Customer Reviews

Copperhead Road (Rstr) (Dlx) (Exp) (Dig)

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Copperhead Road (1988) was Steve Earle's declaration of independence from the Nashville establishment, and it also became an important milestone in the early years of the alt-country music movement. Instrumentally diverse, the songs feature a mandolin, dobro, banjo, pedal steel, lap steel and harmonica rocking with the electric guitars, piano and drums. Celtic/outlaw-country/rock n' roll/bluegrass. There's plenty of attitude here, too.

Think backwoods whiskey stills and pot farms, trouble with the law, guns, Vietnam Vets and desperado love songs here. Steve Earle knows his way around just fine, and he's quite capable of weaving interesting yarns that effectively bring the tough people, places and situations he sings about to life. On Copperhead Road, Earle looks and sounds like a southern biker version of Springsteen/Mellencamp. One who can't seem to stay out of trouble. He does surprise us with the tender alt-bluegrass of Nothing But A Child, a touching meditation on the birth of Jesus that's very enjoyable.

The Devil's Right Hand tells the tale of a 19th Century teenager and his fascination with guns, which eventually gets him into trouble after he shoots a miner who cheated him in a card game.

Not guilty I said, You've got the wrong man
Nothing touched the trigger but the devil's right hand

The title song tells the story of an Army veteran who returns home to the family moonshine business in Tennessee after two tours of duty in Vietnam. He has PTSD and a new plan to grow Columbian and Mexican marijuana for profit.

Well the D.E.A.'s got a chopper in the air
I wake up screaming like I'm back over there
I learned a thing or two from ol' Charlie don't you know
You better stay away from Copperhead Road

This Deluxe Edition of Copperhead Road features a bonus disc that includes seventeen live recordings from shows in Raleigh, North Carolina and Calgary, Canada. This is great stuff here, and Earle performs live versions of Bruce Springsteen's Nebraska, The Rolling Stones' Dead Flowers, Gram Parsons' Wheels, and his own Guitar Town, the hit single from his debut album.

If you're a Steve Earle fan, don't miss out on this deluxe version of Copperhead Road. Either one of these two discs is worth the price of admission here, but both of them together in one package make this a must-have.

"...Mama said the pistol is the devil's right hand."

This is one of Steve Earle's best albums, and the added concerts on this Deluxe Edition are more of the same quality. Worth trading in your old copy.

The extra cd live edition makes a great reason to invest a few more bucks in this if you're a Steve Earle fan or want to get a sense of how he's changed and stayed the same over the years. The part that stayed the same is the constant desire to get it right, whatever "right" may be. When compared to his last works, this collection portrays an angry, incredibly gifted musician who really cares about what he does. One also gets the sense that he realized what talent he had and seemed to be in awe (haunted?) by the weight of it. Earle's talent has only gotten better and Copperhead Road plus the live set prove that he started at a pretty lofty place to begin with.

After coming to the conclusion that Washington Square Serenade (WSS) is possibly the best thing Steve Earle has ever done I was prompted to revisit his back catalouge and have not been disappointed. Given how impressed I was with WSS I seem to be listening to Copperhead Road with a new appreciation. "Townes" now seems to be entrenched at the top of my play list. Choice Stuff.

ranks right up there with "train a comin", "guitar town", and "the mountain" the sound seems better than on the original, so there must have been some good "remastering" don. and, the bonus cuts from live shows are great.