Songwriting is an art that very few can master. Stripping a song down to its bones with just a voice and acoustic guitar shines a light on that talent. Steve Earle and John Eddie are currently on tour doing just that. Nearly 40 years of amazing songs are presented in their rawest form, showing the beauty of their lyrics and melodies. Please scroll below for the MisplacedStraws Steve Earle concert review.
The show began with New Jersey rocker John Eddie. Those of us of a certain age fondly remember Eddie and his Springsteen-esq bar band, so hearing his songs in a solo acoustic format is a treat. Eddie mentioned how he usually is with a band, so the experience was also different for him. Eddie’s set was a joy to watch. His humor came through in his banter with the crowd and was perfectly offset by the more serious subjects in his lyrics. Watching him glide effortlessly from the heartbreaking beauty of “Cassettes” into the hysterical double entendre of “I Got A Big Deck” was a pleasure. Hopefully, a tour like this will lead to more opportunities to see John Eddie perform with just an acoustic guitar.
Steve Earle must be part of any discussion of great American songwriters. Earle has released over 20 studio albums since his breakthrough debut record Guitar Town in 1986. A walk through his discography is a walk through his life, women, drugs, politics, loss, it’s all laid out in perfectly written song. Earle has put together a set that shows exactly who he is. The night could be roughly divided into segments, beginning with some crowd favorites, songs about women, a topic he excels at writing about, and songs dealing with loss and tragedy.
Now 69 years old, Earle’s voice has become even more gravelly, bringing these acoustic versions deeper into the blues. Early segues, such as “The Devil’s Right Hand” into “My Old Friend the Blues” show that this will be a special night. Earle is on tour supporting his newly released live record Alone Again (Live), the setlist and crowd banter mirror that record but also expand on it by adding tracks like “Fearless Heart”, “Angel is the Devil”, and a pair of special covers I’ll talk about in a bit.
Being a great storyteller tends to go hand-in-hand with being a great songwriter. Earle tells the stories of the women that inspired songs like “Goodbye” and “Sparkle and Shine”, but he is also completely open and honest in talking about playing “CCKMP” after “South Nashville Blues” so no one thinks he is glorifying past drug use. He tells the story of the West Virginia mining disaster that inspired “It’s About Blood”, as well as the stories behind the two covers in the set.
Earle recorded tribute records in honor of his lost mentors Townes van Zandt, Guy Clark, and Jerry Jeff Walker, and told the story of Jerry Jeff Walker before his cover of “Mr. Bojangles”. The most powerful moment of the night came as Earle told the story of his son, Justin Townes Earle, and the tribute record he never thought he would have to record. Earle gave a brutally honest telling of his son’s death from an overdose of fentanyl before a haunting rendition of Justin’s “Harlem River Blues”.
I love a big rock show, but in the hands of a true artist, there is nothing more emotional than a solo acoustic set. John Eddie and Steve Earle are the perfect musicians, songwriters, and artists to present a night like this.
