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 | |||
| 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 | ||||
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| Singles from Guitar Town | ||||
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| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |  [3] |
| Robert Christgau | A−[4] |
Production
The 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 ten tracks was either written or co-written by Earle.
Reception and legacy
In 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
All 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" | Bennett, Earle | 2:13 |
| 8. | "Fearless Heart" | 4:04 | |
| 9. | "Little Rock 'n' Roller" | 4:49 | |
| 10. | "Down the Road" | Tony Brown, Earle, Hinson | 2:37 |
| 11. | "State Trooper [live]" | Bruce Springsteen | 5:12 |
Personnel
- 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
Year-end charts
| Chart (1986) | Position |
|---|---|
| US Top Country Albums (Billboard)[8] | 41 |
Singles
| 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
| 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
External links
- Guitar Town (Adobe Flash) at Radio3Net (streamed copy where licensed)