Customer Reviews

Just an American Boy

5 star:		(16)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Outstanding! A must-have for all serious Steve Earle fans. Very much replicates the live concert experience, so if you missed him during the JERUSALEM tour this year, or if you caught the tour but have been wondering why he doesn't play in your living room every night, you will be delighted to find that now he does. :) Bribe the neighbors, crank the volume - these boys will blow you away. The sound is raw and vibrant, the energy often explosive, the feeling warm and pulsing with life. (Kinda like a Steve Earle concert.) If you're looking for a work of engineering brilliance, a clean, crisp sound, stick to the studio albums. If you're looking for Steve Earle and his Dukes (regular and bluegrass) to come and play in your living room, you're in the right place.

This said, I'd recommend first-time listeners start with one of his studio albums, rather than this one. Steve Earle can be an acquired taste, and there are better places to start than a live concert recording. When in doubt, EL CORAZON is always a good introduction.

Songs that stand out: Relentlessly powerful, driving, energetic versions of "Amerika v.6.o", "Ashes To Ashes", "The Unrepentant" and "Copperhead Road", an equally spirited and rocking "Harlan Man" (it reaches down so deep it's almost funky), outstanding renditions of "Jerusalem", "Jonathon's Song", "South Nashville Blues" (I swear you can see the devil sitting in his rocking chair), an understated tribute to Townes Van Zandt in a "Rex's Blues/Fort Worth Blues" medley that goes to that place beyond words, and "The Time You Waste", a quiet gem by Justin Earle that's growing on me by the minute. "Billy Austin", powerful and heart-stopping as always.

You pretty much need this album. Open your window - let the music inside.

I had the inmense pleasure and honor of taking in a Steve Earle and the Dukes show in West Palm Beach several months ago... The performance I attended was several notches better than the one recorded for this two-disc live album. For starters, that evening Steve played a set almost twice as long as the one included here, which featured all of these songs, plus (as far as I can remember): NYC, Hardcore Troubadour, Taneytown, Some Dreams, What's A Simple Man to Do?, Go Amanda, The Truth, and Some Day, plus a cover of the Youngbloods' burnt-out-hippie-classic Get Together. Additionally, Steve and his band were a little better that night, and the sound carried much better than it seemed to carry in the recorded performance. That, however, is not to say that this live album does not have its merits: Steve and the Dukes kick the stuffing out of several songs, most notably Ashes to Ashes, The Unrepentant, and the much-maligned John Walker's Blues. Anyways, compared to Shut Up and Die Like an Aviator, the concert with Guy Clark and Townes Van Zant, and the Trascendental Blues DVD, this recorded performance is, by far far far the best recorded live Steve Earle and the Dukes.

One other comment, specifically on John Walker's Blues... True, Steve over-simplifies matters a bit on this song, blaming hollow American culture on young John Walker Lindh's conversion to fundamentalist Islam. True, the tone of the song tends to be preachy. However: 1)those who want Walker executed for "treason" also over-simplify Walker's motives, as well as the motives of the political opposition here and abroad; and 2)even though it is not one of my favorites, musically, I do respect Steve's bravery in recording it and playing it live, night in and night out, often being booed and jeered by one or two clueless "fans" who go to his concerts expecting Toby Keith. I also respect his independence of judgement and his beliefs, and support his right to express them, not only as a huge fan of his, but also as a citizen of this nation.

October 27, 2003
Steve Earle
Just An American Boy
Very Good EXCELLENT but not yet Great

Among musicologists "live" albums are rated separately from studio and greatest hits albums. Probably the most heralded live albums are The Who's, 'Live at Leeds' and then The Allman Brother's, 'Live at the Fillmore.' Steve Earle's latest, 'Just An American Boy: The Audio Documentary' deserves consideration as a landmark live album. While rappers have successfully turned their "art" into a money printing bling-bling caricature of the ghetto, it has been a long time since Rock Music has been this dangerous.

This is a two disc set and there is plenty of rambling on the microphone between songs. Make no mistake, while the music is excellent, what makes this record so interesting is that Earle uses his liberal political bantering to tie together his songs and give his performance a sense of continuity. If you are offended by overt political statements you won't enjoy this record; on-the-other-hand, those banterings are what make this album so inspiring: the listener's political beliefs are challenged in the best Woody Guthrie tradition.

