Steve Earle – Cumberland Caves Tennessee – photo by Jim Jacob
Legendary Alt. Country/Blues/Folk-rocker Steve Earle is returning to Australia in 2016 (Bluesfest Touring).
The hard-core troubadour, Grammy award-winner, music chameleon has released around twenty studio albums since 1986’s remarkable Guitar Town. A protégé of legendary songwriters Townes Van Zandt & Guy Clark, Earle is a master storyteller in his own right, with his songs being recorded by Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Emmylou Harris, The Pretenders and Joan Baez. He’s had nine Top 40 singles, including the anthemic “Copperhead Road”.
His latest 2015 release Terraplane is his first ever Blues album, which peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Blues Chart. I saw Steve Earle & The Dukes twice within a week just this September, once in the Cumberland Caves in Tennessee and in Nashville as part of the Americana Music Festival. Both sets featured a number of the new blues songs and they were excellent live.
Chris Masterson and Eleanor Whitmore of The Dukes – photo Jim Jacob
I’ve seen Earle many times now. Maybe The Cumberland Cave show was the best ever. It could’ve been due to the incredible venue (100 metres or 330 feet below ground) or its pristine acoustics. It might have been the band’s enjoyment of playing songs from his new album or the fact that the new material simply highlighted how good the band is (and Earle for that matter who moved from harmonica, acoustic guitar, electric guitar and mandolin effortlessly). That night most of the songs from the new album were featured, along with favourites “Guitar Town”, “Someday”, “Copperhead Road” “Can’t Remember If We Said Goodbye” (‘the first song he wrote sober’), “Galway Girl” a chilling “Cocaine Cannot Kill My Pain”. A bruising version of Hendrix’s “Hey Joe” tested the walls of the cavern and a three-song encore included his new song “Mississippi It’s Time”, denouncing the use of the Confederate flag in the Mississippi State ensign.
Almost a two-hour set, twenty eights songs or so. The Dukes featured long-time members Will Rigby on drums, Kelly Looney on bass, along with Chris Masterson on guitar and Eleanor Whitmore on violin (the latter two from the duo The Mastersons).
I suggest we will get more of the same during the Australian shows, with the current version of The Dukes really packing a punch, so therefore a tour not to be missed.
Also appearing at Byron Bay Bluesfest on 25th and 26th of March 2016 & Port Fairy Folk Festival 2016
Tour Dates – Tickets here
11 March 2016 The Astor Theatre Perth
16 March 2016 Rooty Hill RSL Sydney
17 March 2016 Metro Theatre, Sydney
18 March 2016 Melbourne Recital Centre
19 March 2016 Melbourne Recital Centre<a
22 March 2016 Mackay Entertainment and Convention Centre, Mackay
24 March 2016 Tanks Cairns
Kelly Looney of The Dukes – photo Jim Jacob
