Steve Earle‘s life sounds like something out of a Cormac McCarthy novel. His father, an air traffic controller and amateur pianist, wouldn’t let his son have an electric guitar even though the young Beatles fan desperately wanted one.
He finally got an acoustic at 11, entered a school talent show at 13, and ran away from home at 14 to search for his idol, the legendary Texas songwriter Townes Van Zandt. He eventually met his hero as a 14-year-old high school dropout living in Houston with his 19-year-old uncle.
Five years later, he’d moved to Nashville and was working blue-collar jobs during the day and playing music at night. There he met Guy Clark and started playing bass in his band, and he sang on Clark’s 1975 album Old No. 1. He also appeared in the 1976 documentary Heartworn Highways about the Nashville music scene, which also features David Allan Coe, Clark, van Zandt, and Rodney Crowell. Pretty good company. Eventually he became a staff songwriter at Sunbury-Dunbar.
The list of performers who’ve played Earle’s songs is long, from Carl Perkins and Johnny Lee to Travis Tritt and Robert Earl Keen, Johnny Cash, Waylon Jennings, Joan Baez, Emmylou Harris, The Pretenders … countless others. The protégé of legends like Van Zandt, Clark, and later Jerry Jeff Walker was now a legend in his own right.
He eventually released his debut album in 1986 at age 31, Guitar Town, and it shot to No. 1 the U.S. country chart. The album is now considered a bona fide Americana classic.
Earle was arrested twice in the 1990s for drug possession and sentenced to a year in jail. He served 60 days before entering rehab.
“If I didn’t change, I’d be dead,” Earle said in press materials.
Earle has been sober ever since and wildly prolific.
“I’m just trying to stay out of trouble. If I stay busy, then I’m OK.”
Earle’s 1988 hit “Copperhead Road” was made an official state song of Tennessee in April this year. His most recent album—his 22nd—was recorded with The Dukes. Called Jerry Jeff, it consists of Earle’s versions of songs written by Walker, his third great mentor. He also released albums of van Zandt and Clark songs.
Earle’s also published both a novel, I’ll Never Get Out of This World Alive (Houghton Mifflin Harcourt 2011), and a collection of short stories, Dog House Roses (Houghton Mifflin 2003).
He eventually got that electric guitar he pined for as a kid, but these days he’s been back on the acoustic and playing solo, as he will this Friday, July 28, in the Fremont Theater as part of his Alone Again Tour (8 p.m.; all ages; $35 to $75 at eventbrite.com).
“It’s always been on my own terms,” he said. “My career maybe isn’t as big as it could be. But it would be unseemly for me to complain too much. I still feel lucky to be able to make a living doing something that I love. And I still make an embarrassing amount of money for a borderline Marxist.”
Also this week at the Fremont, see comedian and musician Tim Heidecker on Saturday, July 29 (8 p.m.; all ages; $29.50 at eventbrite.com), as part of his The Two Tims summer tour. He’s funny as heck and also a very talented songwriter and musician, so he’ll do a set of stand-up followed by a set of music. He’s released four albums, including one skewering the Trump era, and his most recent, High School, a tender examination of adolescence that garnered high praise from Pitchfork, NPR, and Paste. His TV special, An Evening with Tim Heidecker, has been watched more than 1 million times on YouTube.
Finally, Rush tribute band YYNOT brings vintage Rush and prog rock originals on Sunday, July 30 (8 p.m.; all ages; $22.50 at seetickets.us).
Vina Robles Amphitheatre
Three-time Grammy-nominated and 25-time Billboard chart-topper Joe Bonamassa brings his incendiary blues rock to Vina Robles this Wednesday, Aug. 2 (8 p.m.; $94 to $204 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com).
His current tour comes hot on the heels of Tales of Time, “a sprawling and expansive live concert film and album featuring material from his latest No. 1 studio album, Time Clocks,” according to press materials. “Filmed at the breathtaking Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Colorado in August 2022, with a stunning visual backdrop that served to highlight the beauty of the music, Tales of Time captures a stratospheric performance by the blues-rock titan, as his virtuoso guitar style and unique technique and flair elevate the evening to an almost heavenly high.”
Expect a similar concert experience this Wednesday from a man Guitar World magazine called “arguably the world’s biggest blues guitarist.”
Also don’t forget the hard rock extravaganza this week with co-headliners Motionless In White and In This Moment on Thursday, July 27 (6:30 p.m.; $39.50 to $69.50 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com), and opening acts Fit For A King and From Ashes to New. Part of The Dark Horizon Tour, the concert will feature this quartet of hard rock giants all in one location and all on one night.
And closing out July, see Latin Grammy award-winners Banda Cuisillos on Sunday, July 30 (8 p.m.; $59 to $99 at vinaroblesamphitheatre.com). This large ensemble is known for its romantic Mexican style of music as well as for the Native American costumes. They’ve had hits with “Cánchame,” “Hasta el Cielo,” “Nunca me Olvidé,” and collaborations with Grupo Codiciado with the cover “Don’t Tell Her” and with Perdidos de Sinaloa with “Me You Have In Love.”