In regard to the music, Earle has hit a stride of excellence. Earle is a powerful thought provoking song writer. Like the folk music of the '60's, Earle has tapped into the long forgotten art of anti-war protest. Earle can write "great" songs with poignant words and execute with brilliance. Originally marketed as a country artist Earle has become the political sage of edgy Americana. This record is dangerous because the words and the related call to action & thought are two things that the vapid FM rock music of today has forgotten. Based on this disc Earle could well be the finest example of Americana recording today.

I almost feel sorry for the right wingers and supporters of capital punishment who still can't resist Steve Earle's music. It reminds me of my struggle to put aside the gross flaws in Richard Wagner's character in order to enjoy The Ring of the Nibelung. Thing is, when you're good you're good, and when you're right you're right. Or left. Steve Earle is a thinking person's patriot, in the same vein as Woody Guthrie and Bob Dylan, and he does the world a favor by using his phenomenal talent, imagination, experience and guts as a bully pulpit for his deeply considered ethics. If you don't like Mr. Earle's politics, go with the likes of Toby Keith. Then you can have short-sighted, reactionary pablum and bad music too.

In beginning this review, I'll paraphrase the old adage about the first amendment by saying that I don't agree with everything Steve Earle says on his new album "Just an American Boy," but sure do admire his courage in saying it. The title track of the album was Earle's controversial attempt to get inside the mind of John Walker Lindh, for which Earle was roundly and unfairly criticized in Dixie Chicks-style fashion by the radical right. Earle uses the song as the centerpiece of a double-live recording (and also a movie) in which he laments the current state of political affairs in America.

Like Howard Dean, Earle was an adamant opponent of the Iraq War from the very beginning, and as such he carries a lot of credibility. For some reason, it's become acceptable for flag waving morons like Charlie Daniels and Toby Keith to express their political views, but when serious-minded opponents of America's current unelected regime do it they are condemend.

That said, this album has more merit as work of protest than it does musically. The sound quality is occasionally poor and Earle's singing is sometimes quite ragged. Nevertheless, it is an important political statement that needs to be heard. As Earle himeself says at one point: "It is never, ever, unpatriotic to question any f---ing thing in a democracy."

A'men, brother.

hey kids!

this is the rawest raunchiest alternative southern country rock to hit the market in 20 years!

I use the word "kids" after reading some of the political rants on other reviews. kids who obviously have been brainwashed by the government and forced into domination by a brainwashed society.

the idea of America exists only in the minds of people.
the reality of America isn't the same.

Steve Earle expresses himself! - don't you?


in the end
Steve Earle Rocks!
and so does this live album........

This CD is well worth the price. it's one of the best live sets you could even hope to hear him play, much less own. Perfect mix of rock, blues,bluegrass (real bluegrass),and country. All done with motivated speeches and cuthroat honesty. A must have.

This is a great document of Steve Earle's live show. Incredible songs...incredible words. However...the poor recording...lots of wow and flutter drops this from 5 stars to 3. I first listened to this CD yesterday in my car and thought something was wrong with my CD player. Got it home and played it on two other players...same lousy sound. This is probably the worse sounding SE CD I've ever heard.

In times like these, it takes a lot of courage for an artist like Steve Earle to speak the truth, when most people feel comfortable believing lies. Most of the great songs from his post-prison life are here, performed with exuberant energy, as well as a few classics like "Copperhead Road". The sound quality is as best as it can be for a live recording, and my only beef is the fact that the CD could've been longer. When Earle does get on the soapbox, he speaks with conviction, passion and humor. The controversial "John Walker's Blues", unlike the jingoistic and reactionary Toby Keith propaganda, at least provokes thought and makes us question why someone would make the choices that they do, rather than giving us pat answers carved in stone, even if it misses the mark. It's sad that words like "truth", "justice", "civil rights", "compassion" and "understanding" - qualities which Earle promotes and which have always been misrepresented as "communistic" - have become dirty words in this current political atmosphere where social darwinism and fearmongering are the norm.

If you walk around everyday, like I do, wondering what the hell happened to this country this CD will soothe your soul. It's raw, it's rough, and you can even dance too much of it. You'll laugh, cry, and pump your fist in the air. For the last month, I have been unable to extract this CD from my player. Steve's not asking for any special treatment. He's not trying to tell anyone how to live. He doesn't have all the answers, but what he does have is a profound sense of fairness and justice (two things sorely lacking in 21st century America). We, as a country, are fat and lazy and we love to blame the messes we create on everyone in the world but the United States. We should expect more from ourselves and our government. Steve's been down lower than most people and I've never heard him blame anyone but himself for his problems. He has seen a different America than most of us and I am glad he lived through it and continues to share his talent and experiences with us. Five Stars!