Seeing Steve Earle and his band the Dukes perform live means taking a journey into the lexicon of the American songwriter. Earle is obviously accomplished in his own right as one of the pioneers of what many now call Americana, but his style has always felt more real in that it is a true aggregation of musical history interpreted through his own worldview. All of this has made Earle, at 67, both an elder statesman and a contemporary. Now he is gearing up to release his tribute to the great songwriter Jerry Jeff Walker (entitled Jerry Jeff – PRE-ORDER) on August 26th, one of several albums he has released paying tribute to his idols. Earle is currently on tour supporting the release, and he stopped in Portland, Oregon for a show at Revolution Hall on Thursday, August 18th.
It came as little surprise that Earle and his band wasted no time in tapping into Jerry Jeff Walker’s catalog. The freewheeling “Gettin’ By” was followed by “Charlie Dunn,” two songs that capture Walker’s loose and rambling Texas songwriting style. These were given plenty of Texas honky tonk flair by Earle and his band. In between songs, Earle shared a little history and plenty of anecdotes about Walker while weaving in his own personal connections to the music. This served as a proper preface for songs like “Wheel,” “Gypsy Songman,” “I Makes Money (Money Don’t Make Me),” and the timeless “Mr. Bojangles” played like a slow country waltz.
With his Jerry Jeff Walker portion of the show complete, Earle launched into some of his biggest fan favorites. The catchy combination of “Someday,” “Guitar Town” and “I Ain’t Ever Satisfied” definitely kicked up the energy and provided a brief interlude of “hits.” From here Earle switched gears to more of his old timey material, with songs like the bluegrass-infused “Dixieland” giving way to the Irish-laced “Galway Girl” only to segue into an expansive “Mystery Train, Pt. II.” Following the unexpectedly placed yet welcome inclusion of “Copperhead Road,” the band got down to business with the slinky, down and dirty blues of “You’re the Best Lover That I Ever Had.” This final portion of the main set included a handful of highlights, including “You’re Still Standin’ There” with Earle playing harmonica and Eleanor Whitmore taking on the Lucinda Williams vocal part, the gritty country-folk of “Sparkle and Shine,” and an especially moving version of the coalminer song “It’s About Blood” with Earle angrily saying the names of 29 miners who died in the explosive incident that inspired the song. The band would finish the set with the stomping honky tonker “So You Wanna Be An Outlaw” and the twangy alt-country anthem “Fixin’ to Die.”
Just like he started, Earle would close out with a handful of covers. He would pay poignant tribute to his late son – and onetime Portland resident – Justin Townes Earle with a take on “Harlem River Blues” before going into his own song “City of Immigrants” and ending with pair of covers that have long been part of the Americana canon. Taking on the Grateful Dead’s “Casey Jones” and The Band’s “Rag Mama Rag” – both staples in his live shows as of late – Earle drew his own connection to this music while reminding the audience of his own place in the rich history of not just Americana, but great American songsmiths.
