Amoeba Music

Outlaw country artist Steve Earle has made in his mark in the folk, country, and rock scenes over the past three decades as a songwriter and producer. He is the author of a memoir, a play, a novel, and a collection of short stories. Earle has also appeared as an...More

Outlaw country artist Steve Earle has made in his mark in the folk, country, and rock scenes over the past three decades as a songwriter and producer. He is the author of a memoir, a play, a novel, and a collection of short stories. Earle has also appeared as an actor on a long list of films and TV shows, including 30 Rock, Treme, and The Wire. He began his career as a staff songwriter in Nashville before going on to record his debut EP, Pink & Black, in 1982. Earle's debut full-length, Guitar Town, appeared in 1986 and was an instant success, with both the title track and single "Goodbye's All We've Got Left" reaching the Billboard Top 10.

In 1989, Earle's Copperhead Road blended folk, traditional Irish, bluegrass, and metal music and featured a guest appearance by The Pogues. 1990's The Hard Way featured a more rock-influenced sound before returning to an acoustic, folk genre feel with 1996's Grammy-nominated Train a Comin'. In '96, Earle started his own label, E-Squared Records. He released the country/rockabilly/rock fusion LP I Feel Alright and his acclaimed 1997 El Corazon LP on the label. By 1999, Earle was dabbling in bluegrass, having recorded The Mountain with the Del McCoury Band.

Earle got political on Jerusalem (2002) and The Revolution Starts Now (2004), both of which were critical of the Iraq war and the Bush administration's policies. The latter album won a Grammy for Best Folk Album. His twelfth studio album, Washington Square Serenade, landed in 2007, the same year he appeared as the character of Walon on The Wire. A year later, he produced Joan Baez's Day After Tomorrow. He earned a third Grammy win for his 2009 album Townes, a tribute to Townes Van Zandt. In 2011, he published a short story collection, Doghouse Roses, and a novel that shared the name of his fourteenth studio album, I'll Never Get Out of This World Alive. Earle teamed up with Shawn Colvin for 2016's Colvin & Earle. His most recent release is 2017's So You Wannabe an Outlaw.