album and not really in the mood to play his "best of" - so a bit a disappointing - but I good to see him live nonetheless.