Guitar Town is the debut album of singer-songwriter Steve Earle and his band, the Dukes.
I seem to recall stories when the album came out of how Earle was difficult to work with, had trouble getting songs finished, had disagreements with the record company and such. Whether they were true stories or not – my memory isn’t as good as I remember it used to be (?) – when it was finally released in 1986, it topped the Billboard country album charts and the title song reached #7 on the country singles charts. Accolades were many, among them two Grammy nominations in 1987.
While some critics and country-rock fans tend to diss the album as rather shallow and pandering to a sort of “cowboy chic” ethos (a different critic’s term, not mine), the majority have embraced it as a wonderful achievement, one of the finest syntheses of country and rock ever. In my not always humble opinion, it is in many respects Earle’s best album. Though Earle’s songwriting might be said to have improved on latter albums, to my ears those unfortunately sound heavy and congested by comparison. Those latter discs have good songs here and there to be sure, but it’s like he’s trying to find parts for all his different side people to fit into, and that does not make for good tunes.
But on Guitar Town there are many excellent, outstanding songs, well written, performed, and produced. You have to have an inherent dislike of country-rock flavored music to totally dislike this stuff (and I will concede that there are such people in the world). The title cut is a twangin’, rockin’ number that deserved its run up the charts. “Good Ol’ Boy (Gettin’ Tough)” is another upbeat song with heartland appeal: “I was born in the land of plenty, now there ain’t enough.” “My Old Friend the Blues” is a slower piece, a white-boy’s attempt at the singin’ blues – and not totally blowing it. “Someday” builds from an easy start into a steady burn that becomes a statement of ambition.
There are a number of impressive aspects to this album. Among them is of course the acknowledged sheer talent and energy that the new artist brought to the table. But there is also the sound – clean and well-recorded. I think just about any copy of it is going to sound good, but it has seen reissues and remastering, including a 2002 SACD and 2012 Music on Vinyl 180g LP. I have a copy of the latter, and it is very nice indeed. CD releases may have bonus tracks of some interest.
My rock’n’roll heart makes my favorite cut on the album “Goodbye Is All We’ve Got Left.” One reviewer called it, “the most mainstream song here, and probably the disc’s weakest song.” Bah! – what do reviewers know anyway? (And yes, I know – I’m reviewing…) At least he concluded his review by calling the album, “A modern classic,” and that I certainly will not argue with.