Guitar Town is the debut studio album from American singer-songwriter Steve Earle, released on March 5, 1986. It topped the Billboard country album charts, and the title song reached #7 on the country singles charts. Earle was also nominated for two 1987 Grammy Awards, Best Male Country Vocalist and Best Country Song, for the title track.
| Guitar Town | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | March 5, 1986 | |||
| Recorded | 1985 | |||
| Studio | Sound Stage Studios and Emerald Sound Studios, Nashville, Tennessee | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 34:35 | |||
| Label | MCA | |||
| Producer | Emory Gordy, Jr., Tony Brown Associate Producer: Richard Bennett | |||
| Steve Earle chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Singles from Guitar Town | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |  [3] |
| Robert Christgau | A−[4] |
Production
editThe album was recorded in late 1985 and early 1986 in Nashville, Tennessee, at Sound Stage Studio. Overdubs were later recorded at Nashville's Emerald Studios. It was one of the first country music albums to be recorded digitally, utilizing the Mitsubishi X-800. Each of the album's original ten tracks was either written or co-written by Earle.
Reception and legacy
editIn 2003, the album was ranked number 489 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. In 2012, the magazine ranked it at #482 on a revised list, calling it "the rocker's version of country, packed with songs about hard living in the Reagan Eighties."[5]
In 2006, it ranked 27th on CMT's "40 Greatest Albums in Country Music". In 2016, the album was re-released as a 30th Anniversary Edition with a corresponding tour.
The title track was later covered by Emmylou Harris. "Someday" was later covered by Shawn Colvin on her cover album, Cover Girl.
"My Old Friend The Blues" was covered by The Proclaimers.
Track listing
editAll songs written by Steve Earle unless otherwise noted
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Guitar Town" | 2:33 | |
| 2. | "Goodbye's All We've Got Left" | 3:16 | |
| 3. | "Hillbilly Highway" | Earle, Jimbeau Hinson | 3:38 |
| 4. | "Good Ol' Boy (Gettin' Tough)" | Earle, Richard Bennett | 3:58 |
| 5. | "My Old Friend the Blues" | 3:07 | |
| 6. | "Someday" | 3:46 | |
| 7. | "Think It Over" | Earle, Bennett | 2:13 |
| 8. | "Fearless Heart" | 4:04 | |
| 9. | "Little Rock 'n' Roller" | 4:49 | |
| 10. | "Down the Road" | Earle, Hinson, Tony Brown | 2:37 |
Added in a later reissue:
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 11. | "State Trooper [live]" | Bruce Springsteen | 5:12 |
Personnel
edit- The Dukes
- Bucky Baxter – pedal steel guitar, guitar on "State Trooper"
- Richard Bennett – guitar, 6-string bass, slap bass, associate producer
- Ken Moore – organ, synthesizer, keyboards on "State Trooper"
- Emory Gordy, Jr. – bass, mandolin, producer
- Harry Stinson – drums, vocals
- Reno Kling - bass on "State Trooper"
- Michael McAdam - guitar on "State Trooper"
- Additional musicians
- Paul Franklin – pedal steel guitar on "Fearless Heart" and "Someday"
- John Barlow Jarvis – synthesizer, piano
- Steve Nathan – synthesizer
- Technical
- Chuck Ainlay - recording, mixing
- Alan Messer - photography
Charts
edit
Weekly chartsedit
|
Year-end chartsedit
|
Singles
edit| Year | Single | Peak chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| US Country | CAN Country | ||
| 1986 | "Hillbilly Highway" | 37 | 46 |
| "Guitar Town" | 7 | 7 | |
| "Someday" | 28 | 31 | |
| 1987 | "Goodbye's All We Got Left" | 8 | 10 |
Certifications
edit| Region | Certification | Certified units/sales |
|---|---|---|
| Canada (Music Canada)[9] | Platinum | 100,000^ |
| United States (RIAA)[10] | Gold | 500,000^ |
|
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone. | ||
References
edit- ^ Tannenbaum, Rob (January 26, 1989). "Steve Earle Copperhead Road". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on August 7, 2009. Retrieved March 28, 2009.
- ^ a b Conrad, Karen (2016). "Steve Earle - Guitar Town". In Dimery, Robert (ed.). 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die. London: Cassell Illustrated. p. 558.
- ^ Deming, Mark. "Guitar Town - Steve Earle". AllMusic. Retrieved February 5, 2012.
- ^ "CG: Steve Earle". Robert Christgau. October 4, 2007. Retrieved February 5, 2012.
- ^ Wenner, Jann S., ed. (2012). Rolling Stone – Special Collectors Issue – The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. USA: Wenner Media Specials. ISBN 978-7-09-893419-6
- ^ "Steve Earle Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
- ^ "Steve Earle Chart History (Top Country Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
- ^ "Top Country Albums – Year-End 1986". Billboard. Retrieved May 31, 2021.
- ^ "Canadian album certifications – Steve Earle – Guitar Town". Music Canada. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
- ^ "American album certifications – Steve Earle – Guitar Town". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved August 19, 2022.
External links
edit- Guitar Town (Adobe Flash) at Radio3Net (streamed copy where licensed)