The Siren
Morro Bay’s little nightclub that could keeps chugging along with some great shows. This week they start with Finland’s finest surf rock act The Charades as they bring their vintage ’60s and ’70s sounds to The Siren on Friday, July 28 (7 p.m.; 21-and-older; $15 at tixr.com). This marks the band’s Central Coast debut. I checked out some tracks online, and they’re reverbtastic.
I don’t know how they manage to fit on The Siren’s little stage, but the 20-piece Western Standard Time Ska Orchestra will play this Saturday, July 29 (8 p.m.; 21-and-older; $20 at tixr.com). Just their horn section alone is bigger than most other ska bands. The band features Greg Lee from Hepcat on vocals as well as guys from The Aggrolites, Beastie Boys, Gogol Bordello, See Spot, Mobtown, Kingston 10, The Debonaires, and many more.
Greasy Dashiki plays The Siren’s free summer Sunday series this Sunday, July 30 (2 to 4:30 p.m.; 21-and-older). This energetic band plays an eclectic mix of music from originals to classic covers, and oddball obscurities in an unorthodox way. Get weird and like it.
SLO Brew Rock
If you like your rock mellow, check out yacht rock tribute band Yachty by Nature this Saturday, July 29, at SLO Brew Rock (doors at 7 p.m.; 18-and-older; $20 at ticketweb.com). They’ve been playing classic covers by the likes of Michael McDonald, Hall and Oates, Boz Scaggs, Steely Dan, Toto, and Christopher Cross since 2016.
Also over at the Rock, SLO Brew Live and (((folkYEAH!))) present Lady Wray and opening act Brainstory on Wednesday, Aug. 2 (doors at 7 p.m.; 18-and-older; $25 at ticketweb.com). Lady Wray, née Nicole Monica Wray, grew up in Virginia, and as a 15-year-old, she caught the performance bug after auditioning for Missy Elliot. She was signed on the spot, and two years later in 1998, she released her debut solo album with the single “Make It Hot,” that blew up the charts and the clubs.
Mid-State Fair
I braved the fair last week, and after many years of skipping it, I’m glad I went. It was a blast, and the pro tip is to park in the Lowe’s parking lot and take the free shuttle. Nine-time Latin Grammy winners Los Tucanes de Tijuana play the Chumash Grandstand Stage on Thursday, July 27 (7:30 p.m.; $35 to $75 at midstatefair.com), and you can enjoy an evening of music and wine with classic rock band Styx on Friday, July 28 (7:30 p.m.; $35 to $75 at midstatefair.com).
More music …
As usual, the place to be this Friday, July 29 is the Mission Plaza for the next Concerts in the Plaza featuring Ghost/Monster frontwoman Nataly Lola playing a solo set at 5 p.m., following by headliner Brass Mash playing their horn and percussion instrumental mash-ups of popular songs starting at 6 p.m. Brass Mash is a first-class party band.
LA-based urban pop band Undecided Future plays their award-winning funk at Vespera Resort on the Pismo Beach boardwalk this Saturday, July 29, on the hotel’s Starlight Lawn. If I’m not mistaken, this is the resort’s very first outdoor concert. The public is invited to make a day of it and enjoy “Grill and Chill” barbecue on the lawn starting at noon, with the band playing from 3 to 6 p.m.
Modern blues rock quartet Devil’s Game plays Atascadero’s Outlaws Bar, Grill & Casino this Saturday, July 29 (5 to 8 p.m.; 21-and-older). They’ve added a sax player, so things are about to get extra cool.
The Basin Street Regulars are hosting another hot jazz concert this Sunday, July 30, at the Pismo Beach Vets Hall (Jam session starts at 11 a.m., concert at 1; $15 at the door or online at my805tix.com). The Talia Ortega Quartet opens. She’s a multi-instrumentalist (flute, saxophone) and terrific singer. Swing and jump blues act The Jump Jax featuring singer-songwriter Ted Waterhouse is the headliner.
Get in it to win it!
Time’s running out to submit your recordings to the 2023 New Times Music Awards, which is accepting entries through Monday, Aug. 14, at 5 p.m. You can enter up to 13 songs in the six genre categories and the songwriters contest, as well one album. Genres include Country/Folk/Americana, Rock/Alternative, Hip-Hop/Rap, R&B/Blues, Open, and Youth. Winners will play a showcase at SLO Brew Rock on Friday, Nov. 3. You can find the rules at newtimesslo.com/sanluisobispo/ntmarules/page. Δ
Contact Senior Staff Writer Glen Starkey at gstarkey@newtimesslo.com.
This article appears in 55 Fiction 2023